Friday, June 09, 2006

Congratulations all around

To, as I mentioned last week, Loren Goldman political theory graduate student in the poli sci department, for winning this year's Wayne C. Booth Graduate Student Prize for Excellence in Teaching, for his terrific job TAing the winter quarter of my course on 18th century political thought;

To Leigh Jenco, Mara Marin, and Emily Nacol, also political theory graduate students, for winning a William Rainey Harper Fellowship, a Mellon Foundation Dissertation-Year Fellowship, and another Mellon Foundation Dissertation-Year Fellowship, respectively, for 2006-07;

(There's been some more very good news for a former graduate student, but it's not public yet, so I'll put this placeholder here until it is.)

And to Shelley Clark, who is neither a political theorist nor a graduate student but who I have the good fortune to be married to, for again winning the "Best Teacher in a Core Class" award in public policy, for teaching "Statistical Methods for Policy Research."

Always nice when good things, and good recognition, happen to good, deserving people!

Tuesday, June 06, 2006

An inconsequential reflection on packing a library

My books reflect nothing like an even alphabetical spread. "I" and "J" disappear into the same box with room to spare. But "Ha"-- Habermas, Hampshire, Hardin, Hart, Hayek-- goes on for a very long time. And "Ma"-- Machiavelli, MacIntyre, Madison (including Publius), Mandeville, and Marx-- took three boxes by itself.