Sue Greer-Pitt,
Ph.D
"Seeing and Telling"
life long learner
sociologist
teacher
writer
artist
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Sue Greer-Pitt,
Ph.D |
Seeing: My formal training is in sociology, but my current passion is natural history, encompassing anthropology, paleontology, evolutionary and wildlife biology, geology, and climatology. I'm particular intrigued with the development of chaos theory in the understand of change in complex systems, such as our earth's biosphere.
Telling: I began my reading in paleontology, physical anthropology, biology, geology and natural history as a result of a felt lack of knowledge on the history of the human species uncovered through the teaching of anthropology. However, my reading project has had some surprising impact on my teaching of sociology. I have completely rethought some of my underlying philosophy about humans and their environment. These new ideas are passed on through teaching social problems and environmental sociology, and through writing. Back to top.
Seeing: In high school, when required to give a speech about my hobbies, I declared that "people are my hobby." I've always been a sociologist, long before I knew that the discipline existed. Sociologists are by training subversives. We are taught to see beyond the surfaces of social life and ask uncomfortable questions. It is no accident that sociology has never really been able to find a secure position within the halls of power. Sociologists too often see and report things that those in power would rather have left unnoticed.
Telling: The most exciting aspect of being a sociologist is the communication of my vision to others. This primarily happens through teaching, but also through writing.
Formal Education: B.A. Sociology, Oberlin College, Oberlin, Ohio, 1973. M.A. Sociology, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky, 1979. Ph.D. Sociology (with minor area in Higher Education), University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky, 1984.
Areas of specialization and interest: Community, Environmental Sociology, Political Sociology (especially Theories of the State), Complex Organizations and Family. For want of a better description my theoretical perspective is neo-Marxist/neo-Weberian. Back to top.
Seeing and Telling: There is no better place to view the world than through the eyes of one's students. More than when I was a student, isolated in a elite ivory tower, students today, especially in community colleges, bring the world and all its troubles in the door with them. Nor is there any better opportunity for telling one's vision that in a classroom. The audience is surprisingly interested and appreciative. At its best, teaching can be a collaborative "getting of wisdom." Even at its worst, there's always some lesson to be learned.
Formal Teaching Experience: Current position, Associate Professor of Sociology, Southeast Community College, Whitesburg, Kentucky, since 1996. Previous positions: Associate Professor, Clinch Valley College, Wise, Virginia, 1989-1996; Assistant Professor, University of Pittsburgh, at Johnstown, Pennsylvania, 1982-1989; Teaching Assistant, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky, 1979-1982.
Current Courses (Summer 2001 and Fall 2001): Introductory Sociology (Including an on-line version of Soc101 (for more information go to http://www.kyvu.org/ ) Marriage and the Family Telecourse, Modern Social Problems, and Statistics. Recent courses: Community, and Social Interaction.
Alternative Teaching: In an era of rapid change, in technology, economy, norms and values, continuing education has become more and more important to adults. We seek new ways of dealing with the demands upon our time, energy and emotions. I've developed a series of workshops, some for general audiences, some specifically for women. The titles of my 1998 workshops were: "Professional and Personal Effectiveness: Having a Mission and Knowing What to Do With It," "Strategies for Professional Success: A Workshop for Working Women." Back to top.
Telling: All academics are expected to do some writing, either for publication or presentation at professional meetings. One of my few published academic pieces is "The United States Forest Service and the Post-War Commodification of Outdoor Recreation.” in For Fun and Profit: Transforming Leisure into a Commercial Product, edited by Richard Bustch. Critical Perspectives on the Past series. Temple University Press, 1990. This piece illustrates my major interests in the environment, organizations, community and power.
More recently I have entered the world of sociology textbook writing. I contributed a chapter on Marriage and the Family to a new introductory Sociology Textbook Everyday Sociology: An Introduction by C. Michael Botterweck, et al., published by StarPoint Press, 1999. NorthStar Press can be contracted at 297 May Street, Elmhurst, IL 60126, or by e-mail through Beatrice Kwidd akwidd@triton.cc.il.us. I'm currently working on a chapter on environmental problems for StarPoint's planned social problems text.
The writing closest to my heart now, however, is the development of a series of essays aimed at general audiences. During the year 2001 my thoughts on a variety of subjects are published in the Lexington Herald-Leader in the Opinions section each second Sunday. Three essays were previously published in the Lexington Herald-Leader Sunday column Appalachian Voices. These were "'Invisible' teels prove to be solid neighbors," July 12, 1998, "They has their own rules of grammar," November 22, 1998 and "Letcher Countians Decorate their World" October 29, 2000.
Telling: I once wrote a short verse, in which I denied being an "artist" and instead called myself a "two bit scribbler." Regardless of whether my pen and ink, pencil drawings, paintings, and photographs might be considered "art," they are important to the telling of my vision.
I hope at some point to have links here to some examples of my visiual works. Back to top.
Inspiration hit me early in 1998, while reading a book Creating a Life Worth Living: A practical course in career design for artists, innovators, and others aspiring to a creative life, by Carol Lloyd (Publisher: HarperPerennial, HarperCollins, 1997). I was looking for ideas that I might adapt for use in my personal effectiveness workshops. The book is very stimulating and full of wonderful, and practical ideas.
One of the exercises, early in the book, asked the reader to come up with a word or phrase that summed up their most passionate commitment in life. What was it, Lloyd asked the reader that was the driving force in your life? Well I began with my usual "high flown" and idealistic answers of things like "community," "equality," "emancipation," "dereification," "creating wisdom," etc. While these are all values to which I subscribe, I suddenly realized that none of these were really the "driving force" of my life. What has always driven me, and continues to drive me is my own unique vision of the world (seeing) and the compulsion to share that vision with others (telling).
It has never been enough for me to simply learn things, to experience things, to discover things. I have always been driven by the need to communicate my experience to others. I have always been a journal keeper, a letter writer, a story teller, a talker. Suddenly, all the disparate activities of my life came together, tied by a common theme, a common passion. Whether it was the poetry I used to write, the photos I love to take, the drawings I make, the classes I teach, the essays and articles I write, or simply the conversations I have with my husband and friends, it is all about telling my vision, my "seeing" to others. Back to top.
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