With pre-registration ending again yesterday, seemingly little had changed from last semester. Students are stressed about getting into classes, and Registrar Gerald Adams has once again assured students there will not be online registration in any foreseeable future.
But new professors are no longer sources of stress and uncertainty. As second semester approaches, many students feel more comfortable signing up for classes with new faculty, given their teaching reputations from this semester.
Katie Johnson ’08, who is currently taking three classes with new professors, was initially concerned about the new classes that had replaced her initial schedule. But she found as the semester progressed, her professors became more accustomed to a discussion-heavy style of teaching. “The professors need time to figure out the Grinnell dynamic,” she said.
Erin Duran ’09, who is also taking a class with a new professor, agreed. “I don’t know how familiar [my professor] was coming in what how things work at Grinnell,” she said.
Even professors with a clear sense of liberal arts colleges have to adjust. Rob Lewis, History, arrived this year after having attended Carleton and taught at Oberlin. “I felt like I had a basic idea of what students would be like … and what we’d be able to do in class,” he said.
But Lewis agreed that some adjustment was necessary. “It’s been exciting for me to adjust to a much more discussion-oriented class,” he said, “and that’s something I want to keep going into spring.”
Because of the steep learning curve, however, Johnson thinks that new faculty should wait on teaching advanced classes until they’ve spent a semester at Grinnell. “There are some that I think are still figuring it out [first semester],” she said.
For the most part, students like the Grinnell hiring process, and try new professors with optimism. “I’ve been trusting that Grinnell does a good job at finding new faculty,” Johnson said, noting that Lewis in particular has “fills the void in the History department that was left when Professor Spohnholtz left.”
Lewis, as a new faculty member, has had good experiences as a new professor. “The students have met or exceeded my expectations across the board,” he said. Lewis also noted the flexibility the History department gave him in his teaching. “[The department] gives us a lot of freedom,” he said.
Many also note the advantages of new faculty. “A new professor coming to Grinnell is always excited,” said Mike Tran ’08. “Although they don’t have the experience, they’re eager to work with you.”
Johnson has had similar experiences. Of her five classes with new faculty, she has liked four. “They’re some of my favorite professors here,” she said.
But despite such experiences, students generally prefer taking classes when they know a professor’s reputation.
“If I had to choose between two professors, one experienced, one not, teaching the same class,” said Tran, “I’d definitely go for the experienced one.”
With new professors, Johnson noted, “you never know how it’s going to turn out.”
Duran looks forward to next semester, when new professors have fully adapted, and students know what to expect of them. “We need to be mindful that Grinnell’s a very different place,” she said, “and it’s going to take some time to adjust.”
