Getting to Know Your Professor: Dr. Bob Baum
Jenna Rice
Issue date: 11/20/09 Section: News
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Baum teaches courses in biological foundations lab, biological science, microbiology, cell biology and immunology. Professionally, his interests include AIDS education, blood borne pathogen education and evolution.
He has contributed a great deal to the campus as a professor, leader and adviser for the past 27 years.
Baum grew up on the East Coast, all the way from Vermont to Florida.
"I'd probably say that I was born in New York," Baum said. "But I grew up in the South.
He started college at the large Florida State, studied there for about three years and then switched to study at a smaller college Goddard College in Vermont for about two-and-a-half years.
He continued his education later at the University of Florida, where he achieved his masters and doctorate degrees.
"I think that graduate school is great in the South," Baum said.
Dr. Baum began working at FSC 27 years ago when another professor had to leave the biology department for family reasons, and Baum was asked if he would like to replace the position.
"[FSC] wrote me a letter and asked me to apply," Baum said. Baum gladly accepted, since he liked how FSC was a small school--exactly what he was looking for.
He felt very lucky to have found such a great position when jobs were so scarce.
Baum really enjoys working at FSC. He says that the students here tend to be polite, yet are pretty typical of the average college student.
"There are some highly motivated ones and some not-so motivated ones," Baum said.
Among the many biology courses he teaches, his favorite class to teach for non-majors is BIO 106 and his favorite course for biology majors is cell biology.
Baum has been married for about 33 years and has two grown daughters and one grandchild. One of his daughters lives in Lakeland, works as an English teacher at Lakeland High School and is a mother. His other daughter is working for human rights groups in Atlanta, Ga. Baum said that his wife is alum of Florida Southern.
"The problem is," he said, "that a lot of people think that I married my student, but 10 years after she graduated, we just happened to come back here."
After Baum received his bachelors degree in chemistry and biology, he worked as an engineer for about seven years. He spent his time traveling all over the world.
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