Cradling her 6-month-old daughter in her arms, University sociology Professor Judith Pintar sits in her office and recounts the past years of her life.

She has just finished a lecture and her daughter, though fussy at first, is finally beginning to doze off. As the mother of two young children, Pintar must juggle both a career and a family. Her roles, however, extend far beyond those of the home and the classroom.

During her career, Pintar has published a number of articles and two books; one of which is a nonfiction/fiction work on romantic myths, Halved-Soul. In the book, she examines classic love tales and reinvents their endings using fictional dialogue between characters like Beauty and the Beast.

A self-taught musician, Pintar learned to play the Celtic harp by composing songs while she lived in England off and on during the '80s. She said she was drawn to the instrument because of its ties to Welsh myths. She has played professionally in a variety of places, including clubs, concert halls and Renaissance festivals. In October, she will perform at the Krannert Center for Performing Arts.

Pintar also created CosmoServe, a text-adventure game that won first place in the Annual SoftWorks AGT Contest in 1991. Today, the game is recognized as an Internet cult-classic.

Though she's only been teaching at the University for three years, Pintar has already made a lasting impact. Voted last year as "Outstanding Teacher of Freshmen" by the Alpha Lambda Delta Freshmen Honors Society, Pintar's teaching methods have met with praise from students and faculty alike.

"Since she's been teaching SOC 100, which is the largest undergraduate sociology course on campus, she's received nothing but rave reviews, for things as complicated as explaining the material well to telling the students to take a breath after a long period of note-taking," said Kimberly Kendall, director of undergraduate studies in the sociology department. "Professor Pintar has the sensitivity needed to teach such a big class."

Erica Taffs, sophomore in LAS, took SOC 100 last semester with Pintar and enjoyed the intimate stories she provided during lectures.

"She shared personal stories that made her seem more like a friend than a teacher. She got me excited about sociology," Taffs said.

Shrome Bolden, freshman in LAS, particularly liked Pintar's sense of humor. "She was hilarious. She had me cracking up in class," she said.

Born in 1960 in Milwaukee, Pintar was influenced by theater at an early age. "My parents met each other when they worked as actors in the Milwaukee Players," she said.

Pintar said this influence still resonates today. She understands that teaching is not just about imparting information to students, but also about keeping them engaged and entertained.

"With 650 students, eight TAs and 22 sections, I see SOC 100 more as a production than a class," she said. "My theater experience really helps me. It's where I get my inspiration."

Pintar is especially fond of her SOC 100 class because the students in it are mostly freshmen. "I prefer teaching freshmen because of their openness, interest and curiosity," Pintar said. "Freshmen are not yet jaded by the system."

Pintar said she feels the study of sociology is important, especially in the present-day context. "Now, more than ever, we need a sociological imagination in order to understand what's going on in the world."