This year, the Department of Anthropology and the Center for Teaching and Learning recognized my enthusiasm for learning and teaching by awarding me the Outstanding Teaching Assistant Award. Being on this year’s list together with my dear friend Faith, whom I have always admired, makes this recognition even more meaningful. To express my gratitude and sense of belonging, I leave this metaphorical narrative open to the interpretation of my friends who feel similarly and of the professors who have mentored me for the last three years. 

 

Years ago, I wrote that the ugly duckling was searching for its flock in my essay to begin my journey at UGA. At times, the research process has felt like flying alone, and I had to find reed beds to rest, feed, and thrive on my own. Yet during this long intellectual migration, I have realized that I have been moving together with my flock thanks to my role as a teaching assistant in the department. My role within the flock changed constantly. Sometimes I follow behind experienced birds and learn the route from them. At other times, I move to the front and take the lead. No matter where I am in the formation, I keep flying with trust in my flock and a strong desire to learn and to teach.

 

Since last year, I have been flying toward higher skies with less fear. When I became a teaching assistant for the Introduction to Bioanthropology course, I discovered something that I love as much as learning itself: sharing what I have learned with others. In the laboratory sessions, I had to be at the front and guide the way. I sometimes doubted whether I could keep up or fly strongly enough, and I was not always sure that I knew the route well enough. However, I was not alone. The remarkable mentors, Dr. Salmi and Dr. Hammerl, showed me how to find my path, which helped me gain confidence even though I was a student who has never had a chance to learn human evolution and primates before I became a TA. Not only them, but also the teaching skills of the professors in the courses I have taken have been a source of inspiration for me on this journey. The students who were willing to fly alongside me whenever I felt I might slow down also helped me keep moving forward. I still do not know all the migration routes ahead. For every class I take part in, I will meet with my flock again and create new paths together. But I can say with certainty that I truly love flying, especially flying to new stopovers together.