By Elasha Hanks Morgan (BS '98), Pittsburgh
As a biology undergraduate student, I took Zoology 204 (Vertebrate and Invertebrate Strategies) from Professor Lee F. Braithwaite, who was kind, soft-spoken, and not exactly rousing in his lecture style. But one lecture in particular stands out in my memory.
Professor Braithwaite was teaching us about spiders' mating rituals, including species-specific mating dances. Toward the end of the lecture, and without explanation, Professor Braithwaite had the lights turned off and doors closed and then disappeared behind a door. Imagine our surprise when he reappeared in the classroom dressed as a spider! With eight legs waving, disco lights flashing, and music pumping out a crazy rhythm, he entertained us with various interpretations of spider mating dances. It was fabulous! Educational? Maybe. Entertaining? Definitely! I laughed and laughed and felt a new respect for my professor.
The arachnid facts I memorized aren't as sharp as they once were, but I fondly remember a professor connecting with students in a way that was purely his.
Thank you for your service at a great university Dr. Braithwaite!
(Elasha Morgan graduated with a Biology Teaching Degree, taught HS in Murray, Utah, and now lives in SLC, Utah, where she is rearing five children, and as she says, "...hopefully instilling in them some wonder in the world around them".)
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