by Becky Brock
In elementary school, some children think their teacher lives in the classroom. At a university, students know that isn't true but sometimes think their teachers' lives revolve around the topic they teach.
This is not the case for BYU philosophy professor Chris Foster because his background is unlike most.
Although he is a philosophy professor, during his undergraduate study at UC Davis he double-majored in mathematics and philosophy.
'I chose math because my mom said to do what you love,' Foster said.
His interest sparked in philosophy after taking a class to fulfill a general education requirement.
'I felt like I had found my home,' Foster said. 'I didn't decide to become a philosopher. I decided I had always been a philosopher.'
From there he went on to receive his doctorate in philosophy in the fall of 1999.
All during this time, Foster was not a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He was raised as an atheist and fairly hippie, he said. Growing up he believed in the evolution theory.
After an experience his sophomore year at UC Davis, he had questions about existence and life itself.
'Evolution could explain how I got here physically, but not spiritually,' Foster said.
During his search for truth, Foster tried a variety of religions such as Buddhism, Hinduism, Paganism, different sects of Christianity and more.
After many years of seeking spiritual truth, he investigated the LDS church.
During a sacrament meeting he attended, he felt the spirit strongly, he said.
'I didn't know what church was true, but I felt like it was the one that God attended,' Foster said following the meeting.
This feeling was sweet but soon ended when Foster started associating with some anti-LDS groups that temporarily changed his opinion about the church.
After many trials, he decided to join the church.
'Ultimately, I decided my job, when it came to religion, was to follow the spirit of God,' Foster said. 'I was a hippie atheist gone Mormon, an unlikely story.'
Another unlikely thing about this BYU professor is he plays guitar and sings in a bluegrass band called the Utah Ramblers.
The band plays at nursing homes and other venues, said band member Andy Watson.
'We try to cheer people's lives up,' Watson said.
Foster is not only passionate about music but has been a vegetarian and animal advocate since 1987.
'I decided it was wrong to kill animals because we enjoy eating them,' he said.
Foster's passion and love of learning has also influenced many of his students.
'Philosophy can be a hard thing to understand,' former student Nathan Nielson said. 'But he was able to break it down.'
To his students, Foster is known for using unconventional ways of teaching philosophy. In the past, Foster has used puppets, guitars and different voices to teach students philosophy.
'The most memorable class period I had was when he walked in and said, 'Today I have a special guest,' and then he walked outside and came back in talking like George Berkeley in really bad Irish,' Nielson said.