Joy’s Work Mission Statement

I love my job. I love engaging with college students as they navigate academic, creative, and personal paths. When I’m authentically me, I bring passion and joy to my work. Articulating and living by this mission statement allows me that authenticity.

My work is naturally student centered, which is why I chose this profession and why I cannot imagine a more genuine job for me. My primary intention is to teach, share, and mentor students about statistics and about life. I want students to see new ideas, think critically and creatively, ask questions, learn for themselves, gain personal insights, broadly value learning, and acquire metacognitive skills. In the classroom, this means me not only talking, but—perhaps more importantly—pausing, listening, and allowing space for students to wrestle with certain concepts. In fact, it’s okay and helpful to students’ learning if they sometimes struggle, spending extra time and effort to really own a concept for themselves. (I am but a guide who can provide knowledge, support, and tools—that is, I can creatively support, yet cannot control a student’s learning.) When a classroom choice must be made between coverage of all topics and deeper understanding of certain topics (depending on the class), I hope I can see clearly to choose understanding.

I think it’s also beneficial for students to consider life balance—that is, a sustainable path. For example, the value of intentional priorities, choices, and acceptance of possible repercussions; permission to make (and learn from) mistakes; acknowledgment that a person’s self-worth is not tied to grades or performance; importance of (individualized) wellness of body, mind, and spirit, including space for non-doing and reflection. Besides talking with my students about these issues, I also try to model them in my own life (to my moment-to-moment best ability).

Because of the student-centered nature of my profession, I prioritize time for creative classroom preparation, post-class reflection, reading articles salient to statistics and teaching, searching for interesting data and case studies, and for outside-of-the-classroom discussions with students (and my intention is to be mindful during these discussions, allowing space and genuinely listening). I also act from positive intention when creating assessments (e.g., assignments, exams, projects) and when grading these assessments. In terms of my own scholarship, I value creative endeavors that have a direct effect on my classroom—both on my teaching and my interactions with students. In terms of departmental and college-wide service, I choose tasks that have a meaningful, positive impact on students. I feel comfortable saying “no” to other requests.

To allow for authentic connection and communication with students and colleagues (which I deeply value), I set appropriate boundaries at work. (If I am exhausted or depleted, then I’m not helpful to my students.) These boundaries include, for example, reasonable limitations on meeting times with students and on class sizes; focused advising meetings on bigger-picture issues (rather than on details of academic regulations); limits on my statistical consulting—depending on my time and interests—and clear expectations of the work of the consultees; healthful reduction of the frequency I check email and of the expectation for an immediate response (often, there is only self-created—not real—urgency to any matter). And, perhaps most importantly, I choose wellness (body, mind, and spirit), authenticity, and relationships—including my relationship with myself—over my job. That is, I choose life over my career. (Work is an important piece of my general happiness, yet too much—even of something in which I believe passionately—is too much.) Hence, occasionally, I will say “no” to requests that align with my mission statement, but for which I simply do not have enough time or energy.