Erin Hazell is a human biologist and resident of Winthorpe, most famed for founding Cedar Crest University during her youth. Her alma mater is TODO, and she claims her experiences as a student and parent have shaped her educational philosophy. She is the adoptive mother of one, Michael Hazell, who also studied architecture at TODO a few years before she founded Cedar Crest. Michael himself is father to two, Alfred and Jennifer Hazell, the former of whom is an alumnus of Cedar Crest and the latter is currently studying mathematics.
Hazell is a published author, having written her first book The Garden Next Door in 1984, and her second, On Top of the Cedar Tree, in 1993. Both were in part autobiographical, documenting her own experiences as a researcher and educator respectively, but in Hazell’s own words, excerpted from the epilogue of her latter title, “were primarily focused on bringing the joys of botany and the incredible world of education to the masses.” Beyond this, she has coauthored multiple textbooks and open resources on her area of expertise, botany.
While she is inexperienced with the world of magic, she has grown acquainted with it since founding Cedar Crest and is reportedly thankful her university has become a center and safe space for demi-humans and mages.
Personal life
Hazell was born on the January 12, 1920 to parents John and Lisa Hazell, and immediately developed an interest in botany at a when she was young, as recounted in the opening paragraphs of The Garden Next Door. During her teenage years, she remained an active member of the community and participated in many citywide events to raise awareness about environmental concerns, and promote gardening as a mental health outlet and charitable deed alike.
Hazell studied horticulture and education at TODO circa 1940 and, after graduation, was employed as an extracurricular teacher in Winthorpe. Languished with the state of affairs of secondary and post-secondary education, in 1961, she resigned her title as a teacher and spent the better half of a year continuing to study botany, performing contracting work for various international firms. Citing a moment of ethereal inspiration in 1963 after encountering a large cedar tree, “standing unopposed in the center of a vast, humbling plain”, she decided to establish and build a university around the tree as an effective tribute to nature.
TODO
Among her students, Hazell is reputed for her often bold and brazen nature. She is known for sitting in on classes and working directly with students, occasionally making a fool of herself trying to involve herself in demonstrations. “More than a few chemistry teachers have told me ‘not to mix those together, damn it!’ I think it’s more fun that way,” she elucidated in a technical interview on a local radio show conducted in 1990.
Even so, Hazell claims to be keen on limiting her public appearances, explaining that it it is less rewarding and does not help improve the state of the world nearly as much as working closely with her own students.
Hazell is an outspoken civil rights activist, and firmly believes in the freedom of information as a guiding principle. Furthermore, she is a fervent environmentalist and has participated in multiple large-profile campaigns on tighter ecological regulation around chemical companies and automobiles.
Bibliography
Solely authored
Hazell is most famed for her solely authored works.
The Garden Next Door
For as long as I can remember, there was a difference between my family’s lawn and my neighbours’ lawn. My family’s was a boring, flat plane of yellowish green, usually littered with sports equipment (sized appropriately for little children, of course). The kid next door—call him J.S., because I am not in the habit of infringing upon the privacy of others—he was always so enthusiastic to visit my lawn, and play football with the rest of the boys. I, on the other hand, longed for his lawn.You see, unlike mine, Mr and Mrs S’ garden had a peculiar slant to it. I suppose it was an artefact of building in the suburbs, but the west side of the lawn was raised a good three meters over the east side. For a kid like me, the angle seemed insurmountable, and it was certainly completely inconducive to play football on. It would be more of a fight to keep the ball off the road than to score a single goal.
Yet, it was Mr and Mrs S’ garden that I always longed for. J.S. probably thought I was a fool, and I do not blame him. Yet, Mrs S turned the slanted lawn into a lovely garden. She grew flowering plants, bushes bearing berries, and everything in-between. She could be seen nearly every day tending to the garden, watering it by hand on the days it did not rain, pruning the wily branches of bushes too enthusiastic. I was quite impartial to Mrs S’ art at first. Slowly but surely, though, I found myself growing interested by her practice.
(p. 20)
On Top of the Cedar Tree
I had to fight with my editor to make the next paragraph happen, so I hope you like it.Education is a bit of a disaster, isn’t it? I mean, you’d think the gal who’s taught high school for fifteen years and founded a whole damn college would be a little happier about the status quo. But no, it’s a mess of profiteering and apathetic teachers and really just makes students feel like crap. I can’t speak for everyone, but I personally hate that. I don’t want any more bad schools, or bad teachers. So listen up, because I’m going to take you right back to school and learn you a thing about what it actually means to be a teacher.
Phew. That took a chunk out of me.
Impassioned rant aside, I am a firm believer in the dire need of an educational revolution. I am not the only one who believes our current approach to education is inadequate—it is a common pain, felt by students, parents and fellow educators alike. Many analysts have claimed this revolution will be enacted by a wave of new technology, although I bear a different perspective. I wholly embrace the integration of modern technology into our learning workflow, although I believe the true impetus of the revolution shall be in the form of a change in educational strategy.
(pp. 36-37)
Coauthored
Hazell has coauthored multiple biology and botany textbooks and open resources, generally to positive reception. Many of her materials have been used in curricula taught by Cedar Crest, although many others remain disused in favor of more mature alternatives.