Teachers have weekends too. Trust us, we at La Voz investigated,and it turns out professors don’t spend every waking hour at DeAnza College.
“When kindergartners see their teachers in a supermarket,they’re shocked,” says Roger Mack, a professor of sociology andeconomics. Children view their teachers as confined to theclassroom, not as normal people with a need for toothpaste andmilk.
Even community college students can have the perception thatprofessors only exist to give lectures, administer tests, andassign grades.
Rich Wood, who also teaches sociology, said professors are humanbeings with complex lives and many interests outside of theinstitution.
Several professors discussed interests that go outside therealms of the subject they teach. Mack, a social science Ph.D.,paints and sculpts and makes both hanging and freestandingmobiles.
Through his career as a De Anza professor, Mack has taken all ofthe art history courses the college offers and says learning aboutart helps him in his own artistic endeavors.
Mack’s woodworking has practical applications at home. He builtevery cabinet in his house, the front doors, and some furniture.His best friend and wife, a high school English teacher, encourageshis interest in poetry, literature, and Shakespeare.
When chemistry professor Dr. Gary Fisher brews coffee or takesaspirin, he thinks about the chemical processes involved. But hisbrain is not confined to molecules; he calls himself a “seriouswriter” since he was eight years old.
Fisher says he also loves history, and plays music every day.Some of his favorites include jazz, classical, and classicrock.
In view of his challenging subject and diverse hobbies, hedoesn’t view possession or lack of natural talent as an excuse notto utilize both sides of the brain.
Geography professor Perba Fernandez says she enjoys the outdoorson the weekends, visiting the beach and hiking at state parks. Shepays special attention to her surroundings, bringing a camera totake slides, and noticing the landscape even when she’s on apicnic.
Fernandez credits her three-year-old son for observing thingsthat she wouldn’t pay attention to.
She says that when noticing colors and clouds, he has aninherent curiosity and sense of wonder that makes him think aboutthe “whys” and “hows” of the world.
Greg Druehl, a political science professor, describes time withhis three-year-old daughter as “absolutely wonderful.”
When he and his wife adopted her from China, his life filledwith trips to the zoo and Monterey Bay Aquarium, children’s booksand visits to the playground.
For some teachers, the subjects they teach are entwined withtheir hobbies. Sociologist Rich Wood has traveled extensively. Woodhas been a visitor to Palestine five times, and has been to Egypt,India, Morocco, Jordan, and Turkey.
He goes for personal, professional and political reasons and inthese countries he learns about other societies.
Wood doesn’t stay as a tourist, but helps with child care, fixesfences, builds stone walls, harvests grapes, rides in an ambulance,and at times puts his own life in danger to help others.
In his free time he is working on a book about globalization inthe Middle East. At home, he watches foreign films and cooks Thaiand Indian food.
Professor Wood also experiments making Indonesian batiks, a formof resist-fabric art similar to tie-dyeing. Despite all hisexperience, he tries to make his relationship with students one ofpeer interaction.
Instructor Rowena Tomaneng has been an advisor to three clubsand is involved with others, including the Filipino Club and theWomen’s Club.
“[It is] important for faculty to be part of the community withthe students,” says Tomaneng, an instructor of English and women’sstudies. Community work is a natural extension of what she teaches.Her interests include leadership training for migrant workers andeducating students on Asian-American issues.
Tomaneng recommends students get involved in their community byeducating their friends and signing petitions.
She is an active supporter of food drives on campus, educationalworkshops in the community, and migrant and human rights.
Taking a stand on what she cares about is part of who she is oncampus and off.
Not all professors have hobbies related to their jobs. By theweekend physical education instructor Coach Gary Zarecky is “burnedout” on sports and generally doesn’t watch them on TV.
Instead he nurtures 3,000 ferns in a fern grotto at his house bythe sea. It’s different from what he does during the week, andthat’s the way he likes it.
