Only Freshmen

Tomorrow (er, today--why can't I go to sleep at a decent hour anymore?), I begin my fourth semester as a college instructor. But I'm not just any university intellectual, oh no: I teach Writing 140.

For those who didn't go to USC, Writing 140 is the bane of freshman existence. As the so-labeled "hardest G.E. requirement," as well as the class in which, "everyone gets a C," no one really wants to take it. But take it they must.

Yet, who could blame these dissenters? Every three weeks, my students have to write a critically analytical, interesting, and nearly perfect paper in order to even dream of getting an A in my class.

Although the class I teach carries such a bad rap, typically when I tell people what I teach, the fact that I teach freshman is more harped on than anything else. Freshman are so young. So underdeveloped intellectually. So...high school. Well. I just wanted to take a moment, before I meet a fresh batch of first-years tomorrow afternoon, to proclaim that I in fact love teaching freshmen. Seriously.

Somehow, I have been given the gift to get my education paid for and teach a college class before I've hit the quarter-century mark. While some of my fellow teachers say they prefer the Writing 340 course, which is typically filled with juniors, I wouldn't trade 140 for anything, at least right now.

Because I don't just teach a G.E. or how to write kick-ass papers. I'm also a counselor, a career adviser, a cheerleader, and a stand-up comedian (hey, if I laugh at my own jokes, it counts). I get the unique opportunity to introduce new students not only to a school I absolutely love, but I get to induct them into the club of critical thinking. I get to see their faces light up the when they say something really, really smart in class. Or when they figure out how to perfectly arrange their paragraphs. I get to read crappy thesis statements the first week of class and watch them transform into pretty amazing by the end of the semester. Truly, there is nothing more rewarding.

There's a bigger layer to this as well. I get to watch these kids grow up from fresh-out-of-high-school to full-on-collegiate. I get to experience what it's like to come to my university for the very first time all over again. Teaching these freshmen helps me appreciate my own education, and also drives me to give my students their money's worth.

So, Class, I don't know you yet, but I'm incredibly excited to meet you. And don't worry, I'm only mean and scary the first week or so. Soon enough I'll bust out the bad jokes and we'll spend the minutes just before class gossiping about Britney Spears. Pinky swear.