By Nate West
News Assignment Editor
Proposals are now being accepted for the Spring 2013 semester for the Lenna Visiting Professorship.
“We try to bring someone who will bring something to the university and actually the local community, something that’s going to have a broad appeal,” said Dr. Jerry Godbout, chair of the chemistry department and member of the selection committee. “After that, just a level of scholarly rigor.”
Professors being nominated now will teach during the Spring 2013 semester and the selection process will be held again in the spring for a professor to come for the Fall 2013 semester, Godbout said.
A visiting professor can be nominated by any member of St. Bonaventure’s employees. They must submit a proposal highlighting the work the nominee is noted for and what the nominee plans to do while they are here.
“They will be directly involved in several classes, usually related to the nominator’s field,” Godbout said. “They might be guest lecturers, or take part in a lot of classes.”
They’ll also give two presentations to the general public; one at St. Bonaventure and the other at Jamestown Community College. There will also be events for visiting professors to interact with students, according to Godbout.
The Lenna visiting professors teach for two weeks, according to Godbout. They differ from temporary hires, who are visiting assistant professors who teach for an entire semester but are not on a tenure track.
Godbout says in his eight years on the selection committee there hasn’t been any Lenna visiting professors who has taught science.
“They have been evenly spread throughout every field but science,” he said. “I don’t know why.”
Godbout also said that all the professors have enjoyed their time at Bonaventure.
“It’s always been positive,” Godbout said. “At the stage of their career, they enjoy the longer term of this. I think they like the opportunity to develop things a little more deeply, have a little more time, like spend two or three days in a particular class. If they want to spend an afternoon with someone, interact with them, that option is there. It’s been nothing but positive.”
