Dr. John Orman
As an alumnus of Fairfield University, as a former student and as a local politics nut, I was really dazed by the news yesterday of the death of Dr. John Orman at 60.
I think I’m still at a bit of a loss about it.
I graduated Fairfield in 2004 and I only had Dr. Orman as a professor for one class. I can’t even remember the name of it, but it had something to do with politics and pop culture in the 20th century.
To be totally honest, it wasn’t all that difficult of a class. If it wasn’t for the man teaching it, I doubt I would remember anything about it.
But I do remember it. I remember a lot about it.
I remember Dr. Orman’s passion and enthusasiam for politics, his almost child-like excitement for teaching how our government works. I remember him stressing the importance that we participate in the political process. I remember his impromptu rap battles in class, and seeing the reaction of students watching a 50-something white guy rap about Osama Bin Laden and Henry Kissinger.
To say his teaching style was unorthodox is being generous. A quick example: Instead of taking a written final for his class, a classmate and I were allowed to perform a cover of John Lennon’s classic “Happy Xmas (War is Over)”. I can’t sing all that well, but he gave me a B+ anyway because he felt we understood the political relevance behind it.
And when Dr. Orman would grace us with a few minutes of his stand-up routine, it honestly wasn’t half bad.
Even after I graduated from Fairfield, I enjoyed reading about Dr. Orman’s political hijinks — trying to run for senate and then, after dropping out, managing to swipe the chairmanship of the Connecticut for Liberman party away from the state’s junior senator.
Everyone says this when someone passes away, but Dr. Orman really was in a class unto himself.
The state has lost a real advocate for its political process and a fantastic human being. I’m glad I had the chance to get to know him.
He’ll be missed.
Addendum: Brian Lockhart has a good post on Orman’s passing as well, as does the Blogster himself, Ken Dixon. As Lockhart said, state politics just got a lot less interesting.
Here’s a rundown of other reports on his death:
Dr. Orman taught the first class I ever took at Fairfield, and was my academic adviser. I can’t believe he’s gone. Nice post.
Comment by Ethan Fry — July 7th, 2009 @ 10:47 am
John was also the “Voice” of the Lady Stags at Alumni Hall games. He had a great passion for hoops and politics.
Comment by Tom Kelly — July 7th, 2009 @ 11:01 am
Keith, nice post. I’ll always remember him spotting me in the Mirror office after I’d taken an extended furlong from his class. He casually walked in, said hi to a few other people, and then looked me in the eye with a look of surprise, shook my hand, and said, “Hi Ryan. I’m John Orman. It’s so nice to finally meet you.” I later heard that during classes in which I was absent, he would have conversations with my empty chair. “Ryan, what is your take on the results of the midterm? (silence). Mm hmm. (silence). Oh really! Wow, that’s very insightful.”
He was a very passionate teacher who cared deeply about his students. Certainly one of the most memorable characters at Fairfield U. He’ll be sorely missed.
Comment by Ryan Blair — July 7th, 2009 @ 12:13 pm
Keith, thanks for such a great post. I remember his kindness most.
Comment by Larissa Lytwyn — July 7th, 2009 @ 1:14 pm
While I learned a lot from Dr. Orman what I take most from him is a role model of how to teach students that are not of the same party as you. He most certainly did not care what party you were with as long as you were with a party and willing to engage the process. He was also very realistic about what was happening in the world of the students. Of course my favorite memory of his came during my final speech in the third and final class I took with him in 2001. Myself and the FUSA president had been battling in court for about month to save Clam Jam, which caused me to miss a more than my fair share of classes. When it came time for my oral presentation with his quick wit, he said, “Tim do you think anyone in here really cares what you are about to say, all they want to know is are they going to be able to tap the kegs this weekend or not, so why don’t you speak about that.” Of course he turned the entire thing into a teaching discussion of local politics and how that effects the world we live in, which of course was far more important than anything I was going to speak about. RIP my good man.
Comment by Tim Healy — July 7th, 2009 @ 3:04 pm
Keith, couldn’t agree more. Well said.
Comment by Gwen Nolan — July 7th, 2009 @ 5:50 pm
Keith, you managed to capture the essence of the man. Thank you.
Comment by Marie Siefring — July 8th, 2009 @ 9:07 am