91-year-old University of St. Thomas professor goes viral in online teaching photo

Charly Edsitty Image
Saturday, September 19, 2020
91-year-old professor goes viral in online teaching photo
91-year-old professor goes viral in online teaching photoWATCH: Hear from the daughter of a now-viral 91-year-old professor about how his students say his teaching is still impacting them decades later.

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Let's be real, learning and teaching virtually has been a challenge for everyone, but 91-year-old Charles Krohn is determined to keep teaching.

He is a professor at the University of St. Thomas and was captured in a photo taken by his daughter, Julia Krohn Mechling, sitting at a computer while teaching his students virtually.

She posted the image on her Facebook page on September 1 and it has since reached thousands.

Julia's caption reads:

"My father has been a professor of English at The University of St. Thomas for 50+ years. Here he is, at 91 years old, embracing virtual teaching like a BOSS. Listening to and watching him teach Homer's "The Odyssey" is a true gift. He's been teaching it for decades, and yet he has the passion and excitement for the text as though it's the first time. These kids have no idea how lucky they are."

The image has racked up 63,000 likes, 28,000 shares and more than 1,000 comments.

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"One of the most incredible things were all the comments from past students of his from 40 or even 50 years ago saying how he has changed their lives and maybe brought literature in their lives," Mechling said.

Julia describes her father as a very humble man who is incredibly dedicated to teaching and his students.

His reaction to the online attention?

"So, my mom forced him to sit there and read through all the comments because he is so modest and he was just like 'No, no,' trying to brush it off like it's not a big deal," she said with a laugh.

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