Snakes on a Wayne (and other quirks for teaching)
Published Feb. 6, 2007
As he takes a swig from his trademark can of soda, Wayne Brekhus projects his energy and enthusiasm — caffeine-based or otherwise — onto his Introduction to Sociology honors class. His animated mannerisms, a flurry of arm movements and a bouncing gait, physically complement his passion for the subject, and the small class of 32 is awake and aware.
Today's lecture is a discussion about the factors that constitute a good set of statistic. Brekhus conveys the notion of distorted statistics by using vivid and often humorous examples, including alien abductions and serial killers, citing the latter as a "sexy topic."
A ripple of laughter rises from the audience.
Brekhus said a sense of humor is essential to his teaching style.
"I like to use humor to get people to see things that they otherwise might not notice," he said. "Sometimes I think humor is a safe way to reveal controversial things about the world, so I like to inject a little humor into the lecture."
Wayne said he makes an effort to stay up-to-date on cultural references that college-age students will understand so he can make the concepts easier to comprehend.
"One time, I used an example from the Cold War in class and I got a bunch blank stares and I realized that most of the class hadn't been born yet," he said. "So I try to stay up to date."
Brekhus is teaching Introduction to Sociology and Self and Society. He has a doctorate in sociology from Rutgers University and has been an MU faculty member since 1999. His passion for sociology stemmed from its ability to allow the individual to consider broader cultural and social issues from a different perspective.
"What I like about sociology is that it makes you think about unintended consequences and about the real culture rather than the ideal culture," Brekhus said. "It makes you think about the world beyond sort of cheap bumper sticker slogans so that you look into issues in more depth."
Wayne's twin brother Keith Brekhus, a graduate student pursuing a master's degree in sociology, shares his brother's passion for sociology, but his affinity for the subject stems from a passion for social justice.
"There are a lot of things that I had questions about with respect to social inequality and why things are the way they are," Keith Brekhus said. "Why some people have so much access to power and wealth and other people don't, why things like racism and gender oppression continue to persist."
Keith Brekhus is a teaching assistant for Sociology of the Family and hopes to complete his master's degree next year. He said he hopes that his career path will allow him to continue his commitment to activism and social justice.
"I probably will teach at a university, but I am also pretty involved in activism," Keith Brekhus said. "I used to be the public outreach coordinator for Mid-Missouri Peaceworks, and I circulated petitions for the minimum wage increase to be on the ballot in November. My proposed master's thesis is to look at FBI repression against Arab and Muslim Americans post-Sept. 11."
The brothers have collaborated in the past and co-authored an article with sociology professor John Galliher for a sociology journal titled Social Problems.
"We took other issues of that journal and did a content analysis of how the journal's focus has changed from the 1950s and '60s through today," Keith Brekhus said. "We critiqued the field for kind of losing sight of the original objective to create social change."
Both Wayne and Keith Brekhus were very pleased with the article and found that they complemented each other well in collaboration.
"It's pretty easy to work with someone you shared a zygote with," Wayne Brekhus said.
Keith Brekhus said he felt he and his brother have grown through their mutual education experience and are still learning and helping one another in their professional pursuits.
"I think we've learned a lot from each other," Keith Brekhus said. "I think we've been able to motivate each other, certainly to gain perspective from dialogues with each other. We have the same genetics but have different set of experiences."
A third member of the Brekhus family joins the duo at MU. Wayne Brekhus's wife, Rachel Brekhus, is a reference librarian in Ellis Library. The two met while pursuing graduate degrees at Rutgers University and both were able to find jobs at MU. The couple said they are grateful for the ability to work together and find a job in the same location.
"We're very lucky as an academic couple to have good jobs at the same institution," Rachel Brekhus said. "That doesn't always happen."
In addition to his academic pursuits, with or without accompanying family members, Wayne Brekhus has a different sort of notoriety among his students.
He is known for his eclectic interests — few in number but immense in enthusiasm — outside the classroom, notably heavy-metal music and snake watching.
"I love snake-watching," Wayne said. "I see most years, around 700 to 800 snakes in the wild per year. It could be that I've counted a snake twice, but I try not to. I like the venomous ones the best. For our honeymoon, my wife and I went hunting for rattlesnakes in Arizona. That's just about as romantic as it gets."
In spite of the seeming lack of relation between the hobbies and his profession, Wayne Brekhus said having the sociological perspective is beneficial in the field of reptilian studies.
"We go to a place called Snake Road every spring and fall where they close a road for snakes to migrate," he said. "There are all sorts of other freaky snake people there. It's like a whole subculture."
Even Rachel Brekhus has become invested into the "freaky snake people" subculture.
"I am now known in the library as the person to ask about snakes," she said.
Wayne Brekhus said he doesn't mind being known for his out-of-character extracurricular interests.
"Sometimes what I'll do in teaching, I'll occasionally use personal examples to personalize the concepts, and students find it funny," he said. "I remember in second or third grade when you ran into your teacher at the mall you would be so surprised that they were a real person, and I think students have that same reaction when they know something about their professor that doesn't necessarily fit with the image of professor."
Although Keith Brekhus shares his brother's musical taste, he has become more subdued in his pursuit of the heavy-metal scene.
"I don't go to any concerts anymore," he said. "I don't think I would survive in a mosh pit at the age of 41."