Inspired by my blog buddy Amy Csizmar Dalal, let me share five good things in my life right now.
My classes. This semester I’m teaching Software Design and Computer Networks. They are so much work, but I’m having so much fun. I miss teaching intro, but there’s also a lot to be said for teaching at the 300 level.
This is my third time teaching Software Design at Whitman, and my first time with a lab section. What I planned before the semester started was that I’d rearrange the “lecture” material a little to better sync up with the project; I also knew I’d need to approach active learning in different ways on Zoom. What I didn’t expect was the freedom to explore problems more deeply—and to have a bit more fun.
This is my first time teaching Computer Networks in about ten years. It’s been super fun learning from Amy’s materials; her approach is really different both from the pedagogy I learned at UW and the pedagogy I developed at Grinnell. Various exigencies have resulted in a fairly strict delineation between lecture and activities, and I am enjoying both. I forgot I knew so much, and it’s fun to talk about. It’s even fun to sometimes say, “I don’t know much about this. If you want to know more, go learn!”
I got out of networks research for reasons that I’ll write about in honor of my 15th PhD-versary this summer. But I’m starting to think now that I didn’t really have the math background (or inclination) to address the research questions I was most excited by, so maybe it was for the best.
My students. You knew this was coming next, right?
Over the previous two weeks, I had the privilege of guiding 14 seniors to demonstrate their learning in CS at Whitman through hour-long oral exams. It’s stressful for students, but also incredibly rewarding for students and faculty alike. Whitman requires that every major examine their graduating seniors in this way. I was skeptical when I first arrived, but now I’m won over.
On Tuesday, I watched team presentations of senior capstone projects at the Whitman Undergraduate Conference—another occasion to be proud.
I’ve been enjoying classes not only because of the content and the challenges, but because of my students. Some are asking great questions, and some are funny. Amy, ask me sometime about their proposed renamings of “Betty’s Pie, Snooping, and Hacking.”
And there is that one senior who was a thorn in my side his freshman and sophomore years. Somehow, while I wasn’t looking, he grew into someone I admire and like. I don’t think I’ve ever had another student quite like him.
Last but not least, this week started pre-registration advising season. Rising seniors will pre-register a week from tomorrow. I’m so impressed by my various advisees’ ambition and adventurousness on the one hand, and their candor and realism on the other. Even though I tell them I may not remember everything from one meeting to the next, it’s a pleasure to get to know them all.
New ventures. I know many of my colleagues are feeling downtrodden and exhausted right now. But I have to admit, I am feeling more excited and hopeful.
This fall, I’ll be teaching a class that is new to me: Databases with Web Interfaces based on Scott Anderson’s course at Wellesley. But I’m also looking forward to a return to CS 167 with a new textbook edition, a new co-instructor, and a new approach to grading. And I’ll have decisions to make about how to approach CS 220 this fall when we are hopefully back in the classroom.
I was just elected to serve as Secretary of the Faculty for the next two years. And I’ve been getting more and more involved in Whitman’s fundraising campaign for two additional tenure lines in computer science. More on that in a future post.
Finally, after a really thought-provoking virtual summer meeting, I’m hoping to get more involved in the Computing Research Association (CRA). Specifically, I’m hoping to build partnerships between the CRA, LACS, and the SIGCSE Committee on Computing Education in Liberal Arts Colleges, as well as other ad-hoc efforts, to support pipelines between research-intensive universities and liberal arts colleges.
(Re)kindling relationships. I shared my last blog post with college professors and classmates, and I’ve gotten responses from some who I haven’t heard from in years. I’m putting together panels for both of my current classes, and that has meant reaching out to alumni who I haven’t been in touch with, as well. As a result of the development efforts mentioned above, I’ve been back in touch with the Trustees who are spearheading those efforts, and I’ve started getting to know Whitman’s new VP for Development, Steve Setchell. And pre-registration has been a reason to catch up with some advisees I haven’t seen all semester.
Amy has mentioned a “hug list” for when she’s fully vaccinated. I’ve started a “lunch list” of colleagues I want to take out for lunch or a drink to have the open-ended, getting-to-know-you kind of conversations that are hard to make the time or energy for over Zoom.
Spring. The days are longer. The sun is shining. The wind is blowing. And every day there is something new to see, if you only stop to look.
I have more than five things to be happy about—for example, I haven’t even mentioned my family—but this is a good place to stop. Let me join Amy in asking: What positive things are happening for you right now?
I love everything about this post! Thanks so much for sharing. I’m excited to see where your new ventures take you, both at Whitman and in the CRA world!
I am very interested in hearing your story about “leaving” networks research. I went to a networks workshop in January and remembered very quickly why I’ve been moving more towards the HCI aspects of my research recently. The culture is just…problematic.
Oh dear. I hoped things had changed.