First Semester Drawing to a Close
Well I’m almost finished with my first semester of officially teaching, and I’ll say it’s been fun for the most part. I definitely had some preconceptions that were shattered throughout the course, but I expected that. I’ve come to realize that, as one of my students aptly noted, I’m a “hard grader”, which I think makes me a tough professor… ? I’m ok with that label. One of my most difficult professors as an undergrad seemed to have a lot in common with how I run my class now, and in looking back I realized that I actually did learn quite a bit in his class. I hated him at the time, but any enmity I have for him now is simply residual. It probably took becoming a professor myself to realize he wasn’t just being difficult for the heck of it.
It looks like I won’t be returning to MCC in the Spring, however, because they won’t be offering my section. I was given the possibility of another course, but scheduling/transportation became enough of an issue that I wasn’t able to make it work. It’s unfortunate that I live so incredibly far from the school, because I really enjoyed it out there. They’ve mentioned having me back in the Summer and Fall, and I think I’d like that.
There is an upside, though. There’s a decent chance that I’ll be teaching an art history course at one of the City Colleges of Chicago in the Spring. It could be a great opportunity to get into that system (which, let’s face it, is one of the reasons we moved to a city like Chicago), and teaching something so different would be a nice challenge. I’m also hoping at least one major school (if not more) that I’ve had my eye on will pick me up for at least a single class. That would rock my world.
Thanksgiving is tomorrow, and we don’t have a whole lot planned. Stacy’s friend Hope has flown in for a few days, so we’ll be showing her our admittedly shallow tour of the city. It’s gotten pretty bitterly cold, but I’m told it gets much worse by January, so I guess we’ll be counting our blessings for the “warmth” we’ll experience walking down Michigan Avenue.