In his (anonymous) new book, Professor X describes a scene he witnessed in a departmental office. A frazzled student comes in and wants the secretary to get a message to her professor. The secretary asks the professor’s name, and the student turns out to be unaware — at the midpoint of the semester.
The secretary shows no judgment but proceeds to figure out a way to identify the professor:
“Male or female?”
Female.
“Tall or short?”
Regular,
“Blond or brunette? Light hair, dark hair?”
She has dreads.
By process of elimination, the secretary identifies the instructor and promises to deliver the message. The secretary never smirks — even after the student leaves. The student is treated with respect. Professor X marvels at the commitment of staffers to helping students at the colleges at which he teaches. “Nowhere are employees friendlier,” he writes. “The staffers could not be more accommodating to students who have lost their way in the forests of financial aid or class schedules.”