Aaron Somoroff, the Academic Support Leader at The Bridge Golf Foundation, recently fielded some questions from Executive Director and Co-Founder Farrell Evans.
Aaron Somoroff with Antonio Cortorreal.
FE: What are your duties as an academic support leader at the Foundation?
AS: I work closely with the young men at the Foundation to strengthen their academic abilities. This includes the standard tutoring session with one to three students at a time. However, my goals go deeper than simply preparing them for their next test, or helping them with their homework. I want to inspire them to want to learn, and to show them how they can become better students and individuals.
FE: In the summer of 2016, you helped a couple of our students prepare for their regents exam in Algebra after they had failed it. The young men passed on their second tries. Tell us about that process.
AS: Those two are smart, capable young men, so I was very disappointed when they failed the exam in the spring. Preparing them for their second try required motivating them to study on their own. I made it very clear to them that math is hard, and it is okay that it is hard. Nobody can do math, or anything, without practice. Once I made it clear to them that there were not going to be any shortcuts, and that we were all in this together, they really bought in. It was clear that they were beginning to understand what it takes to succeed in school, and in life: you have to put in the time and care. They deserve a lot of credit. It was very inspiring to see them pick themselves up and succeed after failing the first time. It was a fantastic experience for me.
FE: You are completing a degree in physics at City College after earning an economics degree at Boston University. Why did you make that shift?
AS: I’ve always fostered a love for math and science, but I haven’t always been academically inclined. I became a very good track athlete in high school and went on to run for Boston University. When I enrolled there, I wanted to choose a major that would be employable, but not too academically rigorous, so I chose economics. I still had an interest in math and took a few calculus courses along the way. It dawned on me rather quickly that I had real interest in the subject, so I added mathematics as a major at BU. My aptitude and interest in applied math led me to physics. The source of my passion for math was its application for understanding the physical world. When I graduated from BU with a B.A. in economics and mathematics, I new that I wanted to continue studying physics, this time really giving it my all in the classroom. It was an easy decision. I chose to chase my goals.
FE: What people or events have influenced you most in your academic and personal development?
AS: For people it is easily my parents. I would not be the man I am today without them. Through all my endeavors and phases, they have always supported me. They were at all my track meets in high school, and when I made the switch to physics, they stood by me and never doubted my abilities. They taught me that you must always pursue your goals; life is too short not to.
A key event in my life took place in my sophomore year at BU. It was probably the bottom of my academic career. I was doing very poorly in second year calculus, and was contemplating dropping math altogether. Around that time I learned about Taylor’s Theorem. Basically, it is a clever way to approximate values of functions when the true values are not attainable. That kind of lit a spark for me. I was very impressed by the applications and simplicity of that theorem. I realized that I had not been giving math the care and time the subject requires, and that if I did, I could gain a great deal of satisfaction from the knowledge it would provide to me. The rest is history.
FE: What drew you to The Bridge Golf Foundation?
AS: Minorities and women are underrepresented in STEM fields. This is a big problem because there is a wealth of untapped potential there. Far more progress can be made in science and technology with a larger percentage of the population being exposed to and engaged in STEM. When I heard about The Bridge Golf Foundation, my eyes lit up. The fact that STEM is such an integral part of the program made me really want to get involved, so I began as a volunteer and eventually took a part time position with The Foundation. My path into science gives me a unique perspective on how to get young people excited about it. I feel the best approach is to provide an encouraging environment where they can appreciate the power of critical thinking by solving problems that have real world applications.
FE: In the Fall of 2017, you will begin a Ph.D. program in Physics. While you’re undecided about which school you will attend, tell us about your research goals and long-term objectives as a physicist.
AS: As a an aspiring physicist, I am primarily motivated by discovery. My current research is on low dimensional semiconductors, which is encompassed by the subfield of condensed matter physics. My group’s focus is on discovering new states in these condensed matter systems that can be used to store and process information. As the constituents of today’s computers continue to get scaled down, we are starting to approach atomic limits. The behavior of atoms is very different from the macroscopic systems around us. Therefore, a better understanding of how to control and manipulate atomic systems is necessary in order to continue enjoying improvements in computing power at such a rapid pace. This is a technological hurdle I am very interested in, and will likely be the focus of my research when I begin my Ph.D. in the fall. Outside of research, teaching and science outreach are two things that are important to me as well. Like I said earlier, there is a lot more technological advancement to be had if more people get involved and excited!
FE: What have you learned from this experience at The Foundation?
AS: My experience at The Bridge Golf Foundation has been nothing short of amazing. I’ve forged great relationships with some really cool people. I’ve learned a lot about how to be a teacher and mentor. It can be challenging and frustrating at times when the point you are trying to make isn’t getting across. It has required me to become a much more patient person. I’ve also gotten a lot more experience with different teaching techniques, which will be very useful during my coming years as a college teaching assistant.