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Fullerton: live near work; O.C.: work, better air than in Claremont
Liked Department, campus, students, location, had friends in area
English Department composition and literature instructor (sabbatical; Study Abroad), Academic Support (Director for 6 years)
Friends: Shawn Quirk; Jim Armstrong; Herb Guthmann; Larry O’Hanlon Inspired by: Bruce Hanson (gave teaching his all because didn’t want to waste the best years of his life); Janet Portolan (made things happen; gave me opportunities to develop and grow; straight shooter); Lois Powers (involved in many important English initiatives and issues beyond the college); Herb Guthmann (got me involved in working for the educational Testing Service, expecially scoring Advanced Placement and CBEST essays)
a) The rise in tuition costs for students
b) more diverse student population
c) building construction projects
d) budget constraints
e) decline in Intro. to Literature courses/rise in critical thinking courses
f) establishment of English Department composition sequence, class size maximums, and 4-hour-per-week classes
Be confident in your potential; use that confidence to realize your potential; make your life happen
For 12 years I was a high school teacher and found it challenging and rewarding work, but when I came to work full-time at FC, I felt I had traded a “job” for a “career.”
One of the early years I taught at FC, I had an Intro. to Literature class at night. Theater Department member Bob Jensen, who I'd come to know and like, said he was missing poetry in his teaching life, and asked if he might be a guest teacher in my 102 class. I agreed; he came and did a great job. Good for you, Bob!! My first year in Administration, as Director of Academic Support, Adam O'Connor arranged a morale-building volleyball tournament. The day before the tournament, I injured myself jogging and was in severe pain in my left calf. Did I not play? No. This was the "corporate retreat test of loyalty and commitment," I felt, so I played in pain, even though I couldn't jump an inch. Right next to me, a big, aggressive colleague, kept knocking into me as she kept going for the ball. Sacrifices.
Also in administration, one day when the Dean's Council was discussing designs for the big new library, someone from the library wanted to eliminate the big, curved, glass second storey reading area. Worried about noise and trash, I believe. "But that's the best part of the building!" I exclaimed, getting a nod afterwards from President Viera. The design wasn't changed, so now we have an inviting, comfortable reading spot that overlooks the campus, and a quad which looks up to the library, seeing students reading there.
At the start of each semester, instructors are to review with students the safety rules of the rooms they teach in. I always call the class's attention to "the safety features of the classroom," pointing out that in the event of an earthquake, they could hide under their desks, but, as the desks are so small, each student would have to decide which part of his/her body to protect. Passes for humor.
Also when I directed the ASC, the Faculty Senate was pushing for a make-up testing service during finals. When I appeared before the Senate and said the service could be provided, at the end of the current semester, and at no additional cost, I was "hero for a day" the Senate. I asked them to please remember that day in the future when I was pretty sure they would be UNhappy about something else that happened. Insurance.
One recent year, the English Department had a table on the quad during one of the Associated Students activities. It happened to be on Shakespeare's Birthday, so fellow English Prof. Christy Flores and I organized a table in honor of Shakespeare to promote English Department literature classes. Gave out free cupcakes and Shakespeare bookmarks, and had a contest for students with books as prizes, conducted by Department members Jeanne Costello and (dressed as Shakespeare) Miguel Powers. The table was a big hit and was named "table of the day," winning a $50 prize. Yay, English Department. Never mind that it cost about $200 to put the table on. Now you know.
One evening English 103 class (critical thinking), I had students do presentations on logical fallacies. The last one of the night was on "the red herring," a logical fallacy that diverts the audience's attention from the real issue to some side issue. The student presenting this told the class he was a cook at a local restaurant that by chance had an item on the menu that featured an actual red herring fish in the recipe. He had made some of the dish and was having it delivered to class as part of his presentation, so everyone could have a taste. We waited five minutes. "It'll be here soon," he said. Ten minutes. "I don't know what's keeping them," he said. Finally, just when class time ran out, a couple of guys enter class with a hot fish dish and everyone had a taste. Good flavor. And good night. Everyone left the classroom. Thinking it over a bit later, I had to laugh. We had never heard just what a red herring fallacy was. BUT, we had all seen a perfect example of it. Instead of telling the class what the fallacy meant, the student had distracted us all with the fish dish, and then stretched out the time so that there was no chance of having to explain. I gave him an A.
1949
English Department
Full-time: 1985-2010
Part-time: 2011-present
English Dept. Coordinator
Administrator of Proficiency Exam Program
Director of Academic Support Programs/Services
numerous conference presentations