Another wonderful email from a former student, who now is flourishing in the video game industry:
Hi! I don’t know if you remember me, but I was an ENG 131 student of yours in, hmm, 2004, or maybe it was 2005… Anyways, that’s not the important part – the important part is that I tell you how awesome of an instructor you are and how your class has helped me long after I left the UW. I see you’ve been working with the role of games in today’s society. I happened to drop out of the UW, switch to DigiPen, drop out of DigiPen for a job, and I’ve been working at Snowblind Studios/Warner Brothers Games for a year, now. I just thought that was interesting… Anyways, your class was the turning point in my life where I suddenly acquired an understanding of how and why to write anything at all. Since then, I’ve written my way into a 50% tuition scholarship at DigiPen, a competitive volunteer position at GDC 2010, and the portfolio/resume that led to a full-time job doing what I love!
I really appreciate having had you as an instructor. Your teaching style is very effective and the topics you covered in class opened the doors to a lot of personal growth. For as much as I learned in your class, it turns out it was really just an eye opener – an introduction to… I’m not sure what to call it… “Stuff I would end up learning and am still learning.”
I just wanted to send you my appreciation, respects, and some positive reinforcement for changing people’s lives for the better! I’m just one person, but I’m sure there are many others that feel the same and haven’t sent you a message about it. You are bringing change to the world because each of us students can affect more and more people long after we finish your classes – and that’s exactly what I’ve been doing. So, thank you – and I speak for my friends as well.