Name: Jaelen Nice
Position: Biology/Chemistry teacher
Year Graduated from Salem: 2017
Background: I graduated from Salem in 2017 and from there went on to Anderson University before transferring to Purdue University where I graduated in 2021 and 2023. While there I obtained a degree in Biochemistry and a Master’s in Organizational Leadership. While at Purdue I worked with the Women’s Basketball team as a practice player and the last two years I was a graduate assistant coach.
What are you looking forward to in your new role? I’m looking forward to a lot of things this year. I’m really excited to get in the classroom and get rolling. I love science, and I love talking about it. I’m excited to meet the students and just get a daily rhythm. I’m hoping I can inspire some students to really pursue science in the future as well as just inspire a love for learning, too. I also can’t wait for basketball season to roll around.
Our team worked really hard this summer and I loved being back in Brooks Memorial Gymnasium every morning. I like our group a lot and the growth we’ve shown has been awesome. They’re a good group of guys and I can’t wait to get back to work with them.
What made you come back home? It’s not every day that you get the opportunity to come back to your hometown and give back to a school system and community that played a huge role in your life. That was the main thing that brought me back, the opportunity to serve and give back to those who really poured into me. The education and experiences I had at Salem allowed me to feel prepared for college and gave me the chance to really pursue my goals. From teachers, to coaches, I’m really blessed to have gone through Salem. I’m also really big on family. I love being around them and am looking forward to being more present in their lives.
Am you looking forward to teaching alongside your mom? Not to sound like too much of a momma’s boy here, but I’m super excited. My mom is the best teacher I know, and while I’ve never had her as a teacher, she has taught me so much about life and she instilled in me a love for science. She would always take me outside and show me different plants and at night we’d sit outside and watch the stars (we’re still huge space nerds, we’ll wake up at 3 a.m. just to watch the international space station fly over!) but she has always pushed me to be a lifelong learner. I’ve seen how hard she works behind the scenes and how much she cares about her students, so I’m excited to learn from her and hopefully make a similar impact on students in my classroom. It’ll be nice to have a familiar face around this year with it being my first year in the classroom.
Have you always wanted to teach/coach? Deep down I’ve always enjoyed being in a classroom and had the desire to teach. I’m really excited to get going and start working with students.
Summer camps: Our summer camps went really well. From high school all the way down to elementary, our kids worked hard and got a lot better. While the goal was to up their skills and understanding of the game, I really wanted them to just gain a love for basketball. It was awesome to see players stay after, put in extra work , and compete with each other day in and day out. I asked a lot of them this summer and they responded.
Do you feel good about the season? We’re going to surprise people this year. We tell our guys to keep their heads down, stay focused, and just work as hard as they can. If they do that, then we’ll be successful. I’m confident in the group we have and I think we can have a good year. As long as we keep improving each day and stay together we’ll be just fine. I’m confident that you will like watching us play this year.
What is something you’d like people to know about you? I’m super excited to be back and really value the opportunity to work for Salem.
