Patch caught up with North County High School biology and forensic science teacher Reed Cooper in May.

Patch stopped him to ask Five Questions.

Glen Burnie Patch: How long have you been in education?
Reed Cooper: Five years. All at North County.

Patch: How did you decide to go into education?
Cooper: I was initially a researcher at [Johns] Hopkins and I worked with graduate students and physicians and I was always teaching them techniques. So teaching kind of came natural to me. I wanted more students to go into science fields. A lot of the students that were coming in are the top, higher level students so I wanted to do more for the rest of the group. You know, the average student and also minority students.

Patch: What made you decide to teach at the high school level?
Cooper: At the high school level they go through a transition. They're teenagers and that's when they really transition to being an adult. So I thought this would be the best opportunity to help them get ready for the next level—the college level. I thought I could reason more with a teenager. They can take direction.

Patch: Where did you go to high school? College? What degree do you hold?
Cooper: I went to Baltimore Polytechnic Institute [for high school]. I went to undergrad at Norfolk State University and graduate school at Johns Hopkins University. My bachelor's is in biology and I have a master's in biotechnology.

Patch: What do you do in your free time?
Cooper: I have a new son, he's 2 years old. So he keeps me busy. I do a lot of things with him. Reading. And I've taken up guitar.