When English professor Lori Clark went to a Pride Talk at Elgin Community College in 2015 she met three students who were trying to restart Students Who Are Not Silent (SWANS) after it had been inactive. After Clark got to know the students better, they asked her to be a co-adviser for the club, which she agreed to.

“My favorite part about being an adviser is working with students in a space outside the classroom,” Clark said. “In the classroom, there are rules and regulations that have to be followed, and I have to be a bit more of an authority figure. With a student organization, I can be a little more laid back and be more of myself. That’s not to say I haven’t had to be an authority figure, because sometimes there may be conflict within the club that needs to be dealt with, and there needs to be seriousness when those moments occur.”

When professors at ECC are not teaching, some are advisers for different clubs and organizations and everyone has their own reason for being involved. Each club is required to have at least one faculty member be an adviser in order to stay active.

For Engineering Club advisor John Eltzroth, his involvement was mostly academic.

“To be truthful my involvement is mainly academic and it’s always nice to have discussions on topics related to what we teach here in astronomy, engineering or physics,” Eltzroth said.

Professor David Carrillo wanted to do more than just teach, which was one of the reasons for becoming an adviser for the Human Services Club.

“I like to be involved in more than just coming here and teaching, I like to do other things, especially when it comes to working with students in other ways not just teaching, I am committed to the whole student not just teaching,” Carrillo said.

Clark said that being an advisor gives her an opportunity to connect with LGBTQ+ students, something she didn’t have when she was in community college.

“Advising SWANS also gives me an opportunity to be amongst LGBTQ+ students,” Clark said. “When I was a student in a community college many years ago, we did not have an LGBTQ+ organization on campus. I often think that if I had had that opportunity to be with other LGBTQ+ students, I might have been able to make peace with my own queerness a lot sooner in my life, instead of feeling the need to hide my identity for such a long time. It is refreshing to be with a community who has similar struggles that I have had in the past and continue to have. It is nice to be part of a community.” 

Carrillo admitted that one of his favorite parts is watching the students grow.

“One of my favorite parts is watching students getting involved in doing things that benefit the community and the college and watching them grow and develop as people,” Carrillo said.

There have been a number of students who were interested in forming an engineering club but needed an advisor for it and that is where Eltzroth stepped in.

“We’ve had a number of students interested in forming the Engineering club over the years and they have been required to have a faculty advisor on board and I was asked to join,” Eltzroth said.

Being both an advisor and a professor does come with its own challenges. For Clark, her duties as both a professor and being on other campus committees kept her from attending meetings and events.

“I try to find a balance as much as I can, but it is a struggle for me,” Clark said. “At the same time, the students in the organization have access to me during my office hours and through email and texting, so I can still be involved even if I can’t attend a meeting. Luckily, the students of SWANS are very understanding of my other roles at the college, and they work to include me through sending me the minutes from meetings and giving me updates on what is going on within the club.”

Carrillo admitted that one of the main challenges is when students don’t do their jobs.

“I think the challenge sometimes comes when students in leadership positions, don’t take their job or role seriously enough that the work ends up falling on other people around them,” Carrillo said.

For any teachers or faculty that may become advisers in the future, Carrillo had this to say.

“Try to give as much time as possible to the clubs, the clubs activities and to the leaders of the clubs,” Carrillo said.