Eric Green Lectured Like A Pro at Jack Coombs Field

The DGHI assistant professor definitely recommends the use of a Jumbotron to other faculty

Published September 2, 2020, last updated on September 3, 2020 under Education News

Written by Mary Brophy Marcus

Duke Global Health Institute Assistant Professor Eric Green recently shared an exclusive interview with DGHI. Filmed at his private residence, Green spilled the beans on what it was like giving his first lecture in a baseball stadium.

“When coronavirus came around and we were told it might not be a great idea to teach in the classroom, I thought, this is an opportunity for redemption,” he said, hinting at the memory of a botched childhood All-Star game that still haunts him.

But seriously...

Green told his followers on Twitter this past week that he had wanted to find an outdoor venue to meet up with his global health research methods classes. His wife, Eve Puffer, DGHI assistant professor of psychology and neuroscience and global health, said why not Jack Coombs Field at Duke?

“I asked Duke Baseball and Head Baseball Coach Chris Pollard rolled out the red carpet,” said Green.

It was “a first for me today,” he tweeted. “It was the most abnormal normal teaching moment to watch students fall asleep in person again during class. Somehow, it’s just not the same on Zoom."

Green’s DGHI colleague Gavin Yamey, director of the Center for Policy Impact in Global Health, tweeted back, “You. Are. A. Legend.”

“My part was easy: show up," said Green, adding that he really appreciated Duke Baseball's efforts to help him connect with his students in person, yet safely, during the COVID-19 pandemic.

"It meant a lot… we even got to use the Jumbotron!”

Needless to say, Green’s students got a kick out of it, too. Although they’re hoping their professor will dish up some ballpark franks and caramel popcorn next class.