I remember hearing stories of great mentors and role models, and I always wished I had my own story to add. Starting out my freshman year, I yearned for that relationship with someone who was more experienced than me. Moving into a new chapter in life makes you realize how little you really know, and I could have used someone who was there to help me through the transition. But I didn’t know how to go about finding someone like that. So I figured it out alongside the struggling freshman around me.
For many students on Asbury’s campus, professors have become an invaluable resource. As a freshman, I went to my classes, my professors learned my name and I enjoyed the classroom experience. But actually going to their offices and talking with them one on one felt intimidating. I never felt like I had a good enough reason to drop by. So I just watched as other students around me met with faculty and staff during office hours or grabbed a coffee just to chat.
It wasn’t until my sophomore year that I really began to invest in my relationships with my professors. I remember sitting in one of my professors’ offices last semester and realizing that I had found a mentor and a friend without even knowing it. Since that day, I have continued to intentionally invest in both that and other relationships with Asbury professors.
In my own personal life, I have seen a lot of growth come from the conversations that I have with my professors outside of class time. And there are numerous benefits for all students who take the time to get to know their professors. Dr. Daniel Strait, Professor of English at Asbury, says, “One of the truly valuable things about having conversations outside of class is that it opens up another space to talk about things that we talk about inside of class.” He describes it as a way to “deal more directly with how those academic issues relate to real-life experiences.” Suddenly, your education becomes personal.
One thing that Asbury professors are really good at is making students feel valued, not just for their physical presence in class, but on their own merit as individuals. Most do their best to learn about their students during class, but it’s hard to really get to know each of them in the span of 50 or 75 minutes. They are only human, bound by the same constraints of time that hold us all. By having conversations with them outside of class, you open up doors for yourself academically, professionally, spiritually and mentally.
However, these interactions don’t solely enrich the college experience for the students. They hold value for the professors as well. Strait says, “For professors, I think these conversations are of tremendous worth, because you can find your way to maybe a little bit better attunement to what students are actually thinking and feeling.” He goes on to describe the Asbury classroom as a kind of conversation in and of itself, with these times outside the classroom as an extension of that conversation.
The line between the benefits for students and for professors is somewhat blurred. But the bottom line is that these conversations create a relationship. By bridging that gap through a casual, natural exchange of words and ideas, in-class discussions take on a new energy. Your academic life becomes engaging and relational, bringing the time you spend sitting in a class into focus.
During my time at Asbury, my professors have become my mentors and role models. Whether I need academic support, career help, life advice or just a word of encouragement, they are ready and willing to lend me their empathy and their experience. They no longer just know my name; they know about my academics and my social life and my struggles. They have become a vital part of my college experience.
At first, it can seem daunting to meet with professors or have casual conversations with them. But taking the time to develop those relationships can lead to some of the most valuable interactions that an undergraduate can have. Once you get past that first conversation, you are well on your way to conversations that will stay with you for years after you leave Asbury. In my own college experience, these moments have become irreplaceable. I knew from the start that I needed that kind of relationship, though I didn’t realize just how badly I needed it. My one regret is not having the courage to pursue it sooner.
