March 7, 2006

Dear members of the hiring committee:

Organized, reliable, and effective, Craig Butz leads effective classrooms. I first met Craig in 2004 when I hired him to teach the introductory English composition course at our school, the Art Institute of California--San Francisco (Ai). As the director of general education at this commercial arts school, I had the opportunity to observe Craig teach, interact with students, and complete administrative tasks, all of which he did with competence and precision.

Craig is a consistent, clear and effective teacher. English Composition is not an easy course to teach: it is a first quarter course aimed to teach commercial art students writing and reading basics. Students are not usually motivated for this course--they wish to take art instead--and some students need some acculturation and training just to succeed in college in general. In my most recent observation of him, I had the opportunity to see him lead a discussion of one of Annie Dillard's essays. Craig handled his audience with care and strong boundaries both. His points were clear and his expectations were easy to understand. For example, when a student complained of the length of an essay, Craig took the time to discuss how television and film have shortened many of our attention spans. He encouraged the student to use college as a way to develop that focus, the focus that would help the student succeed in future classes and job places.

In addition to being able to negotiate meaningful teaching moments on the spot, Craig was prepared with handouts, including a detailed evaluation rubric for the upcoming essay assignment. While teaching at Ai, Craig took the time to develop and compile a variety of materials that helped him develop students' critical thinking skills. Lastly, Craig took the time--as a part-time instructor--to ensure that he met with students outside of class, one-on-one. Students appreciated the extra time and attention, and, as a composition instructor myself, I understand how much individual feedback via conversation helps students further their writing skills.

Also, I trust Craig to accomplish the administrative tasks related to teaching. As a private institution held to a high level of documentation standards, the Art Institute asks a lot of its part-time and full-time teachers. Craig completed copious forms correctly and on time. He also took seriously our mission of faculty development, attending in-service meetings and refining his teaching portfolio.

In short, I believe that Craig would be a great asset to any learning community. His students learn, the school community grows and his supervisors always know the job--whatever the job--gets done well.

Sincerely,

Andrew Brosnan
Past Academic Director/Current Full-time Instructor
415-254-1829 (cell, for convenience)
andrewbrosnan@sbcglobal.net

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