Chris Ericson Hansen

Chris Ericson Hansen

Lecturer in CWES/History

Class of 1992

I have so many great memories of my time as a student at Gettysburg.  I loved my classes (well, most of them!), my friends and getting to know my professors. 

I had four great years of sleeping too little, laughing too much and displaying questionable judgment in a wide variety of social situations.  Oh, and I learned how to write a 20-page paper in a weekend.

But the things that come back to me with the most nostalgia actually are the "bad" times: annoying people and situations that have, with time, mellowed into an amusing tableau of "college life."  Things like the lousy yellow cinderblock walls in Stine and Hanson halls, the C+ I got in Introduction to Shakespeare, the bomb scare at my (sorority) pledge formal...

There's no place in the world like Gettysburg College. The friendships and bonds that students form with their mentors on the faculty are precious.  I was blessed with amazing professors who saw something of worth in a chubby, awkward kid with a bad ?80s hairdo. 

The academic transformation I was able to make between my freshman and senior years was nothing short of miraculous, and it was all because of my teachers. Professors who demanded the best from their students and, in return, gave of their own time and expertise unselfishly.  

I could always just show up at the office door of one of my professors and find a friendly face and a willing ear to entertain my never-ending stream of profound (and, occasionally inane) historical inquiries. 

Years later, I am pleased that many of these same individuals have become colleagues and close friends.