High praise from colleagues made English professor David Raybin this year’s professor laureate, putting him in position to be the faculty spokesman on student committees.

If the committees ask him to attend, which Raybin said he has no plans to do yet, he would welcome the opportunity to speak to students.

“I like students. I love my job and I love teaching,” he said. “(Professor laureate) is one the biggest honors that the university has.”

Raybin, who lives in Kent, Ohio and is only on-campus Tuesdays and Wednesdays, said he is unsure of what responsibilities come with the job but will work hard to fit them into his schedule.

“It’s much more of an honor than it is a job,” he said.

Raybin’s first speech as professor laureate came last Monday at the freshman convocation.

After receiving recommendations from faculty, the Council on Academic Affairs voted Raybin professor laureate based on the high respect given to him by his colleagues and students.

“In every way, as a teacher and mentor-and as a colleague-David Raybin simply is a teacher of achievement,” Dana Ringuette, English department chair, said in support of Raybin’s appointment as Eastern’s professor laureate.

His 21-year commitment to Eastern resulted in his nomination to the position.

“It is difficult to know where to begin in extolling David’s accomplishments as a teacher because his commitment to undergraduate education is so deep, broad and distinctive,” Ringuette added.

Raybin, who calls himself a medievalist by trade, will also represent the faculty on general and liberal education views, and will receive a $500 stipend for the year.

“Liberal education comes most prominently into play in the teaching of undergraduates.

General education classes can complement specialized professional study by enabling students to bring to their disciplines a solid grounding in the arts and sciences,” Raybin said in a press release.

“Students come to school, and they don’t really know what they want to do with their lives.

The purpose of Eastern’s general education requirements are to help these students learn about different things.

“My job is to help expose them to these new ideas, to get them excited about them. Ideally, maybe they’ll want to read more books throughout their lives.”

Fellow English professor Bonnie Irwin said, “His high standards bring out the best in each student. His friendly and patient demeanor encourages even the most reticent students to participate.”

Colleagues were not the only ones who recommended Raybin; students were also heard.

“I have never encountered such an enthusiastic teacher in my whole life,” said Erin Stapleton, a senior English major.

In addition to his teaching duties, Raybin is also an editor for the The Chaucer Review, a leading journal in the area of medieval studies.