Nathan Feller: “How long have you been teaching?”
Dr. Laura Colmener-Chilberg: “Overall since 1980.”
Feller: “How long have you been a professor at BHSU?”
Dr. Colmener-Chilberg: “Since 2005.”
Feller: “What is your favorite thing about teaching at BHSU?”
Dr. Colmener-Chilberg: “The wonderful students who are hardworking, interested in making the world a better place, who participate actively in classes and are just plain nice people.”
Feller: “What kind of professor do you strive to be?”
Dr. Colmener-Chilberg: “A professor who is always up-to-date on the most contemporary information, who is interested in the needs of her students and realizes that they are juggling multiple responsibilities in their lives and who serves as a mentor and role model interested in helping students successfully transition into their post-university lives.”
Feller: “When did you know you wanted to be a professor of Sociology?”
Dr. Colmener-Chilberg: “I got the first hint in 1974 when I took Introduction to Sociology as an undergraduate at SDSU. I loved that class. I knew for sure in 1992 when I started teaching Sociology at the high school level.”
Feller: “How many classes are you teaching this semester?”
Dr. Colmener-Chilberg: “Five classes.”
Feller: “Which one is your favorite?”
Dr. Colmener-Chilberg: “Social Stratification.”
Feller: “What is your favorite non-work-related hobby?”
Dr. Colmener-Chilberg: “I like to read.”
Feller: “If you could have any job other than the one you have now, what would it be?”
Dr. Colmener-Chilberg: “I would be a librarian in a small community library. I love books, reading and helping others find books.”
Feller: “What is one piece of advice you would give to every student?”
Dr. Colmener-Chilberg: “You may walk in the door as a freshman with your whole life planned, but be open to changing those plans. College is not just about prepping for a job, but more importantly, it is learning about the larger world, about things you never knew existed, and sometimes you’ll find out that those plans you walked in with on day one aren’t really what you want to do anymore. Be open to the larger world, to change, to discovering new directions for your life. Joseph Campbell, a famous scholar of myths and mythology counseled people that in order to be truly happy, a person needed to ‘follow their bliss.’ Teaching has been my bliss, and it has made all the difference in my life. I hope you choose to follow your bliss.”