Written by Maggie Raker, Culture, Wellness & Lifestyle Editor
Although some may sigh to get this reminder so early in the semester, it’s never too late to have an eye toward the future. Going to college is, at its core, a foundational step in preparing for the rest of your life and determining which opportunities you want to pursue. While exciting, already busy students often find themselves overwhelmed or uncertain of if they’re on the right path. Luckily, the strength of community at Roanoke College gives us a chance to be guided and advised by some incredible adults who have experience navigating such transitions. This week, I talked to Dr. Laura Garrison, a beloved professor with the School of Communication, Culture, and the Arts, to find out more!
Q: What has your educational journey looked like?
Garrison: No surprise twists there; I earned my BA, MA, and PhD in English. Then my professors were like, “well, that’s all we’ve got,” and they made me graduate. But I still sneak a little learning on the side, as a treat. Sometimes I sit in on classes my colleagues are teaching, for example. And I read a lot of books.
Q: How did you decide where you wanted to go after your undergraduate program?
Garrison: I talked to people from a few different graduate schools, and mostly they wanted to tell me about their own scholarship—articles they were writing, stuff like that. There was one place, though, where everyone was excited to tell me about what they were reading, along with other (non-academic) stuff they liked to do, which was much more fun and interesting. So, I went to that one.
Q: What was your first job/career opportunity after higher education, and what was it like?
Garrison: I worked as a TA and taught composition and rhetoric classes while I was in grad school, and then I started adjuncting here at Roanoke while I was ABD. It was more or less the same as being a lecturer, except now I get to teach more classes.
Q: How do you think education and career trajectories have changed for the current generation?
Garrison: That’s an intriguing word for it—trajectory. Like we’re hurtling through space toward an occupation along a predictable path. I don’t know . . . there are some daunting challenges right now. The unceasing bombardment from big tech and its supporters pressuring us to embrace a state of cognitive surrender is deeply horrifying to me. Anyone who makes it through this with their imagination and capacity for human thought intact will be indispensable in the future.
Q: What is the most important non-academic lesson you learned in school?
Garrison: “Perfectionism is a form of fear.” That’s something my dissertation advisor told me, so I guess the context was originally academic, but it’s broadly applicable.
Q: What do you wish you knew when you were an undergrad student?
Garrison: There are several decent meals you can make with three cheap ingredients (e.g., ramen with scallions and ginger; fried apples and onions with a medium cheddar). Also, grades are not important.
