As Daniel Hurley hesitantly took his first steps on Edmonds College Campus more than two decades ago, he felt shaky as a wave of thoughts surged through his mind. Feeling both nervous and uncertain of what the future would hold, Hurley began to reconsider his friend’s advice in taking this new teaching position at the College.
Now, 22 years later, Hurley is taking a hiatus to start the work of building a house. He sat down with journalism student Yafate Yared to reflect on his journey as a teacher and his time at the college.
Graduating with a Master’s in Creative Writing from Boston University, Hurley’s journey in becoming the accomplished teacher he is today wasn’t something always set in stone.
While treading the deep waters of graduate school, Hurley applied for, and was granted a fellowship. Initially when Hurley learned that the fellowship required him to teach an undergraduate class, he became uncertain of his teaching abilities. However, he would quickly come to find that teaching was in fact his life’s purpose.
“At first I said, ‘Oh I don’t know if I could do that.’ My professor said, ‘Nobody turns this down. This is a great opportunity for you.’ I had never seen myself as a teacher. Then I taught, and I really liked it–I couldn’t believe how much I liked it. I couldn’t believe how natural I felt with it because I’m kind of a shy guy. But in front of the class I didn’t quite feel that way. And when I first started teaching here [at Edmonds College]–my second class of all time was teaching here, a creative writing class–I felt like this was right,” Hurley explained.
Although Hurley was originally hired to teach Fiction Writing and Creative Nonfiction for the English department, after six years he was able to transition to English Composition; a role he would embrace for the next 22 years.
Hurley quickly realized that teaching has both its ups and downs. One of the struggles Hurley faced, during his early years teaching English Composition, was having to find a balance between following the established rules, while still infusing his own ideas and personality into each lesson plan.
Little did Hurley know that these struggles would later look small when compared to the new set of challenges beginning in spring 2020.
The seismic shift to remote learning, as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, shocked students and teachers alike. While variations of online learning at Edmonds College had been available since 2003, the unexpected adjustment, brought on by the coronavirus pandemic, challenged the resolve of students to continue their education. For some, the pandemic, coupled with; financial burdens, a shift to online classrooms, and the overall worsening mental health of students, caused drop-out rates at the college to drastically increase.
To engage students with the course material, Hurley quickly adapted. Going above and beyond, Hurley worked to address both his students’ educational and personal needs. He routinely carved out time for one-on-one meetings, and worked to inform students of the college’s Learning Support Center, which provides access to valuable writing assistance.
Throughout his 28 year teaching career at Edmonds College, Hurley has witnessed many changes that have shaped both his teaching experience and the College as a whole. Even after overcoming the coronavirus pandemic, Hurley continues to hold the belief that teaching at Edmonds College has continuously improved over the years. He attributes this progress to the technological advancements and the overall growth of the campus itself. Throughout the pandemic induced remote learning, construction of new campus buildings, amidst the ebb and flow of new faculty and students, and the renaming of “Edmonds Community College” to “Edmonds College” in 2020, Hurley has remained a cornerstone of the College, teaching each and every quarter.
It came as quite a surprise to learn that after leading such a storied teaching career, Hurley will be taking a step back. Wanting to lighten his load, before returning winter quarter, Hurley will take both the summer and fall quarters off.
When asked to elaborate on how he plans on spending this new “free time”, Hurley shared, “my wife and I are planning on building a house. We’re having it built and we’re working with them, starting from scratch–electricity, water, plumbing. That’s going to take over our lives for the next three to four years.”
Although he has been missed for the past few quarters, Hurley will be back in winter to continue to lead by example, by being a dedicated teacher, who goes out of his way to see students succeed.
