Frank Speyers - Calvin College, Grand Rapids, MI

Professor: Frank Speyers

Department: Fine Arts

College: Calvin College, Grand Rapids, MI

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: ARTS355
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

By far the best professor I have had to date. It has been an honor being in his class.

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: ART305
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

Professor Speyers is very knowledgeable about Graphic Design. He wants to help you improve your design skills and think abstractly. I have learned a lot from him and have appreciated his critiques.

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: ART255
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Fraklin is a brilliant man and artist. He's hard to understand at times as he has a crazy imagination but he truly will help you learn the art. He is so much fun and really cares about your success!

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: ART255
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

love this man. he's a nut, but he cares about his students and has some amazing experiences!

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: ARTS255
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

He can come off strong at first, but he really knows what he is doing. He has a lot of experience from past jobs that help with how he prepares you for the real world. Blunt, but very helpful when asked for critiques. If you attend class and do whats required you will get a good grade. Overall great professor.

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: ARTS305
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

While he can be blunt and straightforward, I don't think that's a bad way to approach his class, especially because the design/art world can be harsh in real life, and he is only giving us these feedbacks so that we can improve as artist/designers. When you work hard, he helps you a lot to improve and shows you good direction.

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: ART153
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

Speyers is a great professor because of the way he ran his painting classroom. He was very lenient of letting us paint what subjects we wanted and made it easy to get off campus and paint some really cool spots.

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: ARTS251
• Grade Received: A+
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

Speyers is a great artist. He knows how to paint and does it well. He's not the most structured and organized teacher, but that was fine by me. He let us go out and paint where we wanted. Main requirement was 10 paintings done for the semester. The two books for class were of great help and inspiration. Not the clearest with instructions.

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: ARTS251
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

He was a great teacher and artist. He knows his stuff and you can tell he loves teaching. He works hard to make sure all students are succeeding.

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: ARTS251
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

Speyers is very passionate about what he teaches. For an intro to painting course, I found that I learned a lot more than I was expecting. A lot of the class was very hands-on and he allowed students to experience/learn for themselves. He gave reasonably good feedback, and was always encouraging. Make sure to participate in class discussion!

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: ART251
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

Franklin Speyers pushes his students to their fullest potential - sometimes being blunt along the way. I do advise to perform the way he instructs you to as that will help you get a better grade, but perform in this way as he is trying to push certain key concepts. The man knows his stuff and if you come to class you'll pick up on a lot.

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: ART255
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Speyers gives tough and blunt feedback but it is incredibly helpful. He wants his students to succeed and is willing to help his students that want to put in the effort.

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: ARTS255
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: No
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

Worst professor we have at Calvin. A genius no doubt but sucks at teaching. He has been reported multiple times for being rude and nasty to his students. Very rude and nasty to his students. He will literally call you out in front of the entire class and tell you your project or assignment is terrible. He is so cocky.

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: ARTS255
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Appears to know a lot, but absolutely awful at explaining anything. He's probably a good professor at his peak, but he truly does come across as an awful person who doesn't care about students. He often made me feel uncomfortable in class.

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: ARTS255
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 2.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

I could tell that Professor Speyers has passion for student growth and success, but in the end he did not help me much. If you do exactly what he asks for the course, you will get an A, but you will not learn too much about graphic design. His quizzes were incredibly disorganized and he sometimes had a temper with students, which surprised me.

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: ART305
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

To be honest, this class was a big let-down. It was easy, but not very helpful at all. Frank Speyers is known for having a stellar background in design, with good connections. Unfortunately he lacks good teaching skills and is usually confusing. Most days, he would leave early, or just sit at his computer and not interact with students.

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: ARTS
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Not what I expected from Design classes. If you do not take advantage of the online tutorials, you will only learn how to critique in these classes, not how to use Photoshop, Illustrator, etc in depth. Definitely the type where do what he asks, and you'll get a good grade (little room for creative freedom) .

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: ART355
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

He's a great professor who pushes students to do their best while giving them room to explore and create.

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: ARTA
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

He requires that you push your limits but does everything he can to help you do so

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: ARTS255
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

There is a 10 point quiz every week, but he walks through the book and points out the specific paragraphs that the questions are taken from a week before taking the quiz. Put the work in and ask for help. He is willing to help and you will learn a lot. You get as much out of his class as you are willing to put in.