Class after class, professors are used to seeing the same students, in the same seats. Some students talk more than others, but each one has a value, purpose and place in the classroom.
And then — after a tragedy, their seats are empty, and professors can distinctly tell the community is missing someone.
“Often, professors are expected to be immediately OK, mature and ready to help,” said Tim Spivey, vice president of Spiritual Life. “Their hearts get impacted just like everybody else’s.”
While everyone is struggling, sometimes professors are struggling more than they let on — as they are trying to help their students but are also in pain themselves.
“It’s hard for students to understand what faculty, staff, administration and everybody goes through in a moment like this,” Spivey said.
Professors get to know their students and see them day after day, becoming acquainted in a different way than how classmates create friendships with one another.
“I had gotten to know her [Peyton], and she had died suddenly,” said Jooho Lee, associate professor of Business Ethics and Law. “It did hit me a lot more than some of the other things that I’ve experienced with students.”
Professors are accommodating their course schedules and providing accommodations for students, dealing with their own grief while also trying to help their students handle grief.
“I didn’t learn how to be a grief counselor from a Ph.D. program, but I’m gonna do my best because I’m a human being,” said John Ned, visiting assistant professor of Finance.
Ned had both Peyton Stewart and Niamh Rolston in his classes and said he has tried to treat his students with care and compassion since the crash — knowing his students are hurting.
“I always look at my students as my kids,” Ned said. “We are here to nurture you during that time, and so I take this role seriously, and I do what I can for them.”
Helen Holmlund, assistant professor of Biology, had Deslyn Williams in her California Ecosystems class, a course where the class would frequently take field trips together.
“During our field trips, she treasured not only the wonders of nature but also the people there with her,” Holmlund wrote in an Oct. 27 email to the Graphic. “Deslyn built friendships and memories that we will cherish for the rest of our lives.”
While Holmlund expected students to sleep or be on their phones during the car rides to and from the field trips, Holmlund wrote that Deslyn would always keep her classmates positive instead, filling the van with laughter and conversation.
“Deslyn was integral to making this [the conversation] happen,” Holmlund wrote. “She built friendships quickly and authentically.”
Deslyn was present in every space — especially the classroom — and made the class feel like a community, Holmlund wrote.
“Deslyn blessed us with her sweet, cheerful, inclusive personality,” Holmlund wrote. “She brought our class together and made learning fun for everyone.”
Chris Collins, visiting professor of Organizational Behavior, had Peyton in his class last year.
In the first week of Collins’ class, Peyton wrote an essay about why she took the class, stating it was senior Bridget Thompson, who was her “first family here,” who told her she would be able to grow from it, Collins said.
Collins said Peyton was always a soothing presence in class.
“As everyone knows, she really has this aura of sweetness, very inviting,” Collins said.
Every time Peyton walked by Collins office, she would always pop her head in and say hi, Collins said.
“She just always connected,” Collins said.
Lee also had Peyton in his class — one class last year and one class fall 2023.
Peyton was always a go-getter, Lee said, and was always working to do her best.
“She didn’t really get discouraged and give up,” Lee said. “As far as I can tell, she always tried to improve with a great attitude.”
More than anything, Lee said he was impressed with Peyton’s “hopeful disposition” in class.
Steven Bauer, assistant instructor of Teaching of Marketing, had both Niamh and Peyton in his class.
Bauer said Niamh was always pleasant and friendly — and always thoughtful to the students in her class.
“I could see that students in the class loved her,” Bauer said.
On the day she died, Bauer said Niamh gave a presentation about the Waldorf Astoria in Beverly Hills. The presentation was a part of a group exercise on Service Marketing.
“She did a great job, and it was typical of her thoughtful and sincere demeanor,” Bauer said.
Associate professor of English Heather Thomson-Bunn taught Asha Weir, and said the first two words that come to mind when she thinks of Asha in class were “kind” and “peaceful.”
“She was also such a peaceful presence in the classroom — fiercely intelligent, but in a gentle way that made room for others’ perspectives,” Thomson-Bunn wrote in a Nov. 1 email to the Graphic.
Upon returning to class, Thomson-Bunn said Asha was deeply missed, and the class shared stories and memories about Asha for the class.
“One of my students brought flowers to represent Asha’s presence, and I read a short piece that Asha had written that spoke beautifully to the ideas of perseverance in the face of pain,” Thomson-Bunn wrote.
Thomson-Bunn said in the midst of grief, she is relying on her faith, family and friends, while continuing to be there for her students.
“It is healing for me to walk with others who are healing, to carry the weight together,” Thomson-Bunn wrote.
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Contact Abby Wilt via Twitter (@abby_wilt) or by email: abby.wilt@pepperdine.edu
