I am so privileged to teach at the University of Houston. They have allowed me to teach Women in Politics again this semester and I’m so looking forward to meeting my 45 new students this morning.

The first day of the Fall semester is always one of my favorites. Everyone is excited, energetic (well, mostly) and ready to conquer the new school year. Of course, I teach at 8:30 in the morning and the students aren’t always fully awake. A few will be late as they are trying to figure out parking and traffic patterns.

But for me, the joy is in meeting my students. The fact is that I learn so much from them. Most teachers will tell you this is true. In my case, the term “teacher” means discussion leader and interactive partner. While I share and impart knowledge, the students provide me with perspective.

The best thing of all about teaching at the University of Houston is the diversity of my classes. As I set up my grade sheet, I studied the names of my students. Truly, the future of Houston is enrolled in this class. Today I will begin putting faces to the names but I already know that I have a very diverse class – diverse in racial backgrounds, diverse in gender and diverse in experiences.

I just consider myself so blessed to be a part of this great University and to work with the future leadership of our city!

Over the next few months, I will periodically share interesting discussions from our class.