I love the idea that everyone we meet is one of our teachers and we are one of theirs.  That idea is easy to appreciate when we are in a lively discussion about topics and ideas we are passionate about.  We know then that we are learning from the give and take.  We believe that teaching and learning is an important part of serving as an advisor or supervisor.  It is sometimes harder to remember this when the lesson is learning patience, or being gracious in the face of rudeness, or smiling at each person in a seemingly endless line at the end of the day.  But each day in every interaction we have, we teach something and someone is trying to teach us something - whether we choose to learn from them or not.

So as we head into the hectic next few weeks, please consider 'what are we teaching, what are we learning?'  Are we able to teach great customer service or are we teaching our students and colleagues patience?  Maybe we’re teaching effective ways to handle complex bureaucracies or are we teaching that staff members are automatons who don’t see the human beings behind the problem? 

Are we trying to find ways to engage in teaching and learning in each of our interactions or is it just happening?  Our Student Affairs Vision, Mission and Core Values call each of us to think about our roles as teachers and to be open to our roles as learners in every interaction we have on campus.  Did that interaction we just had move us toward the “development of a dynamic and diverse culture that facilitates learning,” or did it detract?  You can take each part of our Vision, Mission and each one of our Core Value statements and ask the same questions.  'Did this move us forward or back?'  'What did I teach?'  And just as importantly, 'what did I learn?'

Classes haven’t started yet, but school is in full session every day in every interaction.  Please take care of yourselves as you are working diligently to take care of our students and colleagues.  Let’s enjoy all this energy and the opportunity to learn and grow as individuals, departments, our division and our university.  Good luck and all the best wishes for a Happy New (academic) Year! 

Best wishes,

Gage

Inspiring Teachers

by 

Gage E. Paine

Inspiring teachers –

          help us learn and grow

          help us see the world in new ways

          help us better understand ourselves and others.

 Sometimes inspiring teachers stand

          at the front of the classroom with lectures, pictures, graphs

    sharing their knowledge.

Sometimes inspiring teachers sit

          with students leading discussions, seminars

            sharing their expertise.

Inspiring teachers

          don’t always stand before us,

          don’t always have expertise,

          don’t always lecture students.

Sometimes inspiring teachers

share their confusion

            and we find clarity.

Sometimes inspiring teachers

          share their questions

            and we find answers.

Inspiring teachers can be everywhere.

Inspiring teachers share themselves.

          Sometimes we call them students.

*Service Learning: The Paseo to Life-long Learning has significant Student Affairs representation.