Something that always strikes me is how surprised my students are when I take an interest in their interests, research, & careers in general. Y’all, it goes a long way to be sincerely invested in your students!! It’s also more fun & fulfilling to teach people you actually know!!

In my first few semesters at UMD, I had multiple profs and a really great TA take notice of me being eager and curious, and nurture that. I credit them with my comfort approaching other scientists, asking questions, and posing science ideas.

A little effort and investment from a prof or TA can shape someone’s career!! Also, if YOU see your students as scientists (or mathematicians, I get a good number of those too!), it helps them see themselves that way too - and that helps their confidence and sense of belonging.

In my first quantum course, a TA was covering the lecture on the annihilation operator, and I asked him a ton of questions. Rather than brushing me off for wasting time or because he didn’t know the answers >

< he praised the way I was thinking about the material and the complexity of my questions, and promised to get back to me (he did!). That interaction was one of the first times I saw myself as someone who could ask interesting science questions.

Tom’s choice to be supportive and encouraging made a real difference in my life. It’s been over 9 years since that QM lecture Tom covered, and I can still remember how grateful and excited I was to be taken seriously.
Besides shaping my science, it also has shaped how I teach.

Be someone who helps people see the scientist they can be. Be someone who helps people dream bigger (and helps them reach those bigger dreams!). It’s always worth the extra effort.