FALL 2007
Who goes with them? Sabbaticals, while funded, can be expensive endeavors because most professors will still have a mortgage to pay while on leave. If the whole family moves together, it enables them to rent the house. In Spicer's case, his family stayed home, so he lived in an apartment in Stanford. Spicer said this was in part because his wife, Maria, had a full-time job and two of his children, Michael and Melissa, were in the last years of their high school education and did not want to leave. "My children were able to spend two summer months with me," Spicer said. "They learned to be more independent. They took instrumental lessons from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and fencing lessons at Stanford, so they grew in knowledge and experience." Hallgren's family traveled to Germany with him, and his children, Katie, Maggie and William, returned fluent in German. During his sabbatical in France, two of his children went with him, and they also became fluent in French. He said the international experience enriched their lives and brought them closer as a family as well as strengthened, added to and changed his career. "From a personal point of view, it was important for me to include my family," Hallgren said. "It gave my children a better understanding of cultures and their own society."
What do they research? Spicer studied ovarian research in A.J. Hseuh's laboratory, one of the world's top research laboratories studying ovarian function. Each year, the National Institutes of Health and other funding sources award the laboratory about $750,000. "With the resources available at Stanford, including people and equipment, any experiment could be conducted," Spicer said. "I was fortunate to be able to use state-of-the-art technology during my sabbatical." While in Germany, Hallgren studied the effect acid rain has on tree roots' ability to absorb water. In
France, he researched how different types of trees transport water and the effects on their productivity. "The sabbatical allowed me to gain knowledge about tree function and bring that knowledge back to enrich my students," Hallgren said. Verchot-Lubicz will conduct research on host defenses to viral pathogens in plants. "The sabbatical will allow me to create new projects in areas which I have an interest but lack expertise," Verchot-Lubicz said. While gone, Verchot-Lubicz will keep in touch with students and researchers working in her laboratory with the use of Web-based meeting applications and a Quick Cam. "I will be able to talk to my laboratory daily, and my students can show me their data and ask questions," Verchot-Lubicz said.
How it benefits the university Spicer works with more than 100 students each academic year. The sabbatical allowed him uninterrupted time to focus on his research. Upon his return, he enriched the lives of the students he advises, teaches and supervises in his animal science laboratory. "My enthusiasm has spilled over to my graduate students," Spicer said. "With my new ideas, we have been more productive this year." Hallgren would recommend a sabbatical to any professor. "Sabbaticals allow you to get a chance to do something you've never done before," Hallgren said. "You make new contacts and expand your skills. To achieve full professor, the university requires international recognition, and an international sabbatical is a logical approach." Verchot-Lubicz said sabbaticals help create different ways to solve problems and help individuals look beyond their cultural biases. "The lab I am going to has experience in defense pathways, and by going there, I can speed my progress in this field and position myself to get grants and include new collaborators in my program," Verchot-Lubicz said.~
Top: Leon Spicer (right) assists Derek Thralls. (Photo by Todd Johnson) Middle: Steve Hallgren enjoys his time in France. (Photo courtesy of Steve Hallgren) Bottom: Jeanmarie Verchot-Lubicz manages a laboratory in the Noble Research Center. (Photo by Katlin Amaral) Cowboy Journal • 25