Teaching

I teach because I learned the most when someone made science feel like a place I belonged. I try to run classrooms where the work is hard, the discoveries are fun, and beginners are welcome. My teaching practice spans community college chemistry, AI fluency for educators and workforce learners, and identity-centered science communication.

Adjunct Professor of Chemistry, LA Pierce College. I teach General Chemistry 1 and Introduction to General Chemistry 1 lab at LA Pierce College, a Hispanic-Serving Institution in the Los Angeles Community College District. My students arrive with stories, jobs, kids, and reasons. My job is to make the content rigorous and the room safe enough for them to do the hard work of becoming chemists.

AI Integration Strategist, Black Dog Black Cat. I develop generative AI literacy programs for community college faculty, K-12 educators, jobseekers, and workforce administrators. I’ve delivered courses through LinkedIn Learning and partnerships with Microsoft, the National Applied AI Consortium, and the National Association of Workforce Boards. The work centers on access, making AI tools usable and useful for people who haven’t been the default audience for tech. With my colleague Alex Arnold, I co-authored The Academic Researcher’s Guide to Generative AI: Methods and Promptcraft with Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat, published by Microsoft in April 2026.

Workshops & Speaking. I lead workshops on inclusive science communication, identity in STEM, and AI in education. Past venues include the American Geophysical Union, the New York Academy of Sciences Global STEM Alliance, the Genetics Society of America, the National Science Foundation, the California Academy of Sciences, and the Geological Society of America.

With Alex Arnold, I also co-host Science & Suds, a recurring public-science talk series at Los Angeles Ale Works in Culver City. Working scientists give talks for curious neighbors over a beer.

Teaching Philosophy. I try to teach the way I wish I’d been taught: with rigor, with care, and with content that connects to students’ real lives. My job isn’t to weed people out, it’s to build classrooms where students can do the hard work of becoming scientists. That same belief drives my work co-directing the ReclaimingSTEM Institute, a nonprofit that runs science communication and policy training designed for and led by scientists from underrepresented backgrounds.

Booking. Workshops and speaking inquiries: hello@robertnulrich.com