I might be the only Instructor in the world who thoroughly enjoys faculty meetings.
This is PAD week, the 5 days before the semester begins when faculty meet by department and attend seminars and conferences on campus (we also use the time to prepare our course calendars, syllabi, course spaces, etc.).
Last night foreign language faculty met in the language lab and then joined the larger group for dinner.
I'm blessed to be directed by a talented department chair and two personable, engaged deans.
The ACE faculty also attended, high school teachers who offer for-credit courses in their respective institutions. Señor and Señora Nickerson were there. I subbed for Mr. Nickerson when he was called away to fight in the first Iraq War. They are a delightful, fascinating couple.
It's a joy for me to be surrounded by professional, caring teachers. I realize that I've been removed from campus for far too long, as I've been teaching exclusively on-line for two semesters now.
At my other job I work with young people who are extremely negative. I don't, myself, mean to sound negative here. It's just that the "around the water cooler" talk usually focuses on "baby mama drama," sports, and rocky relationships. A few of them talk tech now and again, but when I mention something I find interesting from world news, politics or literature, most go silent or walk away.
Faculty meetings are a breath of fresh air, "Sí Señor!"
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