Bookmarks

This is the first installment of what we hope will be a regular feature for the magazine. We plan to pose a similar set of questions to a diverse group of University faculty members, alumni, staff and students. For our inaugural Q&A, the subject is Amy Robin Hoffman, ’03, winner of the third Richmond Quest. Here’s her entry: How do we know which questions to ask?

Q. What drew you to Richmond?
A. My father actually found it in a book of 311 best colleges. I had been looking for a small, liberal arts school (none of the others to which I applied were so far south). I knew I wanted to be a scholar and I wanted excellent academics. I was impressed by the campus, but the Oldham scholarship really clinched it. The hands-down thing that kept me at Richmond was the professors.

Q. What matters most to you?
A. Books.

Q. What keeps you awake at night?
A. Right now, that would be graduate school, my career, starting over in a new city … Basically, becoming an adult.

Q. Who inspires you?
A. Dead people. All my research focus and all the books that have inspired me — the authors are all dead. That’s not to say I haven’t been inspired by my parents and my grandmother (who are alive). My favorite writer is Edward Gorey [a prolific author and artist, who died in 2000 and is best known for his masterful pen and ink illustrations and his ironic, offbeat humor].

Q. What is the secret to your success?
A. Genetics. I also was always brought up in an atmosphere that valued education and learning [both parents were special education teachers]. I always saw people reading and I saw books around the house. I got encouragement and constant support from my parents.

Q. What do you want to be when you grow up?
A. A university professor, a researcher.

Q. For what would you like to be remembered?
A. That my passion for books and literature inspired other people to find value in them … that I inspired people to think in new ways.

Q. What other questions do you think you should be asked?
A. Has Quest changed your life? [Answer to the answer: “No, not really. I’m just more aware of my presence on campus.”]