LETTER: Deserving Prof

As undergraduate and graduate students of Professor Harold Bershady, we were surprised and disappointed to hear that he had been overlooked for a Lindback Award for Excellence in Teaching. Professor Bershady is an outstanding teacher deserving of University recognition. Many of us have already expressed our opinions of his teaching in separate letters which accompanied his nomination for the Lindback Award. For graduate students in the Department of Sociology, Professor Bershady has proven to be one of the most significant sources of intellectual support in the department. First-year students routinely take his course in Classical Theory. Some of us enter the department with little sociological background. Others come in with undergraduate and M.A. degrees in sociology. Professor Bershady successfully provides an intellectual grounding in fundamental sociological issues and fosters critical analysis of major sociological perspectives. This introduction to the intellectual contours of the discipline gives students a strong foundation upon which we build our intellectual life in the department. Furthermore, Professor Bershady is the most accessible faculty member to graduate students in their first three years. He engages us in informal discussions about departmental colloquia and encourages us to play intellectually with the ideas which concern us, thus strengthening both our commitment to our work and our understanding of it. In short, Professor Bershady makes learning sociology an exciting and provocative experience. The needs of dissertation-level students are somewhat different from those of students taking courses. Professor Bershady recognizes these differences as he encourages independent thinking and creativity. Many graduate students choose to work with him, even those whose interests apparently fall outside his formal specialties. They do so because of the depth and breadth of his grasp of the discipline. In addition, Professor Bershady challenges students to go beyond the limits of established theoretical paradigms, thereby empowering students to take the final steps toward becoming professional sociologists. Finally, his commitment to his graduate students is acknowledged by all. Professor Bershady shows similar commitments to his undergraduates. He is an exciting and dynamic teacher beloved by them. His lectures are frequently brilliant; he has the ability to take complex sociological ideas and relate them to issues important to students. Professor Bershady encourages students to think about the world in new ways. His insights have enriched the intellectual life of many undergraduates throughout his years of teaching at the University. Finally, regardless of whether or not we are graduate students or undergraduates, Professor Bershady is an important form of faculty support. His warmth and compassion are treasured by all of us. This and his many other qualities make Professor Bershady someone who merits University recognition. We ask, why is this recognition not forthcoming? SUZANNE COLE CHARLES STAFFORD Graduate student representatives Signed by 21 other students

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