Mentors and Makers:
Faculty Who Shaped My Austin College Experience

By Harri Drake ’19

After graduating in 2019, I worked for Austin College as an admissions counselor for a couple of years. Because I was a proud alumna, every student and parent invariably asked what my favorite thing was about Austin College. What “made” my experience?

My answer was always the faculty. Cliché for someone trying to sell the College to a student, I know, but it’s the truth. When I think back on Austin College and relive my favorite memories, I have just as many of the faculty as I do of my friends. It’s hard to describe how exactly they made my experience because there’s no one way; all of my professors uniquely impacted my time at AC.

There were, of course, faculty who went above and beyond to ensure I understood the class material; who met with me multiple times a week at seven in the morning to review assignments and answer my many lingering questions; who sat with me for at least half an hour explaining the solution to a lab report until I finally got it on the sixth attempt—and who acted just as proud as if I’d gotten it on the first.

Other professors gave me space to explore life-long passions and discover new ones. Like the theatre professor who advised me while I directed a play; and helped me write (and re-write) my first script in a directed study; and made me reexamine my relationship with theatre during my capstone; and led my Theatre in London Jan-Term, all in the same semester (I know Dr. Everist must have been relieved to see me graduate that May). There was the English professor who took me back to the very basics of creative writing and gave me tools I still use in my writing today—and made writing poetry accessible and way less intimidating than it seems; and the English professor who changed the way I look at writing and gave me most of the editorial skills I use professionally and personally.

But the professor who made the biggest impact was my mentor professor. I may have taken four (or five?) classes with him, but  my fondest memories are of sitting in his office. I’d come in with questions about a paper or a theory about a book we’d read, and we’d talk and laugh for so long that I was nearly late for my next class. He was equal parts advisor, confidant, and  cheerleader. A college experience without these professors is unimaginable to me. The best part is that my story isn’t unique. I  don’t know a single alumnus who doesn’t have a faculty member who encouraged them, who helped them, who pushed them to
learn something new. We all have professors who “made” our college experience. Whether we have kept in touch or not, the lessons I learned from my professors will continue to guide me as I build my career and explore my passions.