When Physicists Volunteer, All Parties Benefit

DEC 01, 2004

Virginia Valentine

I commend Physics Today for the story celebrating volunteerism in the physics community (September 2004, page 30). As a student in physics and astronomy, I saw that many of my professors considered volunteer work a waste of time, an interruption in the journey to professorships. But as a Peace Corps volunteer in West Africa, where I taught math and physics, I saw just how beneficial the work was to me and to my students.

A handful of teachers or a single person can make a difference teaching and learning through outreach programs. I encourage everyone in academia and industry to find some way to help out fellow educators or students, on the other side of the globe or in a local school.

More about the Authors

Virginia Valentine. (daphigone@yahoo.com) Las Cruces, New Mexico, US .

This Content Appeared In

Volume 57, Number 12