Poop

Dear Graduate Award Selection Committee,

I am writing a letter in support of Krystal Hans for the Dr. Joseph E.J Habowsky Graduate Student Teaching Award. I was enrolled in Community Ecology this past semester for which Krystal was the graduate assistant. In this class, I witnessed how Krystal’s enthusiasm and passion for both educating and helping undergraduate students promoted a positive learning environment. In my opinion, what separates Krystal from graduate assistants is the level of care and understanding she displays for the undergraduates. This was especially true around exam time when my colleagues and I needed guidance the most. In these stressful times, I never hesitated to ask Krystal for help. The first time I planned on seeing Krystal during office hours was right before my second midterm exam for the Community Ecology course. She was not able to make the original meeting but made every possible effort to accommodate my needs later that same day. Being a full time student who has a very busy schedule, I really appreciated the courtesy of being personally emailed early enough where I could rearrange my plans. As a result, I was able to see her later that day, and she addressed my inquiries with a very calm and comforting approach. While this may seem like a small deed, it made a huge difference in the way I approached studying for that upcoming exam, as well as future exams. I feel that this sort of dedication and understanding in a graduate assistant should not be taken for granted.

In addition to my own observations of Krystal’s attributes, her positive demeanor was also highly valued among other students in the class. All of my colleagues recognized the fact that she took time to learn everyone’s name, and by the 3rd week of school she had established a first name basis with the majority of the class. This degree of sincerity from Krystal is another quality that separates her from most graduate assistants that I have interacted...