From Austin (avenue) To Brooks Residential College

"We always offer the correction that we don't live 'with' students, but alongside them," say Drs. Douglas and Michele Henry, Faculty Master and Associate Faculty Master of the new Brooks Residential College. 
Since arriving at Baylor in 2001, the Henrys have been prominent examples of Baylor's longstanding tradition of faculty who are committed to their students. And when Campus Living and Learning advertised the opening for Master of Brooks Residential College, the Henrys jumped at the chance. 
The pair spent the last couple of years researching, talking with others, and trying to understand what Brooks can mean to those who partake in it. "It has been a tremendous learning experience for us, [one that has been] bracing, to see things off to a good start here because of what we've learned," says Douglas Henry.
"Good" and "easy" aren't words one might expect to hear from a family experiencing such a transition, but the Henrys confirm that things have gone quite well thus far. Michele Henry notes that logistically, completion of the construction schedule has posed the biggest challenge, as the finishing touches were still being completed during the first weeks of the fall semester. And at the personal level, Douglas Henry says that moving from a residential neighborhood on Austin Avenue to Brooks has required some "retooling" of how life takes place.
"I don't have a garage anymore where I can throw my tools or stack scrap lumber," says Henry, who spent lots of time remodeling his former home. And from inside the Henrys' sparkling new dwelling, it appears unlikely he will need his tools anytime soon. "I'm now in a set of circumstances where I can get to my office in fewer steps that it takes to get to my car," he says. "That is a welcome change of pace."
And though for years the Henrys routinely provided students with home-cooked meals and deep conversations about faith and knowledge at Friday night Crane Scholars meetings, the Henrys are now trying to find the appropriate balance of maintaining accessibility to students while protecting family time, which includes raising their two-year old son, Zachary. 
"He loves it here, and the students adore him," says Zachary's proud father. "Those he knows by name he'll call by name, and those he doesn't, he'll call 'people.'" The youngest Henry has settled well into his new home, becoming a beacon of good stewardship at Brooks. Along with greeting students with hugs and high fives, Zachary "loves running around the quad picking up trash and throwing it in the trash can," says Michele Henry.
"There is a sense that we're on call 24/7," says Douglas Henry, "that it's not possible to leave our front door and walk to my office, and meet a student who wants to talk and say, 'I'm sorry. I'm off the clock.' Not only is that not possible, but we wouldn't want to do that." 
Sophomore Anson Jablinski is a witness to Henry's commitment. "Just being around Dr. Henry and observing his dedication to his family, to others, and to Brooks College is inspiring," says Jablinski. "He is a busy man, but never busy enough to neglect a conversation with a student."