Hello! I’m Molly Kovacs, and I’m a math teacher at Mills High School, where I’ve been teaching since 2018, and co-chair of the Math Department since 2021. 

I have known I wanted to be a math teacher since 6th grade. I have always felt like school is my ‘happy place', and my goal is to help everyone feel that way so they can access their education to the fullest extent possible. I have spent my college years pursuing this goal, first at UC Davis with a B.S. in Mathematics and minor in Spanish, and then at Stanford University with an M.A. in Math Education. I’m thrilled to be part of the Instructional Leadership Team to continue learning and building a framework that can make school accessible and joyful for all students. 

Some of my current areas of interest and focus in my teaching include

• building my co-teaching skills with Education Specialist AnneMarie Montani

• implementing restorative practices in the classroom

• articulating multiple ways for students to show mastery in standards-based assessments

• incorporating high levels of both rigor and support systems to differentiate instruction

• leveraging peer tutor support in Algebra 1 and Integrated 2 

When I’m not teaching, you’ll find me cuddling with my cats Spencer and Jackson, playing the latest Pokemon game with my husband, binge-watching the latest historical romance or superhero show on Netflix, or (most commonly) napping. 

Some other facts about me: 

• My last name is Hungarian – my grandfather immigrated from Hungary in the late 1930s

• I grew up in Encinitas, California (San Diego county)

• I enjoy indoor rock-climbing and yoga

• I have taught Summer Bridge to Math Success (4 years), Algebra 1 (5 years), Algebra 1 Support (2 years), Geometry (1 year), Integrated 2 (1 year), Algebra 2 (2 years), and Precalculus (2 years)

• I advise two clubs at Mills: GSA (Gender and Sexuality Alliance) and Math Club

• In high school, I played trumpet, trombone, french horn, euphonium, and tuba. I still play trumpet and euphonium with a local community band.