Dr. Tammy Oliver is truly a hidden gem at Eastfield. With a bachelor’s and master’s in Biology and a PhD in Education Studies, she has a wealth of knowledge, experience and compassion, which make for a truly exceptional teacher. Oliver has taught at Eastfield for 30 years. She has published several science journals, and has also written multiple lab manuals for her courses.
In high school, Oliver found the sciences a challenging subject but, instead of running away from it, she decided to lean in. “I said, you know what? I’m not gonna let this defeat me. I’m gonna jump in there head first and fight it.”
After finishing her master’s degree, Oliver worked on the Human Genome Project. When asked how that came about, she laughed and said, “I got involved with it because I needed a job.” The Genome Center had just moved to the Dallas area from San Diego.
Oliver was assigned to the team working on sequencing chromosome 11. Oliver and the team started working with gene libraries to piece together each individual gene on chromosome 11 and sequence it. Oliver said: “It was the most diverse group I’ve ever worked with. We had engineers, biologists, chemists, physicists from all over the world.”
Oliver remembers the moment she knew teaching was what she wanted to do. A student shared how much of an inspiration Dr. Oliver was to her as a female African American. She said the way Dr. Oliver challenged the students, reminding them, “Y’all gonna have to get it together; here’s what you need to do,” is what kept her from dropping the class. The student shared how that encouragement was enough to make her feel like she could do this. After thanking the student, Oliver said, “I walked back in the classroom and I remember holding my chest going, ‘That felt good.’”
According to Oliver, research can be glamorous but she didn’t always feel fulfilled. In that one moment with that student, she felt like her heart grew three sizes, just like the Grinch. Oliver said: “[Teaching is] just fulfilling. And so that’s what made me switch.”
Some advice Oliver has for students interested in pursuing degrees in medicine or STEM is to “be strong.”
When asked what she learned in her own life from her time as a teacher, Oliver paused to think and then looked up and said, “I have a hell of a mother.” She explained how her mother was always supportive of everything she and her siblings did or said.
As a teacher, Oliver realized many of her students didn’t have that kind of support. This shaped her teaching style. “I try to be as encouraging and supportive as possible as an instructor,” she said. Oliver shared that her many years as a teacher has shown her that each student has a truly different life, different burdens and different challenges to overcome. “It taught me to be humble and grateful.”
