Like most professors, I work in an environment that is not always conducive to sharing the gospel. So, I’ve often thought, does it really matter if other professors and students know I am a Christian? How much influence can I really have when I teach 120 students a semester? In the middle of a global […]
It’s hard to admit, but I make assumptions about my students… about what they know or don’t know, about the reasons for their behavior, and selfishly, about their potential for contributing to the overall “wellness” and unity of the class. I know that assumptive teaching is wrong for many reasons, but I’m in a hurry. […]
Scantily clad, she rose from her seat and interrupted my lecture mid-sentence asking where the restroom was. Stifling incredulity, I directed her down the hall to the left. All eyes upon her, I assumed her behavior was an attention-seeking tactic. However, praying for her later, it struck me she just wants to know she matters, […]
In the years since my retirement I have been shocked several times to see in the mirror an old man blocking my view of my younger self. But it must be me whom I see, since the mirror does not lie. But the specter of the old prof in the looking glass got me to […]
Bill’s video connection to class was intermittent with audio that sounded like he was talking underwater. During the COVID19 pandemic, with all teaching online, everyone’s connection to class was video, but Bill’s was troubled by a poor internet connection in his home. If a global pandemic was not dystopian enough, having jumpy and unreliable audio/video […]
Negro Spiritual “I’m working on a building It’s a true foundation I’m holding up the bloodstains For my Lord I’ll never get tired Of working on the building Going up to heaven To get my reward” I waited, sitting across from a top administrator at my new university, hopeful but also slightly anxious. What response […]
“One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him ‘Lord teach us how to pray just as John taught his disciples’. Luke 11:1 (NIV) I was recently on an educational professional development field trip with eight of my students in Ecuador. We visited coffee, banana, […]
It was late on a Friday afternoon when I received an email from a student that read, “Can I schedule a time to meet with you? I want to talk about my grade.” I read the email with frustration and exhaustion. My grandfather had passed away that same week. I had just shared with my […]
Several years back, a student asked if we could have lunch. He was thinking about going to graduate school, and could use some advice. I happily agreed but when we met, he quickly announced that he didn’t really want to talk about graduate school. He wanted to talk about girls and marriage! A month earlier […]
One of our department’s PhD students committed suicide late in 2018. Earlier that week, two undergraduate students had taken their lives. I rarely talked to the grad student even though he had been here for at least six years. He always seemed pleasant, and he was easy to spot for he wore a turban, being […]
