LIFE

Featured teacher: Deanna Day

Deanna Day, Adjunct Math instructor, 8+ years at WCC, Milan, MI

Q: What made you want to work at Washtenaw?

A: I wanted to work at WCC because one of my friends was working here and at the time I had just graduated with my masters and I was looking for a job. So based on the fact that I had a BA in mathematics and a Masters in counseling, my friend thought she might be able to get me into the math department, so from there I got started and I fell in love with it immediately.

 

Q: What is your favorite free-time activity?

A: Definitely playing volleyball.

 

Q: Where is your dream vacation spot?

A: St. Thomas in the Caribbean Islands

 

Q: What is the most important advice you give students?

A: Make sure you come to class on the first day, because the instructor goes over so many things, like what you need, how homework works, how to log in, gives out the syllabus. There’s so many things that are covered that first day that it can feel hard to catch up if you miss it.

 

Q: How do you take charge of the classroom?

A: Well, I actually try, on the first day of class, to get my students to get to know each other. That gets them to a place where they are engaged. So I always start off with a get-to-know-you activity. I introduce myself to everyone, and every student introduces themselves. From there, I try to answer questions about the class and use that to set the tone for the semester.

 

Q: What is your favorite meal?

A: This lemon-parsley dish that I make at home, and you just take lemons and zest them up, rub that into chicken, and then you make a pasta dish with it. Five years ago, if you said to put lettuce in my pasta, I would’ve thought yuck, but now I love it.

 

Q: If you could ask anyone famous, living or dead, one quest, who and what would it be?

A: Harriet Tubman. I did a report on her in eighth grade, and I would ask her, “How did you figure out how to get people from point A to point B? How did you make it safe as you were helping them get out of slavery?”

 

Q: What is your favorite book?

A: End of the Spear by Steve Saint

 

Q: Where do you see yourself in 10 years?

A: Hopefully still teaching and I would love to be full-time at some point. I love what I’m doing so I want to continue doing that.

 

Q: What is the most concerning thing you’ve seen in the news lately?

A: The rise of EpiPen costs, partly because I need an EpiPen, and they’re getting more expensive if you don’t have full coverage insurance.

Comments

comments

The Washtenaw Voice

Recent Posts

WCC’s second annual TEDx event allows students’ stories to be told

Lily Cole  Deputy Editor  TEDx events open audiences' eyes to different views of what others…

13 hours ago

Events: May 10 – Aug. 17

Compiled by Kristy Kazzi MAY ACTIVITIES Freaky friday artist market Join One Stop Soul Shop…

2 days ago

Classifieds: Apr. 30, 2024

Job postings Center for Career Success Below are recent employment want ads which have been…

2 days ago

Comic: ‘Good luck and goodbye’

Charlie Trumbull Washtenaw Voice    

2 days ago

Navigating the tides of teaching: Two educators, two different routines

Kristy Kazzi Staff Writer While Mohammed Abella, a math professor at WCC, and Samia Soboh,…

2 days ago

Opinion: Graduating from 7800 miles away

Mohamed Ahmed Contributor As my final classes begin to wind down, I reflect on my…

2 days ago