I’ve had a marvelous year at Olin College. And this week, that year is coming to a close. Finals are over, and only EXPO and graduation remain.
Last week, my students threw at surprise going away party for me. By “surprise,” I mean “I had no idea it was coming.” By “my students,” I guess I mean “all the students at Olin I’ve interacted with in some significant way.” They came from Software Design in the fall, to HFID and Robotics in the spring, to SCOPE and independent research and projects… and even just a few who don’t fall into any particular category at all. For the time being, the blog’s header is a slightly larger version of our group photo:
This was a wonderful, wonderful surprise. They baked cakes (absolutely amazingly tasty), and all signed a huge card. The front of the card read “You’ve been an amazing teacher, mentor, and friend to all of us.” As teaching awards go, I think it counts as one of the best. I will say, however, that I had some incredible material to work with; every one of my students made my first year as a full-time faculty member an absolutely joy. These people were the reasons I wanted to go to work every day.
Thank you.