Friday, October 19, 2007
Ashley Acosta always knew she wanted to teach. She just didn’t know which subject. But as an undergraduate at Old Dominion University, she took an introduction to philosophy class and found she enjoyed it.
“I eventually got into philosophy because I was at a point in my life where nothing was making sense, and philosophy seemed like the best way to get some answers,” Acosta said. “Little did I know that I’d end up with more questions than answers; by then it was too late, and I was totally hooked.”
Acosta, first-year graduate student from Norfolk, Va., came to the University wanting to be a graduate teaching assistant in philosophy this year. But because of a lack of funding and available GTA positions in the philosophy department, Acosta is one of many graduate students in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences who are not teaching this year and instead hoping for a TA position next year.
“A lot of the faculty in the philosophy department here are pretty well-established in their areas of specialization,” Acosta said. “And I knew I could get a quality education and a great foundation in philosophy at KU.”
pullquote
My main interest in philosophy is actually the philosophy of literature, and TAing for Western Civ would fit in very well with my intended area of specialization.
-Ashley Acosta, first-year graduate student from Norfolk, Va.
Joseph Steinmetz, dean of liberal arts and sciences, said the University was trying to address the lack of funding and available positions through its new plan: Planning for Excellence. Last year when he talked to people throughout the 52 CLAS departments, Steinmetz said the most common complaint was the lack of support for graduate students. Steinmetz said the University wanted to increase the number of positions available for graduate students and better pay.
Steinmetz said GTA funding was paid by the University through state funds in return for the students’ teaching work. He said that compared with other Midwest schools such as Iowa, Illinois and Colorado, the University was lagging behind.
Acosta said she could likely work as a TA in the Humanities and Western Civilization department because it often hired students with degrees in philosophy, history and other subjects.
“My main interest in philosophy is actually the philosophy of literature,” she said. “And TAing for Western Civ would fit in very well with my intended area of specialization.”
And while Acosta wants to pursue a career in education, she’s not going to limit herself just to that. She has plenty of other goals she wants to achieve in the future.
“I definitely want to teach, but I’d also like to write a novel, get another degree in either History or American Studies and play banjo in a bluegrass band,” she said. “If my career in philosophy doesn’t work out, I bet I’d be a great copy editor. I’m a total grammar queen.”
— Edited by Ashlee Kieler
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