Derek Brandow is the Instructor of Confidence in the School of Journalism and Communication. He received an undergraduate degree in Education from the University of Oregon in 2000, and a graduate degree in Education from Pacific University in 2002. Since 2002 Derek has been an elementary school teacher, business school professor, start-up CEO, chicken farmer, and he has traveled all over Oregon for AT&T. It has been in the past 10 years Derek has embraced confidence as a state of being, versus a state of doing, and vulnerability as the pathway to the kind of connections we want the most. The two FIG courses he is teaching this year are guided explorations outside of comfort zones to find a place of belonging we are desperate for.

In his spare time Derek can be found in his garden with his daughters singing to tomatoes and bees, drinking americanos at Vero Espresso House, cooking with his wife, or sitting around a backyard campfire with his pipe, laughing, swapping stories.

Email: dbrandow@uoregon.edu

Hi everyone! I’m Jackson, and I am the FIG Assistant for “This Is Me” this fall! This is my third year as an FA, and I took this FIG my first year, so I look forward to working with you all and bringing my experience and knowledge. I am a third-year Journalism major with a double minor in Sports Business and Criminology, and I also am with the radio station on campus, KWVA Sports. I am from Alameda, California, which is in the Bay Area in between Oakland and San Francisco. In my free time, I enjoy playing all types of sports, playing video games, and being an idiot with my friends. I play almost every intramural offered, so you will likely see me there if you also participate. I am also working as a SOSer this summer so I will be in and around campus during your IntroDUCKtions! Say hi if you see me, and feel free to ask any questions you may have. Furthermore, if you have any questions about this FIG, FIGs in general, the UO, or anything else, please feel free to email me! I check often, so I will get back to any questions within a day or two. I have first-hand experience with the college transition process, especially during COVID/COVID-ish times, and my FA was super helpful for me, so I want to provide that same assistance for you all. We’re all in this together. I look forward to meeting everyone in the fall for both of our first in-person college classes!

Email: jelliot9@uoregon.edu