The Nicholls Worth

Issue date: 11/12/09 Section: Lagniappe

Media Credit: Rudy Vasquez Speech instructor Farren Clark moderates the first speech forum of the school year Sept. 29th in the Student Union's Cotillion Ballroom.

To some, he is the instructor who plays the guitar; to others he is the instructor who always has an open door. No matter which side of Farren Clark students and faculty identify with, one thing is certain: there is just something about him that can make a five-minute conversation turn into 30.

Clark, the middle child of five, was home-schooled and always took time to experience the joy that running brought him. Thus, throughout his high school years, he ran summer track.

Clark practiced and trained with the track team at West Jefferson High School, but because of issues with paperwork, he was never able to actually compete with the team. Originally from Harvey, he arrived at Nicholls in the spring of 1999 where his dedication and persistence landed him a track scholarship.

Today he still holds the 800-meter record with a time of 1:51.44. However, the Nicholls men's track program was canceled in the fall of 2004.

"Although teaching is great, I would have loved an opportunity to possibly coach at my alma mater. The coaches here are wonderful," Clark said. "Although nowadays, I do more laps in the Cane's drive-thru.

"I see teaching, running and coaching as a triangle," Clark said. Being able to interact with the students is what makes being an instructor so rewarding, Clark said. "I try to give positive feedback to the students about how they are impacting me as well.

"Just being able to see a student talk about what they love and how they feel makes me feel almost as if I'm out there again, just in a different realm. Pushing them to just be themselves and show other people who they are," Clark said.

How Clark ended up back at his alma mater was an interesting journey. After graduating in the fall of 2003 from Nicholls with a bachelor's in mass communication with a concentration in print journalism, Clark immediately took a job working at one of the area's newspapers, "The Daily Comet."

After the excitement of graduation started to dwindle and the newness of writing for "The Daily Comet" wore off, Clark was left in the same scenario that many graduates experience: the question of what comes next.

Continued...

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