Georgetown College. Georgetown University.

Dr. Mark Maloof

What do you regard as your greatest academic success?
The one that has yet to occur.

What is your idea of happiness?
When the sails are up, just as the wind catches them and the boat heels, happiness is that moment just after the last sound the diesel engine makes before it stops.

Who or what was the greatest influence in your life that led to your career?
Since the question is about my career, the greatest influence was the computer that my dad bought in 1980 for his business. I took to it.

If you could do it all over again, what would you do differently?
I would have made that left turn at Albuquerque.

What do you enjoy about teaching?
Three things:  I enjoy the opportunity to talk about topics that I find exciting.  I love the challenge of presenting ideas to students who often never imagined that such things could exist. And I really enjoy the theater of the classroom.

Who are your favorite heroes/heroines in real life (and why)?
Louis Nassir Maloof, giddie (JIH-dee), which I've been told is Arabic for "my grandfather." Giddie immigrated to America from Lebanon at the turn of the century.  He was thirteen when he arrived to Ellis Island and could not read, write, or speak English.  A merchant, he was wise enough to marry sittie, my grandmother, Adeline, to survive the Great Depression, and to send all four of his children to college.

Who is your favorite musician?
It's a toss-up between Miles Davis and Rage Against the Machine.

Who is your favorite thinker?
Thomas Jefferson.

What historical figure would you most like to meet and why?
Thomas Jefferson, whom I'd like to meet because he's my favorite thinker and he had so many insights on religion, government, architecture, education, and science that were well-beyond his day's understanding.

If you could change one thing in the world, what would it be?
Eliminate violence.

If you could change one thing at Georgetown, what would it be?
I'd like for Georgetown to replace the baseball field that used to be outside my office window.

If you could come back to life as a plant/animal/thing, what would it be?
A cumulonimbus incus cloud.

What is your favorite word?
Appalachia, but without the long-term poverty.

What, if any, is your phobia?
The fear of not pushing far enough so that failure is a possibility.

How do you have fun?
Eating good food, drinking good drink, playing the guitar, sailing, cooking with and for friends and family.

What is the best piece of advice you could give to your students?
Don't rush to get out of college.

What is the best piece of advice you have ever received?
Get the blue ones.

What is your motto?
Actions, not words...although I've abandoned my motto for the purpose of answering these questions.

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