Featured teacher: Deanna Day

Q: What made you want to work at Washtenaw?

A: I wanted to work at WCC because one of my friends was working here and at the time I had just graduated with my masters and I was looking for a job. So based on the fact that I had a BA in mathematics and a Masters in counseling, my friend thought she might be able to get me into the math department, so from there I got started and I fell in love with it immediately.

Q: What is your favorite free-time activity?

A: Definitely playing volleyball.

Q: Where is your dream vacation spot?

A: St. Thomas in the Caribbean Islands

Q: What is the most important advice you give students?

A: Make sure you come to class on the first day, because the instructor goes over so many things, like what you need, how homework works, how to log in, gives out the syllabus. There’s so many things that are covered that first day that it can feel hard to catch up if you miss it.

Q: How do you take charge of the classroom?

A: Well, I actually try, on the first day of class, to get my students to get to know each other. That gets them to a place where they are engaged. So I always start off with a get-to-know-you activity. I introduce myself to everyone, and every student introduces themselves. From there, I try to answer questions about the class and use that to set the tone for the semester.

Q: What is your favorite meal?

A: This lemon-parsley dish that I make at home, and you just take lemons and zest them up, rub that into chicken, and then you make a pasta dish with it. Five years ago, if you said to put lettuce in my pasta, I would’ve thought yuck, but now I love it.

Q: If you could ask anyone famous, living or dead, one quest, who and what would it be?

A: Harriet Tubman. I did a report on her in eighth grade, and I would ask her, “How did you figure out how to get people from point A to point B? How did you make it safe as you were helping them get out of slavery?”

Q: What is your favorite book?

A: End of the Spear by Steve Saint

Q: Where do you see yourself in 10 years?

A: Hopefully still teaching and I would love to be full-time at some point. I love what I’m doing so I want to continue doing that.

Q: What is the most concerning thing you’ve seen in the news lately?

A: The rise of EpiPen costs, partly because I need an EpiPen, and they’re getting more expensive if you don’t have full coverage insurance.

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