Things I've learned, with the Profs Caplan
BC: My position is part-time, so that's means I have a little more time to spend with her.
N-L: How did you two first come to Johns Hopkins?
MC: Beatrice was the Yiddish language preceptor at Harvard, which was a really important and demanding position. I had a research fellowship at Harvard. Both of our positions were temporary. In 2006, they created the Tandetnik Chair of Yiddish and Yiddish Literature here at Johns Hopkins. I was excited about this job. I came down here for an interview.
They were looking for someone who could teach both Yiddish language and literature. I proposed that they hire me as a professor in Yiddish literature and my wife as a professional Yiddish language instructor. And that was the decision everyone made which was conducive for both of us.
N-L: Being a married couple, what is it like to work at the same institution?
BC: I think it is great. It sometimes is very helpful to have our offices in the same building. Sometimes it makes looking after our daughter easier. We really almost always work with each other.
MC: It's a total drag. … No, just kidding. That would be some story. It is an extraordinary luxury to be able to work together in the same institution, not only for the practical reasons. I know married academics who work on separate continents; I know of academics where one spouse works in New York and the other works in Berkeley. These are people who forced with the choice of pursuing a career or creating a family life. To not have to make that choice is really extraordinary in this day and age. It would be even better if Johns Hopkins offered more classes for Beatrice to teach.
N-L: How often do you two collaborate in your work?
BC: We haven't had much opportunity yet to collaborate because I teach Yiddish language and my husband teaches Yiddish literature. We don't have any students who read in Yiddish. When we begin to have students who can read in Yiddish, then the opportunities for collaboration will be much greater.
N-L: How did you two first come to Johns Hopkins?
MC: Beatrice was the Yiddish language preceptor at Harvard, which was a really important and demanding position. I had a research fellowship at Harvard. Both of our positions were temporary. In 2006, they created the Tandetnik Chair of Yiddish and Yiddish Literature here at Johns Hopkins. I was excited about this job. I came down here for an interview.
They were looking for someone who could teach both Yiddish language and literature. I proposed that they hire me as a professor in Yiddish literature and my wife as a professional Yiddish language instructor. And that was the decision everyone made which was conducive for both of us.
N-L: Being a married couple, what is it like to work at the same institution?
BC: I think it is great. It sometimes is very helpful to have our offices in the same building. Sometimes it makes looking after our daughter easier. We really almost always work with each other.
MC: It's a total drag. … No, just kidding. That would be some story. It is an extraordinary luxury to be able to work together in the same institution, not only for the practical reasons. I know married academics who work on separate continents; I know of academics where one spouse works in New York and the other works in Berkeley. These are people who forced with the choice of pursuing a career or creating a family life. To not have to make that choice is really extraordinary in this day and age. It would be even better if Johns Hopkins offered more classes for Beatrice to teach.
N-L: How often do you two collaborate in your work?
BC: We haven't had much opportunity yet to collaborate because I teach Yiddish language and my husband teaches Yiddish literature. We don't have any students who read in Yiddish. When we begin to have students who can read in Yiddish, then the opportunities for collaboration will be much greater.
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