To survive in academia, it is required that a professor become a good manager of his or her time. Unfortunately, faculty are often asked to do more than they have time to do, and they become sorely tempted to drop “unnecessary” activities from their schedules, especially those that entail regular time commitments with no clear […]
After many years of feeling alone as a Christian professor on my campus, the Lord brought together a wonderful group of believers. We launched a Christian faculty and staff network in 2016. Off and running, we began meeting together for prayer and devotions, and we even hosted an annual regional conference in Northern California. I […]
I was nervous as I entered the building and surveyed the room filled with people chatting and settling in. I was tired and it was only the fifth week of the semester. I teach a 4/4 load and have a three-year-old daughter at home. I am her primary caretaker after half-day preschool. I shrugged off […]
My campus used to publish a newsletter primarily oriented toward faculty and staff to build a professional community on campus. Each issue would usually contain a Campus Profile, which was a written Q&A of the faculty member being profiled, as a way to help others get to know the person behind the name. One of […]
Over the years, I’ve received several invitations to attend our west coast “A Common Call” Christian faculty conference, but for a lot of reasons, I hadn’t made it a priority. I had been part of a G-3 – a “group of three” faculty peer discipleship group – for several years. Our Cal Poly G-3’s meet […]
It was a dark and stormy night. My gumshoes beat out a regular rhythm on the wet pavement, taking me towards a safe haven to the tune of lunch and a Bible study. I pulled my trench coat tighter around me, shrugging back into its roomy shell. My mind whirled faster than a tumbleweed in […]
As I reflect back to when the COVID-19 crisis started, it saddens me to realize that the crisis did NOT have a profound impact on my relationships. Yes, it impacted the group gatherings I enjoyed. I felt intensely the loss of meetings with my church, my small group, the faculty luncheons, and my classroom. But […]
When I was in my late twenties, I thought it would be a good idea to leave a vibrant community of fellow Christians that was built over a period of eight years, and move to Gainesville, Florida to attend graduate school. Career-wise, it was a good decision. However, the first year I was extremely lonely […]
When I was in my late twenties, I thought it would be a good idea to leave a vibrant community of fellow Christians that was built over a period of eight years, and move to Gainesville, Florida to attend graduate school. Career-wise, it was a good decision. However, the first year I was extremely lonely […]
To understand why his wife cried, it might help to know what I have been doing the past couple of years. I retired five years ago from Oklahoma State University after 38 years in academia. The Faculty Commons staff couple that built the vibrant Christian faculty-staff ministry at OSU over a period of 30 years […]
