Selen Apaydin

My grandfather lived 96 healthy years, his mind always sharp; love and smiles never faded through his century-long life. With his intellect and knowledge, he showed “how it’s done”—I’m proud to be granddaughter to one of the rare Village Institute graduates, a teacher and education inspector. The biggest bookworm I’ve ever known, reading for decades on end. I am the granddaughter of someone who embraced science, shunned dogmas, questioned relentlessly, never voiced uninformed views, and truly grasped humanity and history. Without following the crowd, he adopted modern ideas earliest, viewed issues critically yet constructively through his own lens, never let ego dominate, stayed considerate and communicative, ever humble. I’m grateful we shared so much time, that I gifted him my research books, and introduced my daughter. Through bonds he nurtured and masterful conversations, he passed wisdom to his granddaughter—even shaping my personal choices despite our vast age gap. Though not our family’s most famous educator, his children, their spouses, and grandchildren all pursued education. Just by being himself, what a legacy… We love you so much, grandpa.
Note: Even today, I haven’t skipped lessons, hid my tears, and kept on teaching.

Finally met face-to-face with one of my independent doctoral thesis advisors, Dr. Devrim Öztürk!

He provided one of the most crucial supports during my research, dramatically improving my citations and literature review.

Feeling incredibly fortunate for this academic family that inspired me and helped turn my research publication dreams into reality.

For those who are interested: https://lnkd.in/eqZhevqy