Twenty-six years ago, Dr. Alan Jaslow, a professor in the Department of Biology, began rifling through available teaching positions with one goal in mind: to find a […]]]> By Christina Cooke ‘10

Twenty-six years ago, Dr. Alan Jaslow, a professor in the Department of Biology, began rifling through available teaching positions with one goal in mind: to find a school where he would not only be expected to teach but be rewarded for focusing his energy on teaching and on the careers of his students, where he would have the flexibility to pursue independent research but be held to the expectation that what he does for his students, both inside and outside the classroom, would be more important.  Rhodes has proven to be a comfortable home for Dr. Jaslow as he strives to unlock the potential of each of his students, helping them transition from eager undergraduates to thriving professionals.

In his first few years at Rhodes, Jaslow split his time between teaching and researching the evolution of animal structure and communication, specifically amphibian hearing through the examination of the bones in a frog’s middle ear. Stemming from that research, he  took interest in animal communication through sound. Most of this work dealt with frog vocalizations, but his focus spread to birds after a successful project conducted with his “Animal Communication” classes. “We got the chance to use the flamingos at the nearby Memphis Zoo as the subjects of one of our studies, so it was really exciting to take our research out of the classroom and continue it at the zoo,” he notes.

Needless to say, Jaslow has always had a keen interest in animals. “Given my academic background in zoology, I’ve been advising students interested in veterinary medicine since I arrived at Rhodes,” he says. But as the years wore on, he began to advise students for other health professions as well.  Pre-health advising had always been offered by several faculty members, each advising on specific careers.  But as more and more students began to investigate a possible career in the health professions, this need grew to a point where the professors could no longer balance advising with their other responsibilities. As a result, Rhodes instigated a new initiative that consolidated the pre-health advising roles from all the academic departments, including biology, into a single resource for student access. From these efforts, the Health Professions Advising program was born with Jaslow serving as director.

Launched in February ’06, HPA offers a variety of resources, such as networking events with alumni practitioners, panels on the various jobs within the health professions, and even a detailed outline of the steps necessary to enter a certain field, covering everything from what classes are required to how to maneuver the minefield of applying to medical and other health profession schools. With the help of a committee of HPA professors, Jaslow meets with all students interested in the health professions, advising them from their first days on campus right up to and, in some cases, after graduation. “Our goal is to offer a holistic understanding of what it takes to be competitive for a career in the health professions,” says Jaslow. “So far, the students have responded positively.” At any given time, about 30% of the Rhodes student population is taking advantage of what HPA has to offer.

So given all that Jaslow has accomplished with HPA, does that mean he will one day leave the classroom and immerse himself solely in administrative roles? “Absolutely not,” he says. Being in the classroom allows him to witness firsthand the strengths and weaknesses of his students, which helps him better advise them on their career paths. In Jaslow’s view, maintaining this balance between academic and administrative pursuits reaps the most benefits for both himself and his students. On one hand, the students develop a personal relationship with their professor, while he has the opportunity to pursue multiple interests and keep his academic passions alive.

“Probably the greatest part of teaching at a liberal arts college is that I’m free to re-invent myself,” says Jaslow. “No two semesters of any course I teach are exactly the same, and no two students I mentor are the same either. Together, these two outlets keep my intellectual spirit alive and fresh.”

“To be perfectly honest, when I first delved into research, I wanted to be like one of those adventurers on the Animal Planet,” confesses Dr. Carolyn Jaslow, […]]]> By Christina Cooke ‘10

“To be perfectly honest, when I first delved into research, I wanted to be like one of those adventurers on the Animal Planet,” confesses Dr. Carolyn Jaslow, a professor in the Department of Biology. “I wanted to be out there, in some jungle, putting radio telemetry collars on bears and mountain lions. Such a shame I didn’t enjoy it,” she adds with a laugh.

After a brief assistantship with a radio telemetry team, she realized that field just wasn’t for her. It wasn’t until she took up a teaching job at a community college instructing aspiring nurses on human anatomy and physiology that she realized her future lay in the classroom.

“It was an eye-opening experience,” says Jaslow of her time at the community college. Most of her students had families and full-time jobs, so for them to shuffle those obligations to attend class took real dedication. “I hadn’t realized just how passionate students could get, which only made me all the more excited about the subject matter and even more eager about coming to class,” notes Jaslow. What she discovered was a reciprocal cycle in which her students’ enthusiasm enhanced her own ardor for the topic, leading to an inner conviction that her contributions in the classroom were where her efforts were best spent. It’s been nearly 22 years since Jaslow came to Rhodes and that student-teacher dynamic still continues.

Focusing mainly on material geared for students interested in the health professions, Jaslow’s courses cover topics such as anatomy and physiology at the microscopic level, embryonic development, and human reproduction. “Many of my students are interested in pursuing a career that incorporates what I teach, so that makes them more interested and me more excited about the class,” says Jaslow. Given her students’ eagerness and curiosity, Jaslow can’t help but feel invigorated by their inquisitiveness – so much so that she sets the academic standards especially high to incite her students to perform at their best. “But they’re real troopers,” Jaslow comments, “they never give up.”

This dedication to student performance doesn’t stop with her classes for Biology majors. Even in general classes, Jaslow still expects her students to view the subject from more than one perspective and to investigate beyond what they can understand superficially.  More often than not, her students willingly rise to the occasion.

“I once taught a class where we discussed the skin’s production of vitamin D and its importance in bone strength when a history major offered an insight that really floored me,” says Jaslow. If exposure to sunlight is paramount for synthesizing vitamin D, proposed the student, then what of white women who lived on plantations? During that era, women were expected to keep themselves completely covered when outdoors, wearing full-length dresses with sleeves and gloves and even large hats. Did they have a higher rate of osteoporosis than someone alive today? “Honestly,” says Jaslow, “I didn’t have an answer for her. It was a situation I had never thought of and probably would not have ever considered had she not raised her hand.” This adherence to creating a classroom environment where all students feel welcome to ask questions and express their perspectives is precisely what made Jaslow a suitable recipient for the Clarence Day Award for Outstanding Teaching in 1995.

Watching students grapple, grow, and develop as they get a better handle on the material – for Jaslow, there’s just nothing better. “I’m one of the lucky ones,” she says. “I’ve been lucky enough to find a career where I’m actually ecstatic about getting up and going to work every morning. What could be better than that?”

“Business” is quite an ambiguous term, and for many it probably conjures up scenes from the movie “Office Space.” Anyone with this mindset should definitely sit down […]]]> By Dean Galaro ’11

“Business” is quite an ambiguous term, and for many it probably conjures up scenes from the movie “Office Space.” Anyone with this mindset should definitely sit down and have a talk with Professor Dee Birnbaum who over the summer led students on a Maymester trip to Cairo, Egypt. Their goal: business consultation for the owner of a jewelry business and gaining exposure to Egyptian culture.

Professor Birnbaum is, to put it simply, eccentric. From her intensity in the classroom to the way she plasters pictures of dogs on her office door, she has a unique way of doing things which includes the kinds of trips she leads overseas. Professor Birnbaum has been taking groups of undergraduates and adults to Egypt and the rest of the Middle East for over a decade.

This most recent trip was a 400-level Business Maymester, combining classroom discussions with a real-world internship opportunity. Students worked with a business owner who runs a jewelry operation that employs around 100 workers in two different shop locations, giving students access to a business with unique issues such as retention of highly trained workers, managing prices of rare materials, and global marketing.

At the same time, students were equally involved in getting an intimate look at Egyptian culture. “This trip was about culture and business,” says Birnbaum, “and where those two connect. When one does business in a country other than the US, it’s important to know something about the culture of the area because there may be cultural barriers.”

Alison White ’10 remembers how much of a difference culture made. “We did not understand Egyptian business practices because they are not the same as those in the States, such as not keeping inventory, and the familial bond between employer and employee.”

The study and practice of business is inseparable from the study of culture, which is why consultant work only scratches the surface of what students experienced in Cairo.

Not only were they working with a jewelry maker, but a jeweler that specializes in folklore art that pulls its inspiration from the history of the Egyptian people. The markets they walked through are the hubs and crossroads of culture and trade, passing through historic sections of Cairo and buildings that date back hundreds of years. Working with a Free Trade organization and development specialists put the spotlight on the tough conditions faced by the poor and working class in Cairo who are trying to get a foothold in global markets. “I learned so much more about Egyptian and Middle Eastern culture than I would have on any other guided trip to Cairo,” says Kimberly Tryon ’10. “Professor Birnbaum really knows the city.”

Instead of tour buses, the group took cabs; the usual tourist traps were avoided for locations where the true Cairo showed through. It was important for Birnbaum that her students get a glimpse of real life overseas. “We were in some very old sections of Cairo where very poor people live, so students were exposed to how common folks live and what they do for work.” Along with the problems of a businessman, “students looked at what some of the people’s problems are like water, electrical systems, and road systems,” she explains.

Those people were the real focus of the trip. Studying a global business is one thing, but getting to know a person from halfway across the world is a whole new experience, for the students and the business owner alike. What the students brought to Cairo were fresh eyes and new perspectives that enabled them to help the jeweler and teach him as much as he ended up teaching them. It was through this that Birnbaum hoped her students would develop what she calls “cultural lenses” through which they would be able to see Egyptian people and business.

It’s not easy to find a consulting client who will take you out for a day of fun with his family, but that’s exactly what Professor Birnbaum looks for: the personal touch. She brought her students halfway around the world and then brought them into someone’s home for a truly unique academic tour. “It was very much a personal experience,” relates Birnbaum, thinking back on the trip. “For the students to be able to sit with someone who has a business of 100 people and get face time…that’s not the kind of internship that’s easy to find.”