Once she had restored her clothing, Audrey moved to the sofa by the coffee table, sat down and picked up a folder. “May I stop ‘sir’ing you now?”
He chuckled, “You are never required to sir me. I merely suggested that it was wise when you are in dangerous territory. It’s harder to be disrespectful when you are using sir frequently and it does tend to calm me down when I am irritated. Would you like some help with prioritizing?”
“Yes please. I am grateful for any suggestions that you have.”
“You have a little more than an hour before you need to go to bed. I don’t know how long you need for your personal preparations before retiring, but please don’t forget to allow time for that. When it is time for lights out that does not mean go in the bathroom and brush your teeth.” Audrey nodded. “You should not divide the remaining time evenly. Your eight o’clock, Ancient World, is your strongest subject and you can probably get by with just looking at where the class is on the timeline; see what topics John has already covered. You can undoubtedly deliver your lecture without any more preparation than that. Asian Studies, your nine o’clock, is your weakest subject. Along with going through the syllabus and the list of topics already discussed, I recommend that you do a little studying to refresh your memory on whatever tomorrow’s lecture is scheduled to be, make an outline to keep yourself on track. Early European history is your second weakest point so do the same preparation that you do for Asian Studies and then to finish, you are fairly strong on your early American history and don’t need to allow as much time for preparation. Questions? Comments?”
“I am amazed at the depth of your knowledge about my strengths and weaknesses, but tonight is not the time to discuss why that is. While I was in the corner, I was thinking about tomorrow morning and wondering whether you are going to begin each class with me tomorrow and give me a bit of introduction, or whether I should just expect to face the students alone.”
“I plan to be there, make the announcement about John, field any questions that are forthcoming and then introduce you. That means that you will probably have about ten minutes less time for your lecture.”
“There are rules about how much time I have to grade my students’ work and about being late or canceling classes. Are there any other rules? Do I have to stick to the syllabi as they are now, or do I have the freedom to present the material in my own manner?”
“By all accounts you are an excellent lecturer and are popular with the students. I will not second-guess how you conduct your classes, so long as the students are able to demonstrate a suitable understanding of the material on the final exam. I expect to see and approve that exam before it is administered.”
“Are you planning to sit in and observe me?”
“As I mentioned at the beginning of your tour today, when the building is open to students, the front desk is supposed to be manned. We don’t have any overlap in our teaching schedules for that reason. I will not be in your classroom, however I would appreciate it if you would leave the door open so that I can have a modicum of awareness of what transpires. Boxford is likely to want to make an appearance very early on in your time with us. I hope that he does not expect to be here tomorrow, but as I think I mentioned, the man has no understanding of how things work in the social sciences. If he shows up, I will do my best to head him off, but I may not be successful. What are you thinking?”
“I’m thinking that I probably won’t do any actual lecturing tomorrow.” She saw the expression on his face and hastened to add, “I’ll have some stuff prepared, but I want to talk with each class, see what their perceptions are, why they have chosen to take that particular course, what they hope to get out of it, whether their expectations are being met. I’ll explain my teaching style; talk a bit about what I expect them to learn and how to select term paper topics and what kinds of things they should be taking notes on for exams. These are all intro courses, which means that the students are mostly freshman and sophomores, right?” He nodded. “They need a little extra hand holding then, a road map to success. By the time I have finished explaining how I run my classes and answer all their questions, there isn’t likely to be any lecturing time left.” She grinned at him, “I’ll get them to where they need to be by the end of the semester, don’t worry. I may be horrible at giving grades, but my students have all earned praise from subsequent professors about how well they are prepared to learn.”
He waved his hand, “Have at it then.”
Chapter Three
“She’s good,” Rich told Boxford over the phone, as he sat at the front desk and watched Audrey through the open door to her classroom. He was sitting too far away to hear what she was saying, but her animation and clear enjoyment of her topic were exactly what kept students, if not on the edge of their seats, at least awake and taking notes.
The first week of Audrey’s time at Wheatleigh had passed uneventfully. She had been quiet and submissive, deferring to every single thing he had to say. Her performance had been acceptable, but unremarkable in the classroom. But now, as she finished her second week, clearly she had hit her stride. She paced the front of her classroom, her arms waving and gesturing with different mannerisms, voice raising and falling, even assuming an occasional accent.
He wished the desk were closer to the classroom door so he could hear. He had been amusing himself trying to guess what the topic of her lecture was when Boxford had called. He sighed and turned away from watching Audrey so he could focus on his superior. “I was worried that her spirit had been damaged by this whole set-up because she was so subdued, but her personality has emerged and she is doing great. I would appreciate it if you would continue to keep your distance. I think the reminder that she was bulldozed into this teaching position and is here, regardless of her personal wishes, for five years is what was keeping her down. But now she’s back to enjoying the day to day routine of teaching.”
“Have you been too heavy handed with your mentoring?” Boxford demanded.
“No, sir,” he answered promptly. “I simply ensured that she understood the reality of her situation and have been very accommodating in getting her settled in ever since. There have been no occasions to test the waters; she has been cooperative.”
“Make sure she continues to be that way. I don’t want to have to deal with any complaints until we are forced into addressing the grading issue.”
“Yes, sir.”
“She’s coming to the Gathering tonight, isn’t she? Everyone wants to meet the new member of our little family.”
Rich grimaced; he hated that metaphor. “Yes sir, I’ll make sure that she is there.”
“You too, Thornton. Don’t think I haven’t noticed how often you seem to miss these events. The intention of the monthly Gatherings is for the faculty to become familiar with all the successes our esteemed colleagues are enjoying.”
“Yes, sir. Which esteemed colleague in which science are we congratulating tonight?”
“Martha Agnus has just had a paper accepted for publication. Her topic is groundbreaking work in the study of the homing instinct in fruit flies.”
“I see. When are we going to celebrate Marcus Webster’s publication in the Journal of International Philosophy?”
“Oh, that’s right, I seem to remember that he did get an amusing little essay included several months back, didn’t he?” The sound of papers rustling in the background indicated that Boxford had clearly lost interest in their conversation. “Pity it came out during the graduation season, such a busy time of year. We’ll celebrate next time he publishes.” Rich ground his teeth but offered no response. “Make sure she’s there, Thornton, and make sure that you are as well.”
“Yes sir.”
“Good. See you tonight.” The phone went dead.
Rich looked around surreptitiously; no one was in sight, he stuck out his tongue at the phone