Hi Adri!!
Okay, well this is the deal. I'm now officially and insanely swamped with work. If the contracts I'm currently negotiating materialize, I was work myself into oblivion over the next few months. That being said, I hope you are keeping an eye on this, because as an independent consultant, I know you worried about me when times were quite a bit more lean. Maybe you are the one pulling all those strings?
Speaking of people who have ad an "influence" I had a fun experience today. Markus, my Dissertation Director, is up for a Full Professor promotion. In the Political Sci. and International Affairs departments of SPIA, NO ONE in the past 20 years has been promoted this far. It's sort of mind boggling, especially as all the Full's are looking to retire. But Markus has been working hard, and it was fun to get to write a letter of recommendation for him. This is a photo of us at some point in my graduate career. He needed manure for his garden so we spent an afternoon out at the barn giving each other shit. Literally.
To Whom It May Concern:
I am writing in support of Dr. Markus M. L. Crepaz for his promotion to Full Professor at the University of Georgia. I strongly support this promotion, and believe that he will continue to be a strong asset to the University, the School for Public and International Affairs, and the many students he works with through this role. He has tremendous dedication to teaching, advancement of knowledge and academic inquiry that will be able to reach fruition through his tenure as Full Professor at University of Georgia. His highly renowned reputation in the scholarly community combined with his commitment to excellence are the hallmarks of University faculty, as a Full Professor he will continue to influence the reputation of the University of Georgia.
My experiences with Dr. Crepaz were during my MA and Ph.D. work within the Department of Political Science between 1994 and 2001. Dr. Crepaz served as a member of my Master’s Thesis Committee, and was the Director of my Ph.D. Dissertation. My experiences throughout my graduate program were largely shaped by his guidance, support and unwaveringly high expectations.
His rigorous demands on me as a graduate student were at times daunting, yet he set the standards that I learned I could not only meet but exceed. He also taught me to set these standards for myself and to strive beyond them. Graduate school was a very intellectually challenging period for me, as a good graduate program should be and Dr. Crepaz’s guidance and dedication to teaching me to improve upon my own work always bolstered my resolve, and shaped my professional development. I recognized that I was incredibly fortunate to have a faculty member take such a keen interest in my work, to objectively critique my arguments and teach me to closely evaluate my assumptions. Though I was one of his first graduate students, I know the focused treatment that my work received is still the primary trait of his reputation with graduate students in the program today.
As a MA and Ph.D. student, I had many classes with Dr. Crepaz, and found them to be quite demanding and challenging. He allowed me to explore areas of my own topical interest within the theoretical arguments of the particular course. One particular paper I wrote as an MA student applied principal agent theory to the International Energy Agency and the 1973 and 1979 OPEC oil embargoes. While Dr. Crepaz had no specialization in international energy policy, he was able to help me develop an argument within the paper that led me to a much greater understanding of the theories he was teaching. Throughout my course work, he was always flexible in allowing me to choose the topics I was interested in that would allow me apply the theories the course explored. As a result, these theories and approached came to life and became much more significant to me.
My topical interest in comparative politics differed significantly from Dr. Crepaz and many students and graduate faculty may have found that a reason for us not to work together. However I recognized that his high standards and rigorous methodology would be critical in my academic development, and asked him to serve on my MA committee. Though he was not my MA director, throughout the drafting of my thesis, his comments were always the most critical, the most closely considered and the most demanding. His influence shaped my thesis far more than any other committee members, and I learned that in order to work with him in the future I would have to be prepared to stretch well beyond my intellectual comfort zone. The thesis was presented at a national conference following its completion and received high acclaim from the panel and audience alike.
When I entered the Ph.D. program, my research interests differed from those of Dr. Crepaz, yet he continued to support my intellectual development and understanding of the materials with patience, demanding standards and full attention to my work. He encouraged me to present papers at many national and regional conferences, to take on challenging opportunities such as editing a symposium for Policy Studies Journal, and to take advantage of the wide range of academic opportunities available at the University. By the time I concluded my Ph.D. course work, I had taken courses not only in the Political Science Department, but in Public Administration, Economics, Sociology, the Institute of Ecology, and the UGA Law School.
Whenever I was taking other courses, Dr. Crepaz was eager to discuss them with me, asking how the course applied to my academic interests, how I was able to transfer theories and methodological approaches from one discipline to the other, and how these disciplines were comparable. Even though I may not have been taking classes with him at the time, he was always engaged in my development, as he continued to teach me to think from a comparative perspective. His mentoring taught me to ask myself challenging questions that would greatly enhance my graduate experience and intellectual abilities, and professional development.
As a Ph.D. student, I took as many courses with Dr. Crepaz as possible, knowing that I would be challenged, stretched, and engaged with the materials to a degree that I was not in some of my other courses. His interest in my work always encouraged creativity, learning through my areas of interest, and setting ever higher standards for myself. While some other students in my cohort felt he was too demanding, I recognized that he is professor who is willing to devote significant time to students, carefully helping them craft their arguments, and encouraging them to strive beyond their own boundaries in order to fully embrace the materials. I knew that he would help me make the most out of my investment in graduate school, and I wanted that experience.
For my Ph.D. dissertation I originally planned to explore an issue area closely aligned to the professional work of Dr. Crepaz. However, I came to realize that the work I was doing was not what I found to be the most stimulating for myself, and continuing to do it would not serve my long term professional interest. I decided to change dissertation topics. In a pivotal meeting with Dr. Crepaz, he and I discussed my new dissertation topic. He raised legitimate, well articulated concerns about my decision and the future of my professional development. He also offered that I may want to work with another faculty member whose area specialization was closer to my new topic. However, I recognized that the project I had set out for myself would be methodologically demanding, and would require that I work with someone who had solid expertise in both the theories and methods I sought to test. I also know Dr. Crepaz would help me to write the most solid dissertation I could.
Dr. Crepaz agreed to work with me, and helped me to assemble a committee that would compliment the development of my dissertation. While other committee members were interested in my work, I found that Dr. Crepaz continued to help me to set the highest standards for myself, and to challenge my thinking, my assumptions and my own limitations. As I was drafting the dissertation, I received regular assistance from Dr. Crepaz. His approach was not as a director telling me how I must take each step, but rather more of a mentor, encouraging me figure out for myself what I needed to do, and how to do it. In every step, I relied on the critical eye I developed from my earlier work with him, and always knew he would offer supporting guidance to me when I needed it.
Throughout this intensive period, Dr. Crepaz was readily available to me, when I requested it. While other Ph.D. candidates I knew felt that their dissertation directors were only marginally involved in their work, Dr. Crepaz would gladly spend a full afternoon with me helping me to develop and refine my arguments and strengthen my approach to the puzzles my dissertation presented. Though the topic was not one he was initially familiar with, he was able to teach me to teach him about it, and together we tackled the challenges presented in the dissertation. I know that intellectual growth and enrichment I received through my work with him was a reflection of his dedication to bringing out the best in student, and teaching them approach challenges with analytical confidence.
Following the completion of my Ph.D. I accepted a tenure track position at University of South Florida teaching Environmental Policy. The market for such a specialized position is extremely tight, and to be awarded such a position as a newly minted Ph.D. was very unusual, but spoke highly of my academic aptitude. The work at USF was not as challenging or rewarding as I hoped, and when I was offered a junior partnership in a consulting firm two years later, I accepted.
I now work as a partner for Tethys Consultants, designing transboundary water management projects for the United Nations and World Bank. My work requires high levels of innovative thinking, comparative investigation of legal, social and economic frameworks, and very strong analytical skills. My social science skills, developed under the careful tutelage of Markus Crepaz are applied on a daily basis, as I address challenges of bringing multiple governments together to their harmonize environmental and water management policies. I have become internationally renowned for the high quality of my work, my innovative analysis, and ability to critically assess situations and develop creative alternatives. This stems directly from the methodological rigor and understanding I developed in my graduate program with Dr. Crepaz.
I give Dr. Crepaz my most enthusiastic recommendation for the promotion to Full Professor, and know that he is an ideal candidate for this position at the University of Georgia.
Sincerely,
Mary M. Matthews, Ph.D.
He said he really liked the letter and hopefully he'll get the promotion! (Fingers crossed)
OKay, back to work.
Miss you!!
Kissy kissy!
Mary
