Letter to Smith Students

Dear Smith Students,

My time as a Visiting Assistant Professor at Smith College is coming to an end. This fall, I will be starting as a tenure-track Assistant Professor of Computer Science at Middlebury College in Vermont. My partner will be starting a similar job at the University of Vermont, nearby. We are excited to have secured tenure-track jobs in a beautiful location but are sad to leave Northampton, and our current communities.

When I accepted this position at Smith, I was quickly and warmly welcomed to the community by the students – first at the presentation of the Major in Spring 2018, and then at HackSmith, and then when I started – teaching data structures – the next fall.

It has been my great honor and privilege to spend these semesters at Smith, teaching and learning with you, the students. The conversations I have had with you have forever improved my teaching and my research; I could not imagine being hired for my new job without the experiences we had together.

Due to the unprecedented situation we find ourselves in, I am unable to invite you all to stop by my office during the rest of the year, or to bribe you with Oreos one last time – I will have to eat them by myself. I hope & plan to visit Smith around next year’s Spring Break (2021).

My job at Smith officially ends on 30 June 2020, and at some point, my official email address will be removed – but – I hope and expect that some of you will want to ask for advice, letters of recommendation, or just generally, to keep in touch.

We professors love hearing from students. You can reach me in the future through the smith@jjfoley.me address – which I own and will keep operating indefinitely.