The best professors are not those who give you the answers to questions you already know, the best professors are those who challenge us to think critically in unconventional ways about the world and ourselves.

A new faculty member in the area of art history aspires to change the lives of her students through the way they view art and its history. Adjunct Professor Becky Black is an alumna of the University of Houston-Downtown. She graduated in 2010 and returned this year with a goal: to make an impact on her students' lives.

Black's mentors have guided her throughout not only her educational career, but her professional career as well, insisting that professors are valuable resources. Her former professors turned colleagues have helped her during challenging times, stating that the best part about UHD is not only its diversity, but its "dedicated faculty and staff" who work wholeheartedly to ensure that their students are successful and given the best opportunities available.

Black states, "If I could be half as dedicated as my mentors, that would be great!"

Her goals while teaching art history this semester are to expose students to art and its history while recognizing that art is all around us. From the chairs we sit in to the room we are currently in, they were at some point only a concept drawn and created by an individual with a vision. She also hopes that students will no longer perceive art as only for the elite, but that it is for everyone. Black plans to pursue her doctorate degree and has eagerly applied to several programs; she will continue to teach art history in hopes that she will inspire students just as her own professors inspired her.