While many people have a talent, few can say that they juggle like science teacher Michael Slania.
Slania, who grew up in Chicago, started off by doing yo-yoing with friends and later learned how to juggle.
“I started yo-yoing after seeing an episode of The Simpsons. Later, my friends started juggling for my high school talent show, so that was when I was introduced. When I went to college, they had a juggling club where I met other jugglers and really got into it,” Slania said.
Slania can juggle up to five balls at a time. He can also do four clubs, and his goal is to get to five. He is also skilled at the Chinese yo-yo.
Slania, a graduate of the University of Illinois at Chicago, found his passion for teaching science while in college.
“I like figuring out why things happen and learning the explanations behind it. My college had a teaching of chemistry program, and that’s what got me here,” Slania said.
This will be Slania’s 11th year teaching. Prior to coming to Baldwin, he was a substitute at South Park and he has taught in both Chicago and Los Angeles.
Slania believes that the warm welcome he has received from the high school community has made his transition to Baldwin less challenging.
“The staff and students here have been awesome. There’s been a lot of first starts for me in my career, and this was one of the easiest ones,” Slania said.
Slania knows what he wants students to see in him.
“I think they can look forward to having a teacher who is thoughtful, empathetic, and flexible – but also challenges them to do better,” Slania said.
