Issue date: 5/21/08 Section: Forum

The legacy of two great profs

Keeping the attention of 150 college students for 50 minutes is a daunting task. Professors compete with distracting e-mails, Sudoku and afternoon naps. Many professors assigned to teach massive classes make the minimal effort to speak in a mildly entertaining way, flash colorful slides and make class end on time.

But every now and then, Northwestern is graced with a unique professor who does not resent large classes and instead engages students, even if there are more than 100 of them. These professors are rare, but as beloved as dollar burger nights at Bar Louie.

This spring marks the end of the NU careers of two professors who mastered the art of the personalized big classroom: Lillian Kamal, Professor of Economics and Charles Moskos, Professor Emeritus of Sociology. Both will leave NU at the end of this school year. Kamal's Intro to Microeconomics and Moskos' Intro to Sociology and Sociology of the Armed Forces classes are etched in NU culture as must-takes.

Kamal has an uncanny ability to address every student by name by the second class, often awakening the snoozers. Because of this simple effort, students stay alert and ready to answer questions. By engaging students, they engage her. As for Moskos, students rush to his classes to hear enthralling lectures peppered with cheesy jokes and anecdotes. They may be drawn by his famed don't-ask-don't-tell military policy, but they stick around to experience his grandfather-like interactions that make every student feel personally addressed. Anyone who has taken a class with these greats knows that Moskos refers to Princeton as "The Poor Man's Northwestern" and that Kamal congratulates even the worst of answers with an enthusiastic, "Very good, young man!"

Both professors incorporate their unique pasts in lectures. Kamal, who grew up in Kenya, spices up her currency lecture by telling tales about commerce in Kenya. For Moskos, every lecture includes comments about his years in the Clinton administration or his fascinating research in Vietnam, Somalia, Bosnia or Kosovo. By incorporating personal stories, both professors find another way to connect to their audience on a personal level.

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