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While Jay K. Cho hesitates to call himself a nerd, his longtime passion for mathematics shows no signs of waning.A native South Korean, Cho has been a pre-algebra and statistics professor at PCC since 2002. He knew he had an aptitude for math before he could speak English. At 17, Cho moved from Seoul to Eagle Rock.

“It was so different here from where I lived. But even though school was easier academically, I didn’t speak a lot of English,” Cho said.

Math came naturally to Cho at a young age, which he simply explains, “It just makes a lot of sense [to me].”

After attending Saddleback College, he transferred to UC Irvine, where he majored in mathematics and later attended graduate school. Challenging problems that went unsolved would preoccupy Cho constantly, even in his sleep. He kept a pencil and paper close at hand beside the bed, just in case.

At PCC, Cho deals with an obstacle quite different from his grad school musings: guiding students through mathematical concepts.

“It’s an ongoing challenge that all math professors face. We’re trained in math, but for [students] it’s a foreign language,” Cho said.

Cho tries to make learning enjoyable and interactive for his students through classroom activities and using Facebook to update students.

“We can find small things around us andadd a bit of imagination that could add some fun tomath class,” Cho said.

Best thing: “I loved hanging out with friends. We shared a lot of the same things, we were all math majors, and we still talk about some of the same stuff now.”

Worst thing: “Not knowing what the future would be after graduating; if I would get a job or what would I do. That was my biggest worry, how the future was so uncertain.”

Most interesting: “Once I got out of college I was surprised by how different the world was. In college, 90 percent of my friends were math majors, but now I teach people of diverse backgrounds. It was a pleasant surprise to see more varieties of people.”

If I could go back and change one thing: “I wish I was more self-confident. I was so unsure of myself, and it’s true of most people in their twenties that you’re still trying to find who you are.”

What I wish I knew then: “I was overstressed. I wish I knew life would be okay afterwards.”

Student opinion: “Mr. Cho makes learning interesting. He uses metaphors to show how a problem could be broken down and helps me cope and understand,” said Corey Campbell, a business administration major.

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