For many professors, summer remains busy, combining academic work, including research, opportunities to travel, and meaningful time with family.
Summer provides faculty with a change of pace from the academic year schedule.
“I love the ebb and flow of the academic calendar I am teaching online and teaching courses that I have not taught for a while and so I look forward to that,” Assistant Professor of Communications, Dr. Sandra Jahns, said.
Alongside a refreshing new routine, summer also gives professors the chance to step away from campus life and spend time with family.
“One of my favorite summer traditions is going camping with my mom and my sister. My sister lives in St. Louis, so we usually go to Meramec State Park and spend a long weekend canoeing, swimming, and visiting wineries and historic towns. It’s the one time each year I get to spend just with the two of them, and it’s great to reconnect,” Assistant Professor of Philosophy, Dr. Taylor Sandidge, said.
Summer is also a time for happy memories to be created that teachers are able to look back on.
“Last summer I had a new grandson born on Memorial Day, so that made the entire summer very special!” Dr. Jahns said, recalling her favorite memory from this past summer.
Without the focus being on the grades and academics of the students, teachers can immerse themselves deeper into their own academic pursuits.
“This summer, I’m planning to work on a book proposal based on my doctoral dissertation. I also have had a few fun ideas over the last school year that I want to try to draft into papers for conferences, and a conference paper from last year that I want to revise and submit for journal publication,” Dr. Sandidge said.
While summer may look different for every professor, it remains a season of growth, connection, and balance that happens both inside and outside the classroom.
— Rosa Yadgir is a sophomore majoring in Mass Communications with a minor in Public Relations. She is a student writer for the Beacon.