A Teacher Worth Treasuring By Jania Jones Editor Dear Professor Cain, I was impacted by your teaching and your classes in ways I cannot quite understand myself. At a time when online learning was a big struggle for me, I found myself feeling excited to sign into your class and ready to learn. If you haven’t had the opportunity of learning under Professor Rachel Cain’s guidance, she is a light-hearted and joyous instructor who can lighten up a classroom with the flash of her smile. While I’ve shared the story of my appreciation for her many times in the past, I truly wanted to explicitly share my appreciation for her. I remember the first day of my biology class with her. She’d written my name on the Powerpoint (this was amid the quarantine) and drew a heart around it simply because I’d answered a question correctly. Throughout the next five weeks in which I was a part of her world, I learned more and more about a strong and inspiring woman who was never afraid to learn more. Professor Cain, what seemed like everyday interactions to you, left a meaningful impact on my life and led me to the path I am now on. In an office hours session we once had, you advised me to follow my dreams and simply do “what Jania wants in life” Like many people I’d heard from before, I knew you wanted what was best for me but instead of feeling compelled to follow what you thought would be good for me, I felt that you truly wanted me to find that path for myself.
Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash Having a relationship with a person like Professor Cain is a rare opportunity that one should nurture and care for like a seedling.
“Getting to know a person like
Professor Cain is a rare opportunity that one should not take for granted.” 28
HORIZONS Spring 2022
