While it may not have been part of the syllabus, empathy ended up being the biggest takeaway from this lecture.
After her babysitter canceled, 33-year-old student Katy Humphrey brought her 4-month-old daughter, Millie, to class at Baylor University, earlier this month, Today.com reported.
Millie started to get a bit "fussy" during the lecture, so Darryn Willoughby, associate professor of Health, Human Performance and Recreation, picked up the 4-month-old and carried her for the rest of lecture, so that Humphrey wouldn't feel stressed during class, KWTX reported.
"I didn't want her to feel uncomfortable because there was nothing to feel uncomfortable about,” Willoughby told KWTX.
Humphrey, who's pursuing a degree in exercise physiology, said she developed a can-do mentality from her time in the Marine Corps and knew she had to go to class despite the quick change in plans.
"So I was thinking, ‘Well I hope I can balance both,’” the mother told KWTX of her decision to go to class with her daughter in tow.
Willoughby ended up carrying Millie for about 55 minutes.
The act, he said, was just his way of being a good teacher.
"I didn't do it for myself," Willoughby told Today.com. "It's just about me looking out for and taking care of my students."
Willoughby joins the ranks of other educators who were understanding of their students' parenting needs. Last May, a photo went viral featuring Hebrew University Professor Sydney Engelberg holding a student's baby while he was conducting lecture. The student had been prepared to leave the class when her baby started crying, but Engelberg took the child and comforted the tot.
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