The Pointer UW-Stevens Point Student Newspaper
Tori Jennings, anthropology professor and active community member, has taught at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point since March 2010.
Being a first-generation college student, Jennings did not receive her bachelor’s degree until she was in her mid-thirties. She teaches cultural anthropology, native cultures of North America, culture and language, ecological anthropology and medical anthropology.
Anthropology Professor Tori Jennings. Photo courtesy of uwsp.edu
Before teaching, Jennings was a firefighter. After taking a biological anthropology course at the University of Colorado-Denver, Jennings discovered her passion for anthropology and decided to become a professor.
“Anthropology is really interesting,” Jennings said. “It allows us to question our own assumptions. It’s not just a study of something. It is a way of thinking about the world.”
Sam Brunn, junior psychology major, took three of Jennings’s courses. He is currently enrolled in her language and culture course.
“She gives us a lot of freedom to interpret the material,” Brunn said. “She endorses the idea that there are no easy solutions to any of the questions when it comes to anthropology.”
Sue Kubley, adviser for the Hmong and South East Asian American club, met Jennings through a documentary she was working on about the Hmong community in Portage County.
“Students who take her class will get a lot out of it,” Kubley said. “It will help expand their minds about other world views.”
In addition to teaching anthropology, Jennings hopes to make positive contributions within the community. She is involved in the Stevens Point movement, Revisioning Point.
Revisioning Point is a grass-roots movement aiming to better Stevens Point ‘s economy and make it a desirable place to settle down in.
“We want to make this a community that people want to live in, stay in and retire in,” Jennings said.
Caroline Chalk
Reporter
cchal845@uwsp.edu
