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9:40 a.m. - 2003-04-16 There were two ceremonies. The first one was a university wide ceremony with all the faculty except Bruce and two other younger faculty members wearing full academic regalia. It was very beautiful. I'm a big fan of academic regalia. I just wish it didn't cost so damn much! Do you know those robes cost about $500 dollars?!! I'm going to try and make Bruce's, if I can get hold of someone else's to use as a pattern. Anyway, Bruce had to go sit on the stage with the rest of the Very Important Dudes, and there were speeches about why he was initiated into this group of Very Important Dudes. And everyone smiled at him, because he was a Very Important Dude. And they smiled at me, too, because I was the Wife of a Very Important Dude. It was overwhelming, the Dudeness of it. And there was a very nicely printed program, which said, in part: "The teaching position requires a teacher of exceptional qualities. Bruce has by far exceeded these expectations. His relaxed personality, use of personal experiences, and humour in his lectures, combined with exciting laboratory experiences, has made the students' first exposure to biology an inspiring one." I'm not sure what they mean by "exciting laboratory experiences". I mean, it's not like things blow up or anything. Other than that I think it's a wonderful little statement. And they gave him an envelope with a check, which, unlike the other award recipients, he refrained from opening until he was off the stage. I guess he's just not as mercenary as most people. The second ceremony was just for the College of Sciences. It was more relaxed, and Bruce had to go stand at the front of the auditorium while the Dean of the College made remarks about how enrollment in Biology has "soared" since Bruce started teaching and more students go on to become biology majors and student retention is way up. And Bruce had to stand there while everyone smiled and clapped, including lots of his students who had come to see their favorite professor get an award. I swear he was blushing. It was very endearing. 0 comments
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