You \'schmooze\' you lose

It's 7:30 p.m. on a Tuesday, and the students in Professor Irving Katz's two-hour American History class are actually laughing and participating, even if the latter is against their will.\nKatz is working his way through a review sheet by calling on people at random, since no one seems eager to volunteer the information. He asks a man wearing a Yankees cap to answer one of the multiple-choice questions, then jokingly dismisses him as a "weekend playboy" when he can't.\nAfter some swift, subtle and unsolicited assistance from a neighbor, playboy suddenly declares he has the correct answer. But Katz is nobody's fool -- the jig is up. After 38 years of teaching at IU, he can recognize when students haven't done their assignment. Katz pauses and stares in feigned bewilderment at the "didn't read" trend that seems to be running rampant across the class. \nCrossing his freckled arms, he sweeps a glance around the semi-circle of 70 students. His shrewd, brown-eyed gaze is dwarfed beneath massive-framed, horn-rimmed glasses that are only stylish in a vintage sort of way and propped up by a prominent nose.\nHis light blue, short-sleeved oxford would perfectly complement what was once a head full of flaming red hair as vibrant and outrageous as its owner, but has now thinned down to a curly halo of faded blonde and light gray, with a few stray tufts splotching the crown.\nArching his eyebrows, he reveals layers of lines across his forehead that slope down into the smile wrinkles feathering the edge of his eyes. \nLight giggles are released prematurely by students who can only imagine what he's about to say. Katz has more than enough hot air and long wind to spare, because his lungs are in great shape from his daily walk to campus and seven flights to his office. He licks his lips in preparation for the reprimand.\n"Do you all get together after class and decide not to do the reading?" Katz asked. "Do you say: 'Katz is too happy. Too confident. Let's all get even with him and conspire to make him look foolish!'"\nAs the laughter drowns out any comment he might have wanted to add, Katz stands in the front of the room looking anything but foolish. His deceptively slight frame houses a sharp tongue and keen mind.\nKatz reads constantly, has more books in his office than space, could conduct lectures from memory and speak eloquently on virtually any topic you bring up pertaining to history, culture, religion or current events.\nWhen asked why he hasn't grown tired of teaching and studying history, he didn't take a breath before launching into the answer. \n"There's so much there," Katz said. "The problems and arguments, the successes and failures, the ups and downs … the problem isn't finding interesting information -- the problem is how to organize your thoughts and narrow the information down into an hour lecture." \nSince he goes through the trouble of picking out what's most important to understanding American and Jewish history, he expects students to pay attention and do the required reading.\n"(Katz) feels he's good enough that students should show up and listen to him because he feels he has something to offer," said close friend and equally loquacious colleague, Professor Henry Remak.\nKatz has certainly paid his due, having spent 38 years -- over half his life -- teaching at IU. His reign will come to an end after this second summer session, when he will return to his beloved hometown of New York City.\n"His personality could be described as that of a typical outspoken New Yorker, who is anything but typical," said junior Natalie Whitted, a history major. "Some might describe him as abrasive, but in the end, this trait -- coupled with the rest -- just makes him somehow more loveable."\nJunior Lacy Jo White, also majoring in history, said at first she was intimidated to be in his honors discussion group because of his high expectations.\n"He has high standards, and I like that," White said. "It pushes me to do better because I know he expects more." \nKatz also expected students to be on time, or they would be the temporary subject of his good-natured ridicule. \nWhite admitted she was running late for class one day and opted to skip it entirely for fear of being greeted with a sarcastic remark, like the ones she compiled in a list called "Katzisms." \nReoccurring comments during his lectures were to "stop schmoozing" (Yiddish for "gossiping"), "find a seat -- this isn't New York, and we are not the homeless," "flattery gets you everywhere," and "knowledge for the sake of knowledge."\n"He's great -- as a teacher and a person," White said. "He's a compulsive pedagogue. He's fascinating, because he's in a constant pursuit of knowledge. He's very passionate about what he does."\nProfessor Remak talked at length about Katz's skills and pursuits both in and out of the classroom.\n"He is a dream of a professor," Remak said. "He knows his subject. He's witty, humorous and quick-on-the-trigger. He's doesn't really tell a lot of jokes -- he just seizes the moment and reacts naturally."\nRemak expressed his admiration for Katz's technique of balancing humor with teaching. He noted most professors who make the attempt fail, and often at the expense of the substance.\nJohn Bodnar, chairman of the history department, said Katz's personality and approachability allowed him to forge many relationships with students and faculty. \n"He was always willing to take the time to talk with those who wanted to talk to him, so he made a lot of friends," Bodnar said.\nIf not friends, then Katz has -- at the very least -- made lasting impressions. Bodnar said during the numerous alumni events he's attended, more alumni remember and inquire about Katz than any other professor in the department.\n"He certainly was a dedicated teacher and an engaging one," Bodnar said. "He was really an asset and, in many ways, you can't replace him."\nKatz was a valuable tool of recruitment when it came to enticing student interest in the department, because he taught several of the large, introductory-level history courses.\n"Dr. Katz's class was by far the best history class that I ever took," said junior Nina Eaglin. "There was never a dull moment. I never fell asleep because he put such personality into what could have been really boring material."\nEaglin was amused at Katz's inability to fathom how students could think history was boring. One of the ways Katz breathed life into the subject was by adding in his 69 years of experience.\n"He taught history in such a way that it was almost like hearing a story," Eaglin said. "His lectures consisted of a little bit of history, and a little bit of his life." \nThe experiences that led him to teach history started in high school, when he said he started paying more attention to history and less to girls. \nKatz graduated from the City College of New York in 1954 and was immediately drafted into the Army. He served two years, then went to New York University and received his masters in 1959 and doctorate in 1964. Katz then accepted a three-year position at IU. After his term was up, he was offered tenure at IU.\nThis past April, President Myles Brand rewarded Katz's achievements with the Thomas Hart Benton Mural Medallion at the dinner Residential Programs and Services held in Katz's honor. \nKatz worked closely with RPS for 17 years, fostering relationships with students by dining and "schmoozing" with students outside the classroom. He even took some of them to see opera rehearsals at the Musical Arts Center. \nHe began taking an active interest in student life when his daughter, Naomi, came to IU to study violin at the School of Music. She was vague about how classes and college life were going, so Katz decided he had to find out "vicariously" by talking to other students -- a practice which he has continued even though she no longer attends IU.\nKatz said he's now returning to New York City to be with Naomi, watch all her performances and, hopefully, become a grandfather. He said he has no intention of wasting away in old age.\nWhile he is sometimes struck by what he calls "senior moments," he will continue reading, socializing and exercising while his mind is still properly functioning. He joked that some of his students and colleagues probably think his mind is already gone.\n"It's not as though I'm going to sit on my porch, rocking myself away and watching the traffic go by," Katz said. \nHe does plan on keeping a close eye on the local synagogue, though, where he said there are sure to be "hundreds of unattached Jewish women waiting for me."\nA dog is waiting for him, as well -- a Daschund and Labrador mix. This will be the first time in his life he'll have a dog, because before he didn't want to give people on campus the satisfaction of saying "there goes Katz and dog."\nNevertheless, Katz is going -- pet or no pet. His departure is a disappointment for many of the students and faculty who have met him, and a loss for those who never had the chance.\n"I have to feel mildly sorry for anyone who appreciates history -- or maybe better yet, anyone who doesn't -- who has not had the chance to experience Professor Katz's unique and effective brand of teaching," Whitted said. "His retirement is well deserved, I am sure. Nonetheless, his students will miss him." \nPresident Myles Brand said Katz represents the "very best" among IU's faculty, and that Katz and his legacy will be missed and remembered.\n"He has been an exceptional teacher and mentor to students -- a person with a great sense of humor," Brand said. "He has shared his inspiring love of opera and culture with students and, quite simply, this institution is a better place because of him"