Max Paul Friedman
Professor of History and International Relations

“‘We get older, they stay young.’ The classroom is a source of eternal youth—not for teachers, but for ideas. Students inspire through their always-new questions, their keen sense of moral outrage, their insatiable curiosity unslaked even after quaffing so much antisocial media. History inspires them as it inspires me: a source of warnings and hope, and a reminder that change comes in cycles—progress, backlash, progress, backlash, progress.”

Nathan Harshman
Professor of Physics

“What I love about teaching is that moment when a student realizes that they are my colleague and co-conductor in the creation and exploration of scientific knowledge, not just a passive passenger on the physics train.”

Sybil Roberts Williams
Director of African American and African Diaspora Studies Program, Professor of Performing Arts

“In spite of all of the upheaval and stress of living in an uncertain world, I think teaching is the most important tool for social and political transformation. What I still love and value as a teacher is witnessing students take what they have learned in the classroom into the community to work as artists, teachers, researchers, etc., to intervene in powerful ways. In essence, the way in which community-based learning continues to excite and engage students is an important element of my teaching. While it may seem a bit "woo woo" or new age, I think that teaching students to dream, and to nurture those dreams by providing concrete tools to achieve them is incredibly important to me. Finally, but perhaps most important, teaching for me is an ongoing process of learning and I am always blown away by how much my students know and continue to teach me.”

Karen Knee
Associate Professor and Chair, Department of Environmental Science

“Other than grading, I like pretty much everything about teaching: the motivation it provides to constantly keep learning, the sense of satisfaction when a student grasps a new concept or sees something from a new perspective, and the opportunity to get to know AU students and be a positive presence in their lives. I especially love taking students on field trips. One memory that stands out is taking my Environmental Methods students to Clifton Institute to see the vernal pools where amphibians spawn. It was a cold, rainy day, and I was afraid the students would have a bad time, but they were tougher than I expected. One of them, holding a live salamander in her hands, said it was the best thing she had done in all her time at AU.”

Gustavo Abbott
Design and Build Laboratory Manager

“What inspires me about teaching is witnessing the students’ sense of empowerment when they realize that they can teach themselves. My job as a teacher is accomplished when my students become aware that their learning and achievements are a product of their own effort, dedication, and passion.”

Mary Eschelbach Hansen
Professor of Economics

“I am inspired right now by how well our students are caring for each other. My courses this semester are organized around structured group projects: Groups of five students collaborate to write short essays about social problems and solutions to them. On the daily, students lift each other up when things get tough. Whether a group member is experiencing a personal problem or struggling with the material, I see empathy all around. It’s a joy!”

Daniel AbrahamChair, Department of Performing Arts and Professor of Music

“There is nothing more thrilling and inspiring than experiencing the outcomes of a teaching process and witnessing its success in the work of our students: final projects that show profound growth in understanding, hearing a performance that is not just strong but reaches a level that is magic, or witnessing former students build career success as an extension of what they gleaned during their time in your classroom. It is these outcomes, as varied as they can be, that inspire me every day as an educator, a creator, and as an administrator to do more, ask for more, and to provide mentorship to my students.”

Melissa Hawkins
Senior Professorial Lecturer and Associate Chair of Department of Health Studies

“I love teaching because I love learning. When there is a connection in the classroom and I can sense students are grasping new concepts, there is a mutual trust that is occurring. I feel a great sense of responsibility to encourage students to see what skills and knowledge they already have and that we can build on together in class. And I always learn from my students. I am often inspired by the meaningful work our students engage in while at AU and after they graduate. It is a joy to hear from our alumni about the impact they are making in the public health field.”

Andrew Taylor Associate Professor and Director of the Arts Management Program

“For me, teaching graduate students is a powerful form of continual and communal discovery. It is not a one-directional conveyance of knowledge from teacher to student, but a multi-dimensional conversation that draws upon the full diversity of experience in the room. We're not just preparing travelers for the journey, we're finding and forging the path together.”

Martyn Oliver
Chair and Professor, Department of Critical Race Gender and Culture Studies

“At the start of every semester, I remind myself that the point of teaching isn’t to change someone’s mind, a task that research suggests is nearly impossible anyway. Instead, the aim is more modest and nuanced: to create the space for students to see the world differently, from a perspective other than their own. As it turns out, and the reason I love to teach, when students embrace that shift it can change their life completely.”