Dear Dr. Montague

Column by Victoria Hansen

hansenv@findlay.edu

Dear Dr. Montague,

As May 2 comes around, I’m filled with the same bittersweet emotions that I always feel around graduation. The people around me have done so many amazing things, and now it’s time for them to walk through the Arch and continue to do great things. The only difference is that while friends like our digital design editor, Mara Waire, are graduating after four years, you’re walking through the arch after 40.

Thank you so much for your dedication to the University of Findlay and its students. Over the past three years, you’ve given me so much.

From the first day I set foot on campus, you gave me opportunities to be involved and curious. Despite being in the middle of writing your book on the history of UF, you offered to stop and meet with a random high school student to talk about misinformation. You jumped on the opportunity to teach Media Literacy as an honors class, letting me lead a class-wide project. I remember thanking you afterwards for believing in me enough to entrust me with such a big project. Your response stuck with me.

“I’ll never keep a student from trying and failing.”

Thanks for the overwhelming show of confidence.

But that’s what’s been so amazing about your teaching. When a student has questions or ideas, you let them rise to the occasion and let their interest lead them. In Advanced News Practice this semester, you’ve entirely rebuilt the curriculum for us after we showed a disproportionate interest in the school’s tax returns. You’ve given us the opportunity to explore investigative journalism this semester, but you’ve also given us the grace to let us fail. Thank you for accepting a paper on why my article failed instead of failing me for not successfully writing the article.

Thank you for giving me a sense of home at UF. My first semester, you were on sabbatical, but still made time to come in to discuss future plans, course rotations, and what life looks like in Findlay. Another time, right after move-in, I had mentioned that my dorm was slightly cold, since I had left all my blankets at home. After class the next day, you had a blanket waiting in your office for me.

Of course, I don’t have time to mention everything here, from the near-instant response to my emails asking the stupidest questions, to the writing advice, or the overflowing basket of snacks that would make regular appearances in class. I think I now have enough applesauce to last me months. Or perhaps for finals. We’ll see how the week goes.

You’ve poured your entire self into us students, and we can never thank you enough. We might not stop to thank you after every speech class, but you’ve left a permanent mark on campus and in the lives of the people you teach.

Your passion for teaching and your passion for discovery have inspired me for the past three years, and will continue to guide me after I graduate. You’ve shown me that learning is a two-way street: you teach a student public speaking, and they teach you how to build a birdhouse, fold an origami crane, or grow basil in a dorm room.

So after 40 years of learning at UF, I hope you enjoy your graduation. You’ve earned it.

Thank you so much.