What Small Colleges Really Want

Finally, don’t even think about applying to a small college unless you love teaching. Students will eat you up. Their need for your time and your energy could overwhelm you, and if you don’t love the idea of the enthusiastic undergraduate student just sitting in your office, sipping coffee with you, while you talk about voice in Faulkner or imagery in Toni Morrison when all your papers are just sitting on your desk waiting to be graded — then the small college is not the place for you. —Carol KolmertenWhat Small Colleges Really Want (Chronicle)

Friday afternoons are my “get through this stack of papers so I don’t have to bring them home” slot.

Some days I will pick up my stacks of papers and sneak off to a remote corner of the library. But on Thursday and Friday, a steady stream of students dropped by in order to drop off papers, and I found myself waving them in, one after the other.

Have a seat, how’s your semester going, what’s on your mind?

When I was just starting grad school, I used to worry that I wouldn’t know what to write in order to get published. I used to worry that my conference proposals would be turned down. Now I’ve got a forthcoming book chapter that I’m expecting back from the editors any time now. A few weeks ago, an encyclopedia editor asked me to write an article, and seemed interested in having me write two more articles I suggested. I’ve been accepted and given funding for to more conferences than my wife will permit me to attend.

There are times when it hits me — I won’t have time to write up and publish all my ideas.

But you know what? Right now, I’m okay with that.

One thought on “What Small Colleges Really Want

  1. Dennis, Congrats on your forthcoming articles and book chapter! I can relate with your grad school story about paper acceptances and publication. Now that I am experiencing grad level course work, I fear that I may never return to my own research, conferences, or grant chasing. I am planning on attending three conferences this spring, including a Guest-Speaking opportunity with UW-Eau Claire’s English Festival, which Joel confirmed for me a few weeks ago. Joel also says hi.

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