Moving On Up
As of July, I’ll be a Full Professor of History here at Laurentian University. I had applied last July 1st, even though I was barely back on my feet after a spring sacrificed to illness and malaise. I...
View ArticleStudent Depression: More Than Helicopter Parenting
You’ve seen the story making the rounds amongst parents and academics that correlates helicopter parenting with college-age depression. You might well have nodded along as you read the horrific stories...
View ArticleThe Joys of a Good Teaching Text
Wednesday we’re back into the routine with three courses on tap for me this fall: Western Civilization (Renaissance to French Revolution), Early Medieval Europe and a graduate seminar on London...
View ArticlePlanning for a Work-Study Student
After a long time working on other projects, I’m happy to be getting back into my research on early modern families and crime. The university approved my work-study application so that, starting this...
View ArticleTime Management and Teaching
As we support Youngest in her transition to university, I’m reminded of how vitally important are all those skills that aren’t only academic, especially the skills of time management. In my own...
View ArticleToo Many Books?
Do any of you have advice on how to manage an out-of-control book collection? I’m afraid that I have too many books! When I moved into my current office several years ago, I regarded three walls of...
View ArticleWomen’s History Week 2015!
If you want to know what’s been consuming my life for much of the past month (besides mountains of marking, a conference presentations and many other responsibilities) it’s Women’s HIstory Week....
View ArticleVirtual with a Vengeance
Back in the 1990s, I used to joke that I lived much of my life virtually. When I wasn’t caring for kids or working at the U, I could be found in online forums like those at iVillage and other, even...
View ArticleSummertime Re-set
So much has happened in the last two years. . . let me sum up. The good news? I still have a full-time faculty job. The bad news? Too many others don’t. Yes, my university has gone through the...
View ArticleKnee-deep in Alligators
My father – himself a long-time academic administrator – had a cartoon he had posted on a bulletin board, featuring several business-suit wearing men, looking more than a bit terrified and bedraggled,...
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