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Wednesday, December 19, 2007 |
Opening Doors … To the World Around Us
“Call the number on the tag.” Dr. Deutsche, my chemistry and physics teacher, and track coach, explained how to find the owner of the lost dog we found during a cross-country workout. Later, he tried to comfort me when the owner disclaimed all responsibility. “Well, it’s probably better the dog left an owner who doesn’t care.”
As usual, his logic was impeccable. Always concrete and reasonable, Craig shared his knowledge freely. He lit up his almond-and-banana “candles” to demonstrate the concept of energy units and rolled endless kinds of objects to demonstrate momentum and mass. But no matter how whimsical his props, or concise his explanations, all paled in comparison to his sheer drive to helping his students. Whether biking in early to help with practicing equations, or missing lunch to help students prepare for a test, he was a consummately giving teacher who loved to encourage learning. He single-handedly made me think I could survive college chemistry (I did, to a point), and greatly influenced my life-long love of science.
When I graduated, I knew then I would never have another teacher like him. Craig’s affinity for science and students was expressed outside the classroom as well. He helped lead the yearly off-campus camping trips to Yosemite, a winter wonderland to city girls like me. I was not surprised to learn that since retirement, he has been working to convince the Bureau of Land Management to enforce and expand its stewardship of the desert. Given my chosen career as an environmental advocate, and seeing how engaged he has become in environmental protection, I am now convinced Craig was teaching us infinitely more than kilowatts and E=MC2 in class.”
— Leslie Mintz Tamminen ’81 |
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