University of Virginia Library

John C. Coleman

'Impressed With Retention Of Tradition'

Profile

By SUZY LAWSON

Sitting among detailed maps
of London, Oxford and
Cambridge, Asst. English Prof.
John C. Coleman leaned back
in his Wilson Hall office and
reflected on his career at the
University. "I am very happy
indeed to be a member of the
English department," professed
Mr. Coleman.

With an aside that he is
"also pleased to teach at one of

the most beautiful universities
in the country," Mr. Coleman
continued to praise the school.
"I have no gripes or protests,
and I have a tendency to do
nothing about changes which I
don't like," he said.

Speaking of changes, Mr.
Coleman has seen very little
change in the University since
he began teaching English in
1949. "I am impressed with
the University's retention of
the best traditions. There have
been less changes here than
most people think."

Concerning the admission of
women, perhaps one of the
most important and
outstanding alterations at the
University, Mr. Coleman
admits that, although he was
dubious at first, now he has
accepted their presence.
"There are so many
good-looking women this
year," he observed.

With a twinkle in his eye,
Mr. Coleman said, "As long as
they're pretty, I don't mind.
The major factor is beauty, not
brains." On the serious side, he
noted that the men seem less
restless in class with women
sitting beside them.

Upbraids Students

Known for giving students
in his classes a hard time, Mr.
Coleman often upbraids them
for mistakes, which appear on
oral reports: "Oh come on,
Michaels. You can do better
than that. Stand up straight.
Speak out!... Michaels, you
shouldn't have bothered to get
up this morning. That theme
was horrible, and look at the
paper! It's an awful mess. Why,
no publisher would accept
something like that even if you
were Hemingway, and you're
not. So why should I take it?"

Despite this good-natured
ribbing, Mr. Coleman enjoys a
good relationship with his
students. "For me, at any rate,
the most interesting and
beneficial kind of teaching
always involves some oral
exchange of ideas between
instructor and student," he
explained, adding, "I believe in
undergraduate teaching–I've
never taught graduate studies."

Mr. Coleman is grateful that
his classes are still relatively
small so that he can get to
know his students as
individuals, "the young ladies
as well as the men," he
interjected. He tries to develop
a relationship between students
and teacher, even in his larger
classes.

Mr. Coleman teaches mostly
writing classes. "This business
of writing is really very
important," he stressed. "If
you get out into the world and
can't express yourself, you're
just lost. Well sure, you can get
a job–many people do–but
you are well off if you can
write clearly and concisely.
People are begging for those
who can do this."

"I have an obligation to the
University to train students to
write well. When it comes to
writing essays, the
undergraduate has got to
organize himself mentally to be
able to present his thoughts
coherently and clearly."

This philosophy must
reflect somewhat on his
teaching, for Mr. Coleman
received the Distinguished
Professor Award from the
Alumni Association last spring.

He was most recently
honored by his election last
month to the Raven Society.

The IMP Society in 1960
awarded Mr. Coleman its
annual award for having done
the most to expedite
student-faculty relations. At
that time, he was praised for
"his great personal effort and
individual concern for the
students with whom he has
worked."

Member of ODK

In addition to the Raven
and IMP Societies, Mr.
Coleman belongs to ODK.
These are all organizations
including students and
members of the faculty and
administration.

For many years, he served
on the Board of the Tuesday
Evening Concert Series, and he
has always taken an interest in
the performances of the Glee
Club and productions of the
Virginia Players.

These activities combined
with his teaching serve to keep
this "basically modest person,"
as he refers to himself,
"sufficiently occupied."