Settling into a Routine and Celebrating the Beginning of a New Year

Two weeks into the semester, and I finally feel like I'm settling into a little bit of a routine. I hope you guys are, too. I'm getting a rhythm for when I have to do particula r things on my agenda: prep for classes, grade papers, check my blog, etc. Like you, I have to constantly monitor how I'm using my time to be sure I get everything done in a timely manner. Some days, I do a good job balancing; other days, things seem to whirl out of control. It's just a constant process.

One of the things I love about teaching is that every year you get to make a fresh start!!! You can't say that about many other jobs, but each year, I get to come back rested and refreshed to teach a new set of courses and meet a new set of students.

I'm grateful to Witney Fisher for this week's quote of the week. She put this on the faculty agenda for Converse 101 training, and I just love it.

I hope you're all going to enjoy academic convocation on Tuesday. It's one of my favorite times of year: a time when we gather as a Converse community to formally kick off the academic year. There's plenty of academic pomp and circumstance. It's one of four times during the year when faculty and staff don our academic robes and march in a processional. It's a very colorful procession! And it's the first time that this year's seniors will don THEIR academic robes. One of the things that I love about Converse is the tradition of having seniors pariticpate in all the academic processionals and wear their robes all year. This year's class is a red devil class, so you'll see lots of red beads, red Converse All-Star sneakers, a few pairs of devil ears, and the of course, the red devil mascot. It's a very "Converse tradition," and it reminds me of the comraderie that makes this community so special. Just think: in only three short years, you guys will be sitting where the seniors are, but you, of course, will show them that Pink Panthers do things with style!

In addition to the marching, there will be performances by the Converse Orchestra and choral groups, showcasing the wonderful talent among our student body. President Fleming and Anna Lockamy will make some remarks about our community's goals for the coming year. Dr. Eddy Woodfin from the history and politics department will give a brief talk. That's another neat Converse tradition: the winner of the Kathryne Amelia Brown Teaching Award--last year that was Dr. Woodfin--always gives the convocation talk. It's a great chance for you to hear some words of wisdom (brief ones, I promise) from one of your faculty members.

Afterward, we gather for lunch on the lawn or in the dining hall, depending on the weather and the plans for the day.

All in all, it's just a wonderful way to get the year off to a really good start.

See you guys in class tomorrow!