Cougar Query: "My go-to comfort food is tacos"

Name: Steven Shumway

BYU employee since… 1993

My job at BYU is… Teacher Educator — I help prepare teachers to teach technology and engineering content in the public school system (grades 6–12).

Currently I’m working on… several projects related to implementing engineering activities into elementary school classrooms. My favorite is teaching 5^th grade students.

When I tell people I work for BYU, they often say… What department?

I’m currently reading… The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings series with my granddaughter Payton, age 10.

I get most excited about my work when… I have a chance to connect with former graduates and see the positive influences they are having in their church, community and families. 

The best advice I’ve ever got about teaching is… to make sure the students are active participants in the learning experience.

My favorite lecture to teach is… electromagnetism. The discovery and development of electromagnetism by Oersted, Faraday and others was a catalyst that led to a myriad of technological developments and changed the world we live in.

My most cherished memory at BYU was when… I met Joyce Anderson in the fall of 1983 in our BYU ward. She and her roommates would attend a gospel doctrine class I was teaching, and the rest is history.

The best-kept BYU secret is… The Technology and Engineering Studies program — of course!! Because... it is a major where you become part of a large family!

On Saturday mornings you’ll find me… working in my yard.

My go-to comfort food is… tacos.

My favorite quote is… “A problem well put is half solved.” — John Dewey

My favorite TV show growing up was… M*A*S*H.

One item on my bucket list is… to one day return for a visit to South Korea where I served a mission from 1981–83.

My favorite hobby is… playing the guitar and ukulele and singing with my grandchildren.

My most embarrassing moment is… probably not publishable in this document.