Skidmore professors changed my understanding of what college is all about

When I started school at Skidmore, I expected it to be like my previous educational experiences. I soon realized, though, that the professors are here to do more than just research and teach.

Professors at Skidmore are here to help us young people find our place in the world. They are here for short chats during office hours and incredibly profound conversations outside of Skidmore's Burgess Cafe. They recommend books and authors and speeches — all examples of the boundless passion they have for their areas of study. I can email any professor and ask to talk about class or a project I’ve been working on, and I know to expect a “yes, I would love to!”

This is to say, the professors here care, and their dedication extends beyond the classroom. Skidmore professors want to see you succeed — not just on an upcoming exam but in life, as you grow into the person you want to become. 

A legacy of empathy

During my first semester at Skidmore, I enrolled in EN 105, a class most Skidmore students take to fulfill their expository writing requirement. The topic of the seminar, taught by Visiting Assistant Professor of English Eileen Sperry, was Last Words; it examined how writing can make someone immortal, prompting us to consider whether putting something down in words can give someone or something everlasting life.  
 
It was an interesting class, and I found myself bookmarking many of the short stories and poems we read because I loved them so much. At the end of the semester, I emailed Professor Sperry for reading recommendations for an essay-lover like myself. The first thing she recommended was Joan Didion’s “Slouching Toward Bethlehem.” I went home for winter break and read the collection of essays, and I have been hooked ever since.  
 
Professor Sperry’s eagerness to recommend the pieces of literature that she loves was my first introduction to what Skidmore’s liberal arts experience would mean for me. Her passion also revealed that there is a lot more to learn outside the classroom, and the professors here are more than willing to help.

Seeing my future in writing

In the fall of 2022, I took an EN 211 course on fiction with Professor of English Robert Boyers, who first arrived on campus in 1969. He is among Skidmore’s longest-serving professors and continues to bring youthful passion to his lectures.

Professor Boyers’ evening class ended at dinner time. Even so, I cannot recall looking at the clock once. The lectures were the most engaging I have ever had. Professor Boyers also created an environment that let everyone know that their thoughts and opinions had value. Everyone wanted to participate.

One day, I was not ready to share my thoughts on a short story I had really enjoyed. I emailed Professor Boyers that evening, telling him my opinion and how it differed from those of other students in the class. Professor Boyers responded that same night. We later talked about the class and how much I enjoyed it, which led to me to decide on English as a major. Because of the amazing experience I had in his class, I asked him to serve as my advisor. I knew he had a lot of advisees, and I was expecting a very kind “no, I can’t at the moment” response, but I was met with “I would love to.”

I had Professor Boyers the next semester, and we continued to have meetings not only about the course, but the literary magazine Salmagundi, which he co-founded and brought to Skidmore. It was in one of these meetings that I first heard of the New York State Summer Writers Institute.
 
Professor Boyers nominated me to apply for this program, where student writers from across the country can share their work with established authors in a workshop setting. His belief in my writing ability motivated me to apply — something that I do not think I would have had the confidence to do otherwise. His faith in my abilities inspired me to see a future in writing. 

Lessons in devotion  

Another "aha" moment came when I took EN 228, Prose Boot Camp, taught by Associate Professor of English Linda Hall. The goal of the class  was to get one’s writing in publishable shape. We have quizzes on grammar and write assignments  for made-up people, serving as ghostwriters for fictional characters and situations.  

Professor Hall is one of the best teachers I have ever had. She knows what it means to teach and ensures that every student who walks into her classroom will walk away a better writer. She required each member of the class to have one short meeting with her to talk about a specific assignment at the end of the semester. Our meeting went well over the time allotted.

Her investment in the work that each student brought to her was evident, and I was amazed that someone could care so much about something as minor as an email draft.

After the semester was over, I was asked to give a short speech about Skidmore’s new front entrance to Skidmore’s Board of Trustees. (I’m a tour guide, so the new crosswalks are especially helpful when I’m leading my tours with prospective families.) I agreed to give the speech only because I knew I could write a good one, thanks to Prose Boot Camp. 

The compliments rolled in. It was a small thing, but I figured I would email Professor Hall about the speech because it was exactly the kind of assignment she would give us for her class. She asked if I had time to meet to talk about the speech because she read it and wanted to give me her feedback. I met with her later that same day, and we talked about the speech for an hour and a half.  

We talked about the structure and the context and the language (and maybe my lack of grammatical technique in one section). Throughout the conversation, she was kind and very enthusiastic. We spent the last 30 minutes of the meeting talking — about my other projects, about how much I loved our class, and her recommendation for another book I should read. Professor Hall was ready to engage, and she made me feel valued.  

A liberal arts dream come true

Reflecting on my experiences here at Skidmore, I realize how integral the commitment of professors is to their students in establishing a liberal arts mindset.

I did not understand what it meant to attend a liberal arts institution because I did not know the lengths that my professors would go to care for my educational growth — the way that only my family and friends had in the past.

A liberal arts education, I've learned, is more of a dialogue than a lecture. It is a conversation where the professors are just as interested in their students as they are in their own work.

Skidmore and its professors have shown me that my education can be anything I want it to be. That I can be anything I want to be.