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A newsletter for the students, faculty and staff of the Collin College. Published monthly. For information or submissions, call 972.599.3142. Cougar News welcomes student and faculty submissions. Next deadline: April 10 All submissions are due by 5 p.m. on the due date. Photos cannot be returned. Text should be emailed to mrobinson@ccccd.edu or sent on disk. Please submit copy that is proofed, edited and saved in Word format. Cougar News staff: Lisa Vasquez, director; Mark Robinson, editor; Marcy Cadena-Smith, contributor; Dana Schmitz, contributor; Sydney Portilla-Diggs, campus correspondent; Stephanie Hall, student correspondent; Nick Young, photographer and layout.
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Texas Professor of the Year shares her affinity for teaching, inquiry
By Sydney Portilla-Diggs
Campus Correspondent
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| Jennifer O’Loughlin Brooks | Although I have had many opportunities to interact with Collin psychology professor Jennifer O’Loughlin Brooks, I gained the most insight into her passion for teaching and psychology in a conversation we had about the Psi Beta National Psychology Synergy Conference.
Brooks had long dreamed of hosting a psychology conference at Collin. On Oct. 7, 2006, in the 25th year of Psi Beta National Honor Society for Psychology, her dream came to fruition.
In a moment of exultation, Brooks exclaimed, “The creative enterprise of teaching fuels my passion!”
At one point in her life, Jennifer Brooks did not want to be a professor.
“When I was a little girl, I think my dreams were similar to other little girls' my age. I dreamt of being an ice skater performing flawlessly in front of an audience [which] was not realistic growing up in a small west Texas town where there were no ice skating rinks to be found,” Brooks said. “It was my early formative years in the safety of a large and loving family that provided the backdrop for my academic prowess. Curiosity and inquisitiveness was rewarded at home, which ignited my lifelong passion for learning.”
Brooks graduated from Texas Christian University in 1991 with a bachelor of arts in psychology and speech/communications. She earned her master of science in experimental psychology from Emporia State University in 1994. In graduate school, Brooks recounted one of her more memorable research experiences. Brooks had the opportunity to utilize the scan sampling technique to obtain behavioral data on the social interactions of captive orangutans in the Topeka Zoo in Topeka, Kan.
This research technique is accomplished when researchers scan across a study group of orangutans at a set time and make instantaneous observations regarding the behavior of each individual orangutan at the exact moment they are observed.
“These behavior states are quickly recorded using a checklist or a quick note-taking system…this process is repeated every minute until the sample is considered complete,” Brooks said.
In doing this research, she was able to observe social interactions in a quasi-naturalistic setting while learning the skill of scan sampling. According to Brooks, both her immediate and her extended family are her biggest inspiration. Her husband is a graduate of Austin College. Currently, he works in healthcare and data warehousing. He is also a soccer coach on the side. They have two sons who enjoy school, art and soccer. Also in the mix is a ‘pesky beagle’ named Bay.
“I have a close knit family that encourages and supports each other," Brooks said. "My beloved father, whom I recently lost, was one of the most influential persons in both my personal and academic life. My father taught me that love—not academics, not money or influence—was the greatest pursuit.”
Brooks attributes the love and support of her family and her passion for her profession as the secret to her success. In 2007, Brooks’ peers selected her as Collin’s faculty of the year. In response to this accolade, she felt both humbled and honored to be recognized for what she finds as a rewarding, challenging and exciting career.
Collin College was not alone in recognizing the accomplishments of Brooks. The Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) and the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching named Professor Brooks the Texas Professor of the Year in November of 2006. Her long list of accomplishments includes, but is not limited to, helping Psi Beta earn national acclaim by overseeing student research projects, creating and teaching the first Honors general psychology course. In addition, Brooks is a four-time recipient of the Faculty Recognition Scholarship for Exemplary teaching and service and was named Outstanding Professor in 2004 and 2006. She also serves as one of the editors of the Journal of Psychological Inquiry.
After attaining so many achievements, I asked Professor Brooks what was next in her future. Brooks just wants to continue teaching at Collin College while becoming more involved in Psi Beta national honor society at the national level.
When Brooks is not teaching, she likes hanging out with her husband and their children at the park or watching their favorite cartoons on television. When I asked her to share some little known facts about herself, she said, “I am an avid tennis player. Once I had a pet opossum. My one guilty pleasure is I like to read tabloid magazines.”
However, the last fact Professor Jennifer Brooks shared about herself was not a secret to anyone who has ever met her.
“I love my job and look forward to every day. I enjoy creating specialized and enhanced learning experiences like student-originated psychological research, incorporating guest speakers into the classroom experience, providing networking opportunities for students and facilitating collaborative learning groups.”
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