Leave it to me

I’ve always admired teachers for the work they do and the lives they touch. I believe that the best teachers are those that make connections with their students on a personal level, and this week The Colonnade has to say goodbye to a teacher who has gone above and beyond the call of duty to be there for her students.

I first met Dr. Carter as a scared little sophomore who “accidentally” signed up for Communication in Society. I never have been much of the public speaker, and when we had to give a quick little speech on the very first day, I thought I would nearly die. I thought about dropping the class, but my older sister who knew Dr. Carter assured me that I would just love her…but that was only the beginning.

Dr. Carter often jokes that I’ve been stuck with her since that class, but what she doesn’t know is that I’ve always signed up for her classes on purpose. That’s because I’ve learned more from her than any other teacher I’ve ever had.

I started writing for The Colonnade as a practicum student last year. At that time, I was concentrating in Advertising and was still pretty unsure of what I wanted to do with my life. I wrote my first story. Looking back I remember it wasn’t that great, but I got an email from Dr. Carter saying “good job” and I thought it must have been the best thing ever. A little encouragement goes a long way.

The truth is I probably wouldn’t even be a Mass Comm/Print major if it wasn’t for Dr. Carter. She’s the one who opened my eyes to the things I could accomplish. I finally found something I actually enjoy because of her, and she’s the one who made me believe that I could do it.

Dr. Carter just has a way with her students. You can see in the way that she teaches that she truly loves what she does. She pushes her students to be the best they can be. She’s always supportive and understanding. And she always leaves a little room for humor to keep things light.

So, thank you Dr. Carter. I don’t know if I’ve ever said that, but I should have. I’ve learned so much from you – not just about the rules of journalism or the tediousness of copy editing – but about life itself. You lead by example.

I think we all know I can’t visit you in Belize. (There’s that whole plane thing, you know). But maybe if I’m heavily sedated, I’ll see you in Dallas. I know you’ll be back but just so you know, long after college is over…I’ll always remember you as the best teacher I ever had.

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Apr 25 2003. Filed under Opinion. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry