On Going Home Again

I suppose that every academic has a special place in her heart for the school that first took her in and nurtured her during those early, formative years.  Or at least she should.  Some folks are lucky enough to go on the job market as the flavor of the month and get jobs from everywhere.  Others of us can just be grateful that someone was willing to overlook the lack of a sterling resume long enough to give us a chance to prove ourselves. 

Last week I gave a workshop at the University of Tulsa, which just happened to be my very first academic job.  It was the first time that I had been back to visit since I left the faculty more years ago than I really care to admit, and I was excited to see old and new friends there. 

What was the same?  The people – it was great to see old friends and colleagues again.  And Janet Levit, who started the same day as me and did her best to help me adjust from Manhattan to Tulsa, Oklahoma – a state I had never visited before my job talk — is now the Dean. So it was wonderful to see her success.

But there are a lot of new folks too, some of whom, like Tamara Piety, I’ve met before at conferences and the like, and there are some brand new junior hires who I really enjoyed meeting.  And of course the place just doesn’t seem the same without my old friend and mentor, Larry (“I didn’t ask what you just published, I asked what you’re working on now!”) CatáBacker, who gave me exactly the sort of tough love that I needed at the time.

But the one thing I really remember about Tulsa is the students and, in particular, my very first securities regulation students.  Above right is a plaque on my wall that they gave me on the last day of class, because I had been a “first class teacher” in my “first class.”  Though it was adorable, I had been trying to hide the fact that it was my first teaching gig and was a bit disappointed to realize that I had failed pretty miserably in that regard.

Anyway, it was good to be back, if only briefly.