Fall semester always comes on with hurricane force winds.  But for me Fall-2010 was like no other.  Always one to pay attention to my limitations, half-way through the semester I knew I was on the edge of being knocked to my knees by that big wind and deadly rain. I was wondering if I had taken on too much.

    Except for my undergraduate social psychology course, nothing was usual in this semester.  For the first time I was teaching my “Interpersonal Relationships and Race” course as a “big” section.  Up to now I had taught the course with no more than 35 students.  Demand from students had grown, and I had seen what the course does for students and so wanted to let more students into the course.  So for the first time I was teaching the course with 75 students.  Yes, the course structure and lectures were the same, but now I had to pay very close attention to the classroom dynamic every day. And even more so on group discussion days.

   Also, over the summer I had agreed to teach a short-course for NCSU’s Encore program.  That program offers courses for retirees; really anyone fifty or older.  I had agreed to teach a six-week course; “Living on the New Racial Frontier.”  Again, since I had seen how my undergraduate course had such a powerful and positive influence on undergraduates, I wanted to try it with a different, older, audience.  That meant a couple of things.  One, it meant working to distill the 15 week course material, to fit into a six week course with each session being one-and-one-half hours.  Two, it meant taking technical, research-based material and presenting it in an accessible way to people who had intellectual interests, but who were not in a classroom every day.

    At the end of the semester I would know that I thought it went well, and I would learn that so did the 15 people over 50 who were the students. Their evaluations of the short-course were extremely positive with one saying:

    “Dr. Nacoste…made a comfortable environment for our discussion on neo-diversity. It gave me a whole new understanding of the issues we face making me rethink previous conceptions.”

    But at the middle of the semester I didn’t know this and the wind and rain had reached a gale-force; I was working very hard to keep up with my teaching goals. I had also by then done a special-one-session training for new student government leaders, as well as one for graduate students on “Teaching to the Diverse Classroom.” And that’s when the travel started.

    Fall Break (October 7-10) I was back home in Opelousas to do a book reading and signing.  That was held in the old Holy Ghost School library.  First to twelfth grade I spent in that building using that library.  Now a meeting room, when I walked into what had been our school library it hit me.  Here I was back home to present to the Opelousas community my book, “Making Gumbo in the University.” I think because there was an article in the Opelousas Daily World (see Lagniappe) that Sunday, there was a nice turnout that included four of my former classmates.  I was honored and pleased that they came.

    Skip a week and I was in Houston, Texas at a conference of academic administrators.  I gave a presentation on what university administrations need understand to, and what strategies they should take to communicate effectively with college students in this age of neo-diversity.  It went well.

    I had set up my time there so that I could hang out for a day or so before flying back to Raleigh.  Reading the Houston Chronicle on October 23^rd I came across an article about a book signing.  That afternoon, I took a cab to The Gite Gallery on Alabama street to meet and listen to Mignette Patrick Dorsey talk about her book, “Speak Truth to Power: The Story of Charles Patrick, a Civil Rights Pioneer.” [Note: I just posted my review of that book (click on my Book Reviews category).]

    Right after that period of travel is when I felt like maybe, just maybe, I had taken on too much. Along with continuing all my teaching, two major responsibilities remained.  I was to speak for our library’s Fabulous Faculty Series.

      I was also to speak to our Association of Retired Faculty. Luckily both of these were presentations about my book, “Making Gumbo…”  So preparation was minimal, although I never do the exact same presentation for different audiences and any presentation I give is energetic. 

    After those events, just as I thought the Fall semester hurricane was ending, there was a racial graffiti incident on our campus.  And I got pulled into addressing that by my students. 

    I’ll tell you that story in my next post.  For now, know that I made it through the semester feeling successful if worn out.  I was supposed to travel to Jacksonville, Florida to spend time with Phillip my brother and Elinor my sister for the holiday, but could not muster the energy.  I was too exhausted from standing in the winds that I stayed put in Raleigh to get some rest.

1. Winford Ahearn Says:
   April 27th, 2011 at 4:33 PM

   Way cool, some good arguments! I appreciate you making this article available, the rest of the site is also high quality. Have a great day.



2. P Joyce Gaylor Says:
   January 18th, 2012 at 4:09 PM

   Congratulations on your book and brilliant career. Tomorrow (1/19)is your brother Philip’s birthday. Wish him a happy birthday for me. Somehow his birthday is etched in my mind along with a few others. Seems like you had a impressionable Opelousas visit. Happy 2012.