RAY RETIRES AFTER 48 YEARS

On the last day of his 48th year of teaching at Montana Tech, Professor John Ray was spotted on campus by Chancellor Les Cook beaming from ear-to-ear.

When Ray and his wife, Dr. Roberta Ray, arrived at Montana Tech in 1975, the university was on shaky ground after the State’s blue-ribbon commission had suggested moving operations to Bozeman. He’s making his exit as the University celebrates a year full of record-breaking successes, having seen all the trials and tribulations in between.

Whether it’s been 1 day or 35 years since taking his class, alumni unanimously remember Ray’s courses as rigorous and challenging. His demands for excellence in the classroom have been a cornerstone of a Montana Tech education.

Ray knows his reputation as a “hard” professor, and he doesn’t apologize for it. His goal has always been to mold students to be critical thinkers and give them a course worth the tuition.

“There’s a body of knowledge you need to know,” Ray said. “I was always motivated to give students that. They always knew what to expect; there was never any question. It may have been hard, but they also appreciate the body of knowledge they received. College classes aren’t cheap, so you have an obligation that what you give to the student is what they are paying for.”

Ray taught speech and political science, which have always been subjects with the potential to ruffle feathers under the best circumstances. As social and online media have proliferated, the ability to communicate face-to-face, especially in a tone that rises above the sometimes downright vicious nature of online debate, has become almost an art form.

“People lack knowledge of what’s going on in terms of the issues,” Ray said. “They tend to relate to issues in terms of slogans, and get information from social media, which means they aren’t going to learn a lot. It degenerates into name-calling because that’s all they know. One of the things that is important to me in any college class is that you learn the subject matter and political thinking skills. Don’t call names. What are they arguing? What’s their point? What information, reasoning, and facts do they advance in support of that? Then you critically evaluate the data and the reasoning.”

Ray has weathered the changes in society by altering very little in the classroom. He kept his content fresh, but his methodology was much more rigid. Students have complained that his textbooks don’t have illustrations and photographs. He banned cell phone use in class.

“I think it is addictive, but it also interferes with listening,” Ray said. “It is essentially discourteous. I don’t know how you can do that and take notes or derive anything from the lecture. We don’t listen anymore because people are plugged in. Not listening critically and with some empathy is a big problem. We need critical listeners.”

Nearly half a century after teaching his first class, Ray still believes in the transformational power of higher education.

“You hear a lot of talk today, that people don’t need a college degree to get a good paying job, and to an extent, that’s true,” Ray said. “If in a broader sense, the point of education is to develop as a human being, that takes a certain amount of discipline, a certain amount of academic rigor, that is easier to learn in a college setting.”

Ray also has advice for young people who are trying to find the right major.

“If your life expectancy is 74, that’s 50 years,” Ray said. “You better get into a career you love doing. If you get stuck in an area that isn’t what you love doing then you’ll be miserable. Figure out what it is that turns you on, or what it is that you find interesting, what it is that you want to spend your whole life doing, and do that. Find enough discipline to stay focused on your goal. Know your goal and stay focused on it.”

In a world where the average person has a dozen jobs, Ray said he stuck with one because it was full of transition.
“You have new students, new faculty, new members of the department, new textbooks, so although you remain as a professor, everything is always changing,” Ray said. “The job stays the same. The classes change every semester. You can add things, you can subtract things. It’s not stagnant where you do the same thing every day.”

Ray was involved in environmental work in Butte. He was active in Superfund issues and served the Clark Fork Coalition. He recommends that students and members of the university community get involved off-campus.

“You also need to get involved with your community and volunteer your knowledge and expertise,” Ray said. “It’s not just that your classes are important. Get off the hill and get involved in the place you are living. That’s a frequent problem with colleges that are separate from the community. Get involved in what’s going on
here. Develop multidimensions to your life.” 

The Rays plan to move to Austin, where Roberta has family nearby. John will also be closer to his hometown of New Iberia, Louisiana, where his grandfather took him to political rallies as a child, and sparked the passion that fueled a long and meaningful career.

He wants to wait a year or so before launching into any other teaching endeavors, though there are plenty of universities in the area if he should choose to go back to work. He wants to get the lay of the land and find a community to be active in. He has no intentions of sitting at home in a rocking chair. He plans to spend the rest of his days learning and growing, which is the same expectation he’s had for his students.

“Education doesn’t stop, even when you get your Master’s or your PhD,” Ray said. “It’s a start, but it assumes that education, growth, and development will be a lifelong pursuit. It doesn’t stop when you walk across the stage.”