This week, students said goodbye to the three teachers who, despite their short time here, have quickly become a part of the MSMS family.

Lyndsey Burcham, Zach Burcham and Gabe Posadas have been lecturing and guiding students through the laboratory for the Animal Physiology and Microbiology classes since the third week of January due to Dr. Robert Grier’s extended absence. Animal Physiology lectures took place in Hooper Auditorium on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays from 3:30 P.M. to 5:00 P.M., while Microbiology lectures took place in the same location and on the same days from 7:00 P.M. to 8:30 P.M.

Lyndsey and Zach Burcham are both doctoral candidates at Mississippi State University, and Posadas is a doctoral student. Lyndsey will be completing her degree by the end of the month, Zach by the end of the year, and Posadas by the end of next year.

All three instructors found great value in the approximately four weeks they spent at MSMS.

“I think it’s been great,” Lyndsey Burcham said. “I’m a little sad to leave now. It has been fun. We’ve been really impressed with the caliber of the students. Like, this is a college-level course, and we are teaching it the same way we teach it at Mississippi State. It’s really nice that we have set a high bar for you guys, and everybody has stepped up to the plate.”

Zach Burcham followed up on Lyndsey Burcham’s comments about the students.

“You can tell that the students are held up to a higher standard than other students at the same level.”

Teaching at MSMS is the first time Posadas has taught in over two years. He hopes to teach science after he graduates and is glad that his time at MSMS allowed him to reconnect with his passion.

“It’s nice to be able to get back in touch with and teach a subject I really love.”

Lyndsey ended her last email to students with a farewell.

“We really enjoyed sharing some of what we think makes our field so interesting, and hopefully you feel like you learned some cool stuff along the way. Thank you for your flexibility and patience with us throughout these past few weeks and best of luck in your futures!”

MSMS students continue to thank the trio for their time teaching biology and wish them the best of luck as they move into the last stretch of their educational journeys.

“I felt that Lyndsey, Zach, and Gabe were all wonderful teachers,” senior Mary Owings said. “They seemed to genuinely be excited about what they were studying and were always sharing that enthusiasm with their students.”

Junior Sophia Garcia shared Owings’ view of the enthusiasm of the instructors.

“They weren’t your average substitutes. They were interesting and passionate about what they taught,” Garcia said. “I’m grateful they agreed to fill in for Dr. Grier, but I am glad he is back.”

Junior Brady Suttles spent a lot of time with the new instructors due to his enrollment in both Microbiology and Animal Physiology.

“I truly enjoyed the time I was able to spend with Lyndsey, Zach and Gabe. It was really nice to be instructed by some younger professors who made sure to keep us alert. I think my favorite thing about Microbiology was the amount of questions they would ask us as they were teaching the class. It really helped me relate the material to a real world problem that I might have already known of but maybe didn’t know what caused it or the treatment for it or something like that.”

Suttles also expressed that, like Owings and Garcia, he noticed that the instructors were incredibly passionate about what they were teaching.

Dr. Robert Grier will resume teaching Microbiology and Animal Physiology on Tuesday, Feb. 20.