Audience members filled the 16 large tables in Collis Common Ground, leaving few open seats as the six panel participants government professor Michelle Clarke, music professor Larry Polansky, chemistry professor Siobhan Milde, writing professor Stephanie Boone, German professor Bruce Duncan and Thayer School of Engineering professor John Collier discussed important instances in their own lives and provided suggestions for students as they pursue their studies and post-graduate careers.
Collier emphasized the importance of building meaningful student-professor relationships. He described previous attempts to get to know his students by inviting them to play ice hockey on the pond in his backyard, and encouraged students to take the initiative in cultivating relationships with their professors.
Polansky a self-described composer, musician and reluctant academic said he encourages his students to become passionate about something new in his class. The first assignment Polansky gives his music students is to choose a piece of music they think they dislike, and then tells them to make themselves love it, he said.
"You can find interest and beauty in what humans do passionately and with great stamina," he said, emphasizing that it is possible to find beauty in everything.
Duncan encouraged students to explore a variety of interests in their academic pursuits, while still acting responsibly and ethically.
"People always say to follow your passion, and I always thought that was a good way to get arrested," Duncan said.
Duncan said he encouraged each student to "follow [his] nose rather than [his] bliss," as students should sniff around for new interests and not settle before exploring many different options. Students should be open to new fields and the possibility of changing their careers later in life, according to Duncan. He discussed one of his undergraduate peers who pursued a graduate degree in physics but then went on to attain a doctorate in economics and win the 2003 Nobel Prize for economics. "He brought insight from physics into his economics," Duncan said, adding that circuitous paths to a final career may be ultimately beneficial.
Clarke discussed her experience as a first-generation college student at Tufts University. Clarke said that since many of her former classmates seemed "oblivious" to the privilege of attending college, she felt increasingly alienated from her peers.
"I allowed myself to be totally consumed by resentment," Clarke said.
Clarke said that during her undergraduate years, however, she developed strong attachments to two of her professors, who encouraged her to pursue graduate studies. Their influence continues to impact her attitude toward teaching today, Clarke said.
"We are teachers because we care for the full development of our students," she said.
Boone, who also serves as the director of student writing support, described a memorable relationship she developed with one of her students. The student an athlete at the College became her physical trainer, and directed Boone's exercise routine.
The relationship gave Boone a "keener appreciation for the life of an athlete," she said.
Milde told the audience that she often incorporates life lessons into her course lectures. Milde said she tries to discourage the competitive environment that often develops among students vying for admission to medical school.
Following the panel discussion, students had the opportunity to eat dinner and converse with the professors at their tables.
Spanish professor Doug Moody spoke with the students at his table all members of the Class of 2011 about their future plans beyond the College. He also described some of his own experiences teaching in Spain and Ecuador.
Professors were recruited for the event mostly through student input, Almas said in an interview with The Dartmouth. Almas said she hopes that Professors of Dartmouth will become an annual, if not more regular, event.
The event was sponsored by the Collis Governing Board, the Dean's Office Student Consultants and the Office of the Dean of Undergraduate Students.
