Ms. Yula Flournoy

San Jacinto Campus of Mt. San Jacinto College

Department Chair, World Languages, SJC

Associate Professor of English and French

Ms. Flournoy and son 1

My office hours for Spring 2009 are TTH 9-10 and W 9-noon. I am in class on TTH 10-noon, but otherwise am available. Stop by my office during office hours in the Theater Building, room 1507, call me at (951) 487-3642, or email me at yflournoy@msjc.edu.

Here’s some information about me:

· Courses I Teach at various times

· My Teaching Style

· My Education and Experience

· My Interests

Here are the courses I teach (not all at the same time!):

· English 062, Basic Writing Skills – Spring 2009 online!

· English 098, English Fundamentals

· English 101, Freshman Composition –Spring 2009

· English 103, Critical Thinking and Writing

· English 145, Introduction to Language and Linguistics –

· English 205, World Folklore – Fall 2009!

· English 280, Multi-Ethnic Literature

· French 101, Elementary French I – Fall 2009!

· French 102, Elementary French II – planned Spring 2010

· French 201, Intermediate French I – planned Fall 2010

· French 202, Intermediate French II – planned Spring 2011

Syllabi for current courses are available on BlackBoard for enrolled students. If you are interested in a course and would like to see a sample syllabus, email me. You can also check out the course outline of record for an idea of what the course is all about.

My Teaching Style:

Workloads

The amount of work I expect and how much independence I expect from my students depends on the course. In non-transfer courses, I am very supportive and willing to accept late homework. In composition courses, I am less supportive and stricter when it comes to accepting late work because I want my students to become more responsible for their own work and, typically, composition classes have too much work for students to fall behind and easily get caught up. In 200 level courses, there is typically less writing and more quizzes and tests, so there is less of a problem with the workload. Also, since these are introductory courses I do not expect graduate-level work. However, these are transfer-level courses, so I do expect college-level work.

In the Classroom

I want my students to participate in the classroom. My goal every semester is to learn every student’s name by the second week so I can call on them, even it they’re in the last row and trying to take a nap! I like to have discussions in my classes, whether as a class or in small groups, and usually on current events and popular culture. Sometimes I have to lecture, but I try to keep that to a minimum. I also like to explain things in different ways so all students can understand. I want every student to feel comfortable and to enjoy coming to class, even in my comp classes.

In the Office

I make an effort to be in my office as much as possible. My posted office hours are for students, and my door is open to everyone, whether it’s for problems with class, work, school in general, or personal issues. The reason I teach is to help people, and I make this my number one goal. I also have online office hours. I am usually at home during those times, but if you want to see me at those times, let me know, and I can come to school fairly quickly.

On line

This is my third semester teaching on line, and I am improving every day. I like to use discussion boards to recreate the in-class experience, but it actually can be better because you can talk to more people than just the students sitting next to you. Also, people can’t see what you look like, so you might end up talking to people who would never give you the time of day ftf. I like that! Diversity through the internet!

My Education and Experience:

· Associate of Arts in Physics and Math, Weatherford College

· Bachelor of Arts in French, minor in Spanish, University of North Texas

· Master of Arts in French, minor in History, University of North Texas

· Master of Arts in English, specialty in Linguists, University of North Texas

Overseas experience:

One year of study at the Institute of Technology in Le Havre, France
Six-week exchange program in Paris

Four-week exchange program in Germany
One semester teaching at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology

Teaching experience:

Teaching Fellow in French and English at University of North Texas.

Instructor at Intensive English Language Institute

Instructor at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology

Instructor at Bryant College

Professor at Tougaloo College

Professor at Arizona Western College

Associate Professor at MSJC!!! I’m here to stay! Well, OK, until that job in Hawaii opens up! LOL!

My Interests:

· I am a single mom of a two-year-old boy. I took the first semester off of 2007 to take care of my son and the second semester off for my sabbatical, so I’ve was out of the classroom for a year. Yikes! Last year was quite a challenge, but my son is a bit older now and sleeping better. He started preschool in January, so we both go to school now.

· The other main interest I have is the environment and how I affect it. I have my son in cloth diapers at home (yeah, can’t wait for potty training!) and non-chlorine bleach disposables elsewhere. We are almost vegetarian – no beef because of impact on environment, but some chicken and ham to round out protein for growing boy. We eat organic as much as possible, don’t use plastic containers for food or drink, no Styrofoam, and I only buy eco-friendly or used clothing for me and try to only do that for Leo, but it’s so hard. I only buy organic jammies for him after that report came out about the fire retardants in California. I’m in the market for an organic mattress. Do you know how expensive they are?

My interests before having a baby with post-baby commentary:

· I obviously love to travel. I’ve been to most countries in Western Europe, Mexico, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Fiji. The places I would love to visit are Tahiti, Thailand, and Iceland. – This hasn’t changed much since the baby. Fortunately, my son travels well. We’ve been to Hawaii, Missouri, Washington, Oregon, and Las Vegas. We didn’t get to Europe last summer because I was afraid of his reaction to the long flights. Good call. We went to the northwest to visit friends and had a great time. Then, we went to Waikiki. Oops. I walked the entire way – up and down the aisles to keep him from screaming. On the way back, I just let him scream since he had woken up at 3 in the morning and I was dead tired. Sorry to all my fellow passengers. We drove to Vegas and the Grand Canyon during the Winter Break. The Rails to the Rim train was awesome! I really recommend it.

· I love to read, read, and read some more…My favorites are fantasy, science fiction, and contemporary fiction. – Yeah, right. I am soooo far behind on my reading!!! I can’t concentrate with the baby around. I’ve become addicted to TV over the past year. I’m now watching House, Anthony Bourdain, Project Runway, Holmes on Homes and Corner Gas, my current favorite. My main interests are BBC, HGTV, and the Travel Channel, but I seem to be watching more and more Canadian TV.

· I love the beach. I learned to surf a bit in Australia, but I’ve been mainly boogieboarding lately. – I did get to the beach with my son in Hawaii, and we went to Oceanside once. I didn’t do much boogieboarding, though. I did boogieboard until my sixth month of pregnancy!!! I can’t wait for my son to start!

· Home Depot is my favorite store: I love to do work around the house and in the yard. I think if I had to choose a different career I’d be an electrician. – I couldn’t do much myself over the past year, so I had to hire contractors. Don’t talk to me about contractors.

If there is anything else you’d like to know, please email me.