4
A R TS AND C U LTU R E
David Miller, a full-time Spanish-German instructor and World Language department chair of 20
years, will be retiring at the end of spring term. The Clackamas Print sat down for a question and
answer interview with the soon-to-retire World Langauge instructor.
' story
and photo by autumn berend .
,
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
The Clackam as Print: What is your role at
the college?
“I ’ve had a lot of freedom to Innovate and
I ’ ve just been Incredibly fortunate to work
here 24 years.”
-D a vid Miller
David Miller: “ I am a Spanish and German
instructor and the outgoing world languages
department chair.”
TCP: How long have you worked here?
DM: “ Twenty-four years, 20 of that is full
TCP: You said you volunteer for hospice. Could
you go into more details?.
tim e.”
TCP: How did you first arrive at CCC?
DM : “ I got my masters degree in Spanish
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and German in 1994 and I sent out resumes
to various com munity colleges, and that
included C C C an d 'th e re happened to
be an opening for a p a rt-tim e Spanish
instructor.”
TCP: Where are you from ?
Gome see me today oe the
Clackamas campos!
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bridge to retirement so I could have some
structure in my life ,” Miller said with a
laugh. “ That’s something I had to get out
and do. Other then that, I’ m going to travel
around and see a few friends around the
country.”
— --------— ..- .....
DM: “ I ’m from Rockaway Beach, Oregon.”
T C P : W hat’s one o f the best elem en ts o f
working at the college and in your department?
DM: “ I’ve been teaching here. I like to do
teaching more than anything else. The rest
of it is just paperwork and meetings, but its
the teaching I live for and the teaching that
makes me want to get up every morning
and come to work.”
T CP: Are you going to m iss CCC w hen you
leave?
DM: “ I believe I will, y es.”
TCP: What do you plan on doing after?
DM: “ I’m not sure. I’ve been advised to
not have anything specific planned and see
what happens after I have the experience o f
being retired for a few months. I tell people
I’m going to do more of what I do now on
weekends and vacations. I’ m a volunteer
for hospice and I’ll continue to do that. I
started doing that a year ago as a sort of
help and Mexico with college
help and I did m y second
sabbatical in Chile. So>I ’ve
traveled pretty m uch as
much as I want to. However,
m y w ife is in terested in
further travel. She w ants to
go to the British Isles.”
TCP: What classes do you teach
the most?
DM: “ It’s for people who have terminal
diagnoses who have lessthan six months to DM: “ I teach two Spanish classes
live and there’s several different programs. and one German class.”
Providence has one^ th a t’ s the one I
volunteer for, Kaiser Permanente has one, TCP: H ow popular are your classes
Legacy has one, and it’s a team o f people or the language-classes here at CCC?
which consist o f doctors; nurse and social
workers and a volunteer to go spend time DM : “ [Not so much] anym ore.
with dying people;-the volunteers’, typically They used to be, especially in -i
someone who offers respite care, which just Spanish. We had a waiting list in 1
means if the hospice are usually at home every first year first term Spanish |
and the primary caregiver needs a break, class. And our numbers dropped ’
to go shopping or just relax for awhile. We •in a ll our classes excep t for
go for four hours a week and give them a [American Sign Language] which
is increasing. And that trend is
break and get to know the patient.”
true nationwide. So now it’ s rare
to have. Once in a while, we’ll have
TCP: How long have you been doing that?
a full Spanish 101 class, that’s first
DM : “ I started a year ago and m y first year for the first term, but that’ s
patient started in September and he died becoming less common. Ten years
just three weeks ago. And then I have, had, ago I had kids sitting out in the hall,
one more but I never really got to know him hoping to get into a Spanish class?
because he died w ithin a week after my Waiting for a student to drop so they
first visit. So I’m very'new. And another could get a seat.”
faculty member here, who actually took
my Germ an class, thought that I m ight T C P : A n y fina l words goodbye?
consider doing hospice. ”
DM: “ I can’t believe how lucky I was
TCP: Do you plan to also travel the world when to have found and to be hired fu ll
time at CCC. I love teaching and this
you retire?
has been a wonderful place to teach.
DM: “ I’ve traveled a tot as part of my job. A p laceJfhat has been flexible and
I’ve used a lot of professional development enabled us to help students in lots o f
funds from the college to make several trips wonderful ways. And cutting a lot of
to different countries where Spanish and red tapes. And CCC’s good for that. I’ve
German are spoken. I think I’ve probably had a lot of freedom to innovate and
been to Germany sevenor eight times. I’ve I’ve just been incredibly fortunate to
done my sabbatical in Hamburg Germany work here 24 years. ”
and I ’ve traveled to Spain w ith college
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