It appears I haven't written in this blog for months. It's January 2012 now and I've finished my dissertation, successfully defended it, and graduated. I'm now looking for full-time employment teaching, particularly face to face and not online. This semester at SLIS I ended up with 3 classes, the most I've ever taught at one time. I'm teaching Genealogy point to point; Foundations for the first time, and online with 36 students and using Kiersten Latham's syllabus; and Rare Books in 10 weeks because Geoff Smith is quite ill. I must say, I'm not having as much fun teaching online as I am the other class. RB doesn't start until early February. I feel as though I'm typing tons and talking to myself. Maybe after I read the discussion posts I'll feel better. It's very disconcerting to not even see the students.
In the meantime, I'm looking for full time teaching work. It's not that I don't like Kent, it's that I want a new adventure. I could, of course, teach for the History Dept, but at 1/2 the pay, so that's not really a viable option. I've applied for 5 jobs. One said no, one short listed me but didn't bring me in for the first round of on campus interviews, one interviewed me via SKYPE and I'm waiting to hear, one closed on Friday, and the last is silent, they may be waiting for ALISE to be over.
I'll wait another week and then see what's going on with the SKYPE site. I'm also going to look at the job boards again. That must be a weekly pursuit now.
To help me stay focused on being productive, I've started a blog about research methods and primary source tools. http://mbkcons.wordpress.com/ I want this to ultimately become a book, so case studies first, then articles, then a book. I also want to go back to the incunabula project and work on that. It might have to wait until May.
I'm taking two seminars this spring, one on the Medieval Book and one on the Medieval Jewish book. both should help with background and more fodder for teaching RB and History of the Book.
I seem to be doing lots of writing, so maybe all will work out. I should do something with my dissertation. I'll have to talk to John about that and begin to redraft the methodology chapter, or the chapter on life in Akron in the Gilded Age. So many projects, so little time.
Back to course prep :)
