Spring — 2011

David Feinberg

Cultural Anthropology

“I’m living with friends in Westwood. We get to have the social life of UCLA, but then we can ride the Big Blue Bus to SMC for free, because I’m a student here.”

Studying the workings and beliefs of worldwide cultures is a path that David Feinberg is firmly decided on following. “In my World Civilization class, we’re learning all about ancient cultures and how they were affected by the religion and politics in their area. I really want to study cultural anthropology a lot more in depth,” David continues, “and then I can teach at a university and travel around the world during summers and do research. I just have a passion to discover how different peoples live.”

David’s choice of SMC was an informed and wise decision. “I’d been taking classes over in the Valley, and they made it very difficult for me. So I said to my friends, ‘Look. We can all just move in together and go to SMC, because it’s a better college all around.’ And when I talked with the counselors and other people at SMC, I found them very personable. They just made it very easy for me to sign up for the classes I needed in order to do what I want. They are extremely helpful people. And when I first walked into this college,” David continues, “it didn’t feel like a junior college at all. It’s so much more like a university. And the teachers here are of a quality that—after your very first class—you really want to show up, because they’re going to push you as much as you want to push yourself.”

David singles out one teacher in particular for kudos. “I had History of British Civilization with Professor Stiles, and he’s all about what a teacher should be. He doesn’t just throw up some PowerPoint stuff. He leads us into some great discussions, and he lets us know about things we really need to know—even if they aren’t covered in our reading.”

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