TKC Letters Project - Three Thanksgivings

Almost every college

tells you their professors “actually care.” What does that mean?

At King’s, it meant that my economics professor, Dr. Mueller, had me over for dinner and introduced me to his family. His wife became my mentor and then my friend. Dr. Mueller also invited me to join his book club. When I was a freshman, we discussed Hayek’s The Constitution of Liberty and I had nothing to contribute. I listened and learned, and by the next book, I had lots to say. Last summer, he invited me to visit their family in Colorado. He drove a round trip of at least 4 hours to pick me up from the airport.

It meant that my history professor, Dr. Brand, let me spend three Thanksgivings with his family. I helped them decorate their Christmas tree and slept on their living room couch. I recently received a letter and drawing in the mail from one of his daughters. I am currently reading The Count of Monte Cristo with Dr. Brand and his wife.

It meant that when I wrote my thesis, my advisor, Dr. Parks, ended our last session by showing me a copy of his dissertation. “It has a typo,” he told me. “Your paper will probably have some, too– and that’s okay. I’ll point them out to you. It will still be a good paper.”

It meant that when my grandpa contracted covid, my con law professor, Dr. Tubbs, called me regularly to ask how I was doing. A year after my grandpa passed away, Dr. Tubbs asked how my family was doing. He remembered. After I graduated, Dr. Tubbs spent months workshopping my law school applications with me. He repeatedly told me to “aim high” because he knew I was capable. He now calls me to ask how law school is going.

It meant that when our classmate died, our professors grieved with us.

I could say so much more about King’s– how it introduced me to my best friends, taught me to be curious and diligent, and deepened my love for learning. It was also a blast: sprinting to the UN for Great Race, powderpuff in Prospect Park, renting a movie theater for House History Competition. College in New York City is challenging and exhausting and enchanting. King’s integrates high academic achievement with character formation. It models Christian community not perfectly, but well. And its professors actually care.