FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH: WORK PROFESSOR, 75, WINS HONORS FROM COLLEAGUES SECOND CAREER INVIGORATES ROMANIAN IMMIGRANT WHO LOVES HELPING STUDENTS LEARN MATH.

Byline: JIM SKEEN Staff Writer

LANCASTER - Professor Magdalena Caproiu had to retire 19 years ago in her native Romania.

Now the 75-year-old is teaching at Antelope Valley College, routinely putting in 13- and 14-hour workdays, and she was just selected by her fellow AVC professors for their highest honor.

``I do not know this word `retirement,''' said Caproiu, a U.S. resident for 17 years. ``It's just a word in the dictionary.''

Caproiu was honored Wednesday with the college's Scholar in Residence designation, which goes to full-time faculty members who have increased knowledge for a specific discipline, brought credit to the college, opened insights for students, been recognized as learned, and demonstrated dedication, innovation and excellence in education.

The designation comes with a $750 honorarium. Each year's winner makes a presentation to colleagues the following school year.

``It's a great honor for me,'' Caproiu said. ``It is something to keep in my mind for life.''

Caproiu teaches courses such as intermediate algebra and dosage calculation for nursing students. She holds the title of math-learning specialist, coordinating activities of the math lab at the college's Learning Center. Her work includes overseeing individualized math self-study and tutoring programs.

``It gives me a lot of energy,'' Caproiu said of teaching. ``Energy creates energy.''Caproiu said she finds vitality in the classroom and was actually drained by a recent holiday break.

She grew up in Romania's Transylvania region and hears some comments about vampires. She was once asked at a border crossing whether she was one.

Although she is Romanian, she speaks with a Hungarian accent - the result of growing up in a diverse village with a large Hungarian population.

Caproiu's teaching career began at the Polytechnic Institute in Timisoara, Romania, when she was 21 years old. Caproiu, who has a doctorate degree in mechanical engineering, taught mathematical modeling for engineers until she was forced into one retirement in 1987.

``I didn't want to retire. It was my funeral,'' Caproiu said.

She came to the United States in 1989, two years after her husband of 40 years died. With no family in Romania, she moved to the Antelope Valley to be near her daughter and son-in-law.When she left Romania, it was under Communist Party control. Under the law of the time, she was allowed to take only 20 pounds of personal belongings.

``My daughter said, `Take your (college) degrees,''' Caproiu said. ``I thought, who would hire me?''

Though Caproiu is fluent in five other languages, she did not speak English when she arrived in the United States. She enrolled in classes at Antelope Valley College to learn English as a ``second'' language.

Step by step, her involvement with the college grew. She became a tutor and then a part-time instructor who in 1998 earned Adjunct Faculty Member of the Year honors. She finally became a professor.

Caproiu said she developed a strong will early in life, but her sense of individuality did not really take hold until she arrived in the United States.

``What I have learned here is self-esteem," Caproiu said. ``If I am able to take care of myself, I will be able to take care of others. I share this idea with my students. When they leave my class, they feel much better.''

Caproiu said there was such intense competition in Romania to get an education that her students there were highly capable when they came to her. Student math skills in the United States are more uneven, and Caproiu enjoys helping a struggling student rise to a new level.

``I feel part of the success more,'' Caproiu said of teaching in the United States. ``I think that is a big reward.''

james.skeen(at)dailynews

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CAPTION(S):

2 photos

Photo:

(1 -- color) On the Antelope Valley College campus where, she says, teaching invigorates her, 75-year-old Magdalena Caproiu is this year's recipient of Scholar in Residence honors, the highest award her colleagues can give to a professor.

(2) Magdalena Caproiu, the new Antelope Valley College Scholar in Residence, says teaching excites her more than leisure.

Jeff Goldwater/Staff Photographer