By Colt Langley/sports editor
Casey Holder/The Collegian
Pointing to a picture of models Naomi Campbell and Tyson Beckford lying nude except for shoes, instructor Cheryl Taylor-West tells her human sexuality class, sex sells.
“Here you have two well-known models wearing nothing at all but their new sports shoes,” she said.
Taylor-West has been teaching human sexuality at TCC and Dallas County Community College for 13 years.
Some of her students who take the class don’t realize what they have signed up for.
“Some students are very surprised by the content covered in class,” she said. “Maybe they think the class will be about the act itself, but we cover history, men’s and women’s perspectives, adult relationships, contraception and sexually transmitted infections.”
NE student Chris Kowalski said the classbroadened his views of sexuality and opened his eyes to the history of sex.
James Davenport, another NE student, said the class could be difficult.
“It can be quite hard if you don’t come to class, but if you come all the time, you can do well,” he said.
While teaching in south Dallas, Taylor-West noticed many of her students were unfamiliar with their own bodies.
“If I could help prevent a pregnancy or a sexually transmitted infection there, I felt I was doing my job,” she said.
She also teaches two other psychology classes for the WINR program, applied psychology and psychology of adjustment.
Before teaching, Taylor-West served as a public relations executive for a local municipal government. The most satisfying aspect of the job was working with the public, she said. The hardest part was dealing with the politics.
“You were always getting new elected officials, and priorities would change,” she said.
Once she retired and began teaching, her salary was cut in half.
Taylor-West said she enjoys teaching and prefers teaching at community colleges.
“Most of us faculty have outside work experience, and we can bring that into the classroom,” she said.
Outside of her professional life, Taylor-West enjoys playing music and spending time with her newborn granddaughter, Landry.
Being a grandmother has given her a new outlook on life.
“It’s delightful to see things through the eyes of a child again,” she said. “It brings you back to the basics.”
