Young Teacher Award
Eilene Hoft-March, 1991
"Eilene Hoft-March, your students praise you as a rigorous and demanding teacher, and one whose pleasure and enjoyment of French makes learning fun--even for those who hate learning a language. As one student writes, 'her enthusiasm for teaching, for working with students, and for her subject matter is contagious.' Students catch that enthusiasm, whether in introductory French or in a seminar on Diderot, Laclos, or Flaubert. Through your wonderful sense of humor and freedom of spirit you emulate the New Wave movement, which in you case is not a type of music but a group of iconoclastic French authors. With such mentors as the teasing Michel Butor, you invite your students to discern the difference between literature and everyday discourse and to relish the thrill of discovering the shape of an idea.
You also work hard, demanding no more from others than you ask of yourself. You work quietly, often behind the scenes, without thought of self-aggrandizement. From arranging a French Day in the Country to spending time with a student in trouble over academic or personal problems, you exemplify what both colleagues and students value as your compassion and generosity, your discipline of mind, and your commitment to excellence. The college is proud to name you an outstanding young teacher of the Lawrence faculty."
