When you visit Prof. Kevin Kelch’s profile on RateMyProfessors.com, you’ll find a dozen comments left by his former students, including:
I took Presentation Media and Adv. Tech & Prof. with Kelch. I loved both classes and did great in them. He isn’t that strict if you do what is expected of you. Actually, he is one of my favorite professors.
He’s a great teacher, I wish he taught more classes I needed. I’d take him every chance I could! He’s fair, to the point and smart.
I thought Professor Kelch was friendly and I got a lot out of his class. He is very clear on his requirements for papers and presentations.
Very clear on what he wants and a very liberal marker!
This is one grouchy man, but I cannot think of anyone more suited to teach the class. Kelch allows plenty of time to get assignments done. He is very anal in terms of grading, but tells you exactly what he wants to see. In fact the entire class period is dedicated to him repeating what he expects in each assignment…over and over.
Very true. Prof. Kelch’s many students through the years knew he would expect nothing but their absolute best in class. In fact, he insisted on it.
He was my colleague in our Technical and Professional Communication program at Lawrence Tech. I was fortunate enough to call him “Kevin.” We’d debate varied topics such as writing styles for the web, our favorite Adobe products and the occasional misfit student. When he labored to form the Media Communications program at LTU, he valued my humble opinion during its foundation, even going so far as to recommend I teach a course or two. And unlike many of my own professors from my days toting a backpack, Kevin’s door was always open to our students.
He was passionate about rhetoric, fiercely dedicated to his craft, well respected and mildly feared.
He will be sorely missed.
Our program’s director had the unenviable task of announcing his passing to our students last evening. In clumsily finding the right words to follow her, I recounted how I instinctively ticked through a “mental checklist” upon hearing the news. It’s habitual for communicators to fall back on protocol, identify the appropriate channels and begin to establish key messages—all within a split second before the gravity of the situation sets.
She already had all that covered. She always does. It’s what is expected of us as communicators in times of crisis. We handle it. It’s what we do, and what Prof. Kelch would’ve expected.
Since the events of 9/11, and more recently Virginia Tech, I have a morbid habit of scouring the web to see how such events unfold online from an institutional standpoint. Today’s news is tragic to his loved ones, our school and our industry. It won’t go much farther than that, which is understandable. That said, I would like to thank my department and my school’s leaders for the prompt and thorough management of this incident. I was glad to see the LTU website promptly reflected the news, as well.
As for RateMyProfessors.com, well, I suspect they have their own protocol. Perhaps Prof. Kelch’s students will continue to share their thoughts and memories on his profile (and they may do so here, as well). The site even offers an RSS feed for him.
I wonder what Kevin would’ve thought of that.
Thanks Dino, for sharing these excellent and helpful comments. Some of my memories of Kevin Kelch:
Though I never had Kelch as a professor, he made a huge difference in my life. Not only did he develop the initial proposal for the Media Communications Program which I am majoring for now, but he also directed the Scholars Program. He was so kind and showed so much passion for what he believed in and cared for. I had the opportunity to go to the Equity Conference with him for the weekend along with two other scholars. He made sure we knew what to expect and the questions he would ask us; you could tell how important it was for him to present the Scholars program. He wasn’t just a teacher, he was a friend. Other students felt the same way as well. When we went out on Scholar events students were not afraid to speak their minds and talk about issues in which many would have never done in front of teachers- you could talk to Kelch about anything. There are so many memories of how we laughed with him and even how he always wore his cop glasses- that was soo Kelch. He was definitely a great person. Though he is not living on earth anymore, he will continue to live in our hearts.
Kevin changed my life both and professionally and as a friend. He supervised both halves of my practicum, and held my hand while I taught my first class, a thankless job I am sure.
Kevin was the best-read human being I have ever personally known. He had a gift for giving me a ton to read and leaving me wanting more, both related to our discipline and beyond. One of my favorite memories of Kevin involved both of us having your average kind of bad day, and him pulling me into his office, sitting me down, and having us read obscure poetry together for 20 minutes, which was just what I needed without me even knowing it. And I guess that was what he needed too, since he made it happen.
Kevin made a lot of great things happen, both at LTU and beyond. He loved his daughter so much, and he always had an update about whatever she was doing. His face would just light up whenever he mentioned Grace. I got him started in Photoshop, and all of his projects involved pictures of her. We had a lot of conversations that started out, “This weekend I Photoshopped Grace into a new background!” and he would just be so happy.
I miss him.
I am deeply saddened by the news of Kevin’s passing. He was profoundly charming, brilliant and quick-witted. I was lucky to have him as a teacher for more than one class. I had him last spring semester for Rhetoric. He was full of life and energy.
I smile to myself now as I think about how he sometimes argued with himself when we discussed complex ideas in class. He was so intelligent, so great at looking at things from many perspectives. I wanted to talk to him some more about his dissertation. He had so much to share, and he was generous with it. I am so sorry he is gone.
I took a Photoshop seminar with Prof. Kelch during my first year in the Tech and Prof Comm graduate program. The class was taught by two graduate students, and I remember that Prof. Kelch would sit quietly at the back of the classroom while the student teachers managed the group. I would frequently turn around to find him writing or reading, and I always wondered why he wasnt more active in the class.
That was really all I knew of Kevin until he agreed to speak to me about my practicum after the departure of our program’s former director. Feeling a bit vulnerable and unsure of my future, I looked to the existing graduate faculty for help and guidance.
I reached Kevin on a sunny day in June of 2006. He had just left his house, but made time for me nonetheless. During our hour-long phone conversation, he provided me with a plethora of possible resources from within the university and beyond. He offered to look at my proposal, but was careful not to overstep his supportive advisory role. Above all, he was genuinely interested in what I was doing and displayed great enthusiasm for it.
After hearing about his passing, I found the follow-up email he had sent me after our conversation in June. The sheer sophistication of the correspondence was a testament to his craft, and I felt ashamed about my initial impression of Prof. Kelch, who was, undoubtedly, the one of finest communicators I have ever known.