Kevin Boyle, an American University professor in the School of Public Affairs’ Department of Justice, Law and Criminology, is dedicated to crafting an environment where students can learn and experience joy through the process — which is where his chihuahua, Coco, comes in.
Boyle said he got the idea to bring Coco to class based on an experience he had while serving in the U.S. Army, in which he interacted with a stray cat.
“So, every night I’d just go outside and sit down and give little pieces of bologna to this cat,” Boyle said. “I knew every night no matter how bad the day was, at least I was going to see the cat.”
For students making the adjustment back after being online during the coronavirus pandemic, Boyle brought Coco to class to help students de-stress and bring them comfort. Boyle said Coco has a ritual each day in which she walks around the tables and chooses a student to sit with, often falling asleep in their lap.
Dean Mabie, a junior in SPA, said he is currently enrolled in two courses with Boyle and had previously taken another course of his. Mabie said that he enjoys having Coco walking around during class and that he’s never noticed any of his classmates having a problem with her being there.
“She’s so quiet and so peaceful,” Mabie said. “It’s just cool to have. It’s different.”
After being a lawyer in the Army for 26 years, Boyle said that he was ready for something new. He started out assisting with the University’s track team, became an adjunct professor in 2016 and then transitioned to full time teaching in 2020.
Throughout his time at the University, Boyle created new classes, including Sports and the Law that was started this summer, and two courses in the Changemaker Series.
Boyle said that one of the valuable skills he brings to his classes are the real life experiences he has had working in the field of law for such a long time.
“Like when I talk about death row, I can talk about going to death row to meet your client like it’s not based on a movie or based on a book,” Boyle said. “So the students like that I had the real world stuff.”
Saul Newman, the associate dean for Undergraduate Education in SPA, said that Boyle has always been a team player and that he is always stepping up, often teaching a course if there is a hole in the schedule.
“I think I speak to him more than most other faculty members because he’s always volunteering to do things and he always has ideas,” Newman said. “He’s always coming to me with ideas for new programs,” adding that one of the most important aspects to Boyle is his care for his students and dedication to their learning.
“He is really passionate about his student’s learning, about being creative in how he teaches and bringing personal experience to what he does,” Newman said.
Last year Boyle won an award in SPA for best teaching by a term faculty member, but Newman said that he hopes Boyle receives even greater recognition soon for teaching at the university level.
When new students ask what classes they need to take on campus, it can be hard for Newman to answer because he values all of the SPA courses, but he has found himself recommending that they should all try to take a class with Boyle.
Mabie said what keeps him coming back to Boyle’s classes is his teaching style.
“Everything about his teaching style is like a student’s dream because he doesn’t let anybody feel behind, feel left out,” Mabie said. “At the end of every class he always asks, ‘is everybody good?’”
Mabie also shared that Boyle makes learning law, a sometimes intimidating discipline, feel approachable and enjoyable for students. One of Mabie’s favorite parts of Boyle’s classes is that each slide has a clip from “The Office” and somehow “each clip is perfectly tailored to the slide on law.”
“He genuinely wants people to go in and leave with the knowledge that they are supposed to leave with,” Mabie said.
Mabie urged anyone to take Boyle’s classes if they ever can, even if law is not the field a student is necessarily going into for their future career.
“He makes it so easy that it’s not like ‘Aw I’m taking a law class.’ You’re taking a Professor Boyle class,” Mabie said.
This article was edited by Samantha Skolnick, Tyler Davis and Abigail Turner. Copy editing done by Luna Jinks, Sabine Kanter-Hunting and Ella Rousseau.
