3.9
Quality1.8
Difficulty89%
Would Retake110
Reviews89%
Would Retake
110
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
60
4
14
3
16
2
14
1
6
What Students Say
“His lectures are great and the class work is fun”
MCOMM1100 - 5.0 rating“He has helped students get amazing jobs and internships in Mass Comm and film”
ENG1135 - 5.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
88%
Textbook Required
80%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
A+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Improving
+0.96 avg changeRatings by Course
JOURNALISM100
5.0
(1)ENG102
5.0
(1)INTROMASSCOMM
5.0
(2)COMP101
5.0
(1)COMM1100
5.0
(1)Difficulty by Course
INTRO104
5.0
MASSCOM
4.0
ENGLISH103
3.5
INTROTOFILM
3.5
FILMASLIT
3.0
Reviews (110)
the man is eccentric, never talks about or relates text book to class but puts it on the test. interrupts and verbally bashes students just because his opinion differs. dont take the class if you want to learn about real film only if you want opinions 101. sounds fun but it was just a waste of time.
No Comments
I doubt he has any journalism experience. He told us to read MattDrudge.com every night. He pulled a group of us into his office and completely went off because we disagreed with his methods. While in his office, he showed off pictures of people he met and claimed such meetings gave him credentials.
This guy can't get over himself. His class time is made up of personal babble. we didn't open the textbook once he just said a week before the test to read chapters 1-5 then we only had 10 out of the 35 questions be from the text (wtf?). Never go into this man's office unless you got 10mins to waste
He's a GREAT teacher! He tends to have favorites, but he clearly explains material and he tells students the first day of class what the test will be about--everything from the notes and the textbook. And his tests are word for word from the notes and textbook. You'll learn something in the end.
funny and informative, class is pretty easy
He grades homework based on his opinion, not the content. He only likes the students who agree with him and argues his overrated opinion with everyone else. If you have a question that pertains to the assignment you should ask a different teacher, because he doesn't have an answer.
When we had to write the papers, he was more about the creative side of writing. He doesn't really pay attention to grammar errors and junk. He does grade based on opinion but if you argue with him and prove your point he will give you ta better grade! He likes others opions.
He is very arrogent! Ask him something about himself and you will get an hour lecture about how he has a "genious IQ" and blah blah. He is very rude, not giving you a chance to explain yourself. Not to mention he is not very clear on what he expects from his papers.
Very cool class, I don't know what everyone is all about here... he has a peculiar way of teaching but it gets the point across, I think most of his students understand what he wants them to know, so he's very successful.
He is very pompous and arrogant. Self absorbed and not for any good reason. He bragged about writing scripts for Smurfs, Thundercats and Star Trek. One of our assignments was to read his Star Trek script and then he never discussed it. Total waste of time. He grades based on his own opinions and not on the actual assignment. Not recommended. At all
Good class,good assignments,liked class
Fair on tests and relates class to real life. Explains info well. Fun field trips.
He said and I quote "not everyone can be as perfect as me"
A terrible teacher. Grades off of opinion. The only reason to take him would be for the easy grading. Still..I learned nothing,it wasn't worth it
He is a very unusual teacher. I enjoy his class because he makes very sarcastic and cynical remarks to people who say stupid things, and there is no organization in his classroom(which makes it somewhat easy). As far as learning goes, it is few and far between, although he makes good discussion in his different units.
He's kind of a space cadet, but he's pretty good.
All I have to say is that he is the worst teacher I have ever had. Arrogant, selfritous, and never there for his students. He should be fired and I will be writing the president so he know as well. He is not meant to be a teacher!
All I have to say is be prepared because he calls on you randomly. He is in a different world all the time.
He is an AWESOME teacher, my favorite at C.O.D. He is smart,very helpful and knows his subject well. This is the third class I took with him. You will notice that any negative comments about him on this site are written by people who can not spell, punctuate properly or use grammar correctly. They are probably failing Professor Fries' class.
Good class.Good teacher. I learned a lot.
He is very uncomfortable to be around and I was not extra pleased with his teaching style. He criticizes to the point. He is willing to help, but doesn't relate to the person asking for help.
No Comments
Really, really good teacher. He does not like students who goof off and do not do their assignments.He's helpful when you do not understand something.Fair.
Excellent
First of all, this teacher has the most annoying voice and disposition. I thought I'd learn about the world of journalism, not just that mass media is "evil"!He's just rude and will brush you off. Class time was taken up listening to the same people voice their opinions. What a waste of a class. Don't take it, consider yourself warned.
Well, lets just say go to class because if you don't everyone else hears about how other miss and are going to fail. Really didn't learn anything. Large assignments were worth small amount of points and you never even openend the book. The tests were based off the notes from class but none were ever taken... Stay away at all costs!
He is probably the worst teacher I have ever encountered. He's pompous, self-righteous and close-minded. He believes he's god gift to film and will expect you to treat him as such.
One of the easier classes you'll take, although it's a shame you'll hate every minute of it. Everyone I know who's taken this class hated it, and basically if you don't agree with the guy, he'll like you less for it. The one positive I got is that after taking Fries' class, I know I can pretty much go anywhere in journalism. After all, he did.
Terrile. I do not recommend signing up for a class that he teaches. He likes to criticize people in class; very embarrassing to the person getting the critizing. He does not relate well with students. And he seems to pick favorites; better get on his nice list or you will be getting bad grades. He doesnt clearly explain himself. All around rude.
easy grade but didnt learn much from the class.
While an easy class, I do not recommend. He really didnt teach much in the clas (spent more than 1/4 of days doing long student presentations), rude to other students w/o being helpful and not clear in directions at all. We read 2 chapters in the text and had 1 test (good/bad?). Has serious self esteem issues. Survivable but not recommended.
I didn't like his teaching style at all. He was never clear on his expectations in class. He needs to start caring about other people's feelings instead of his own. You can take his class but it will be a crazy ride.
this guy is joke. I had him in 04. Wouldn't stop talking about his work on Jem and Eek the cat. Misses more classes then the students
Didn't learn anything. But easy A.
I took comp 1101 during the summer 2007 semester. It was really easy. We were supposed to do a paper every two weeks. We spent the first five weeks on one profile. and the last three on a introspection. Class was really dull and agonising like slow waster torture. Tons of Extra CRedit avalible. THE MORE CREATIVE YOU ARE THE MORE POINTS HE GI VES!!!
First, Sandy is a guy, last name pronounced freeze. This class involved a lot of movies and listening to him ramble on. It was an easy A and the group project was lots of fun. If you want to get an A just show up, watch some films, spout out a couple basically insightful ideas, have fun in the group project and call it a semester. Easy A.
rude and disrespectful to students. he'll say not interesting or boring even though it is important to you.criticizes people during class if he does not agree with what you say. talks more about his old jobs then what you to learn. he'll review a paper before its due but gives a grade when people are looking for help. BAD!! DO NOT TAKE HIS CLASS!!
A really good teacher and I learned lots of interesting things about writing. He has a good sense of humor. This class was a lot more interesting than other writing classes I took before.Good class.
Awesome teacher! I took this class because it was recommended by a friend and was happy I took it. The teacher knows his subject really well and makes the class interesting.
No Comments
A friend suggested I take his class and I am glad I did! He is an excellent lecturer and makes the subject interesting. Really excellent class and teacher and I would recommend it. If you like film, you will really like this class and learn a lot about movies. He shows interesting movies and makes analyzing them enjoyable.
This teacher is extremely knowledegable about Mass communication and the teacher is the most interesting one i have had in a long time. Great lectures and discussions and really interesting group project. I definitely recommend him.
Teacher is: smart,interesting,fair,knows his subject,good sense of humor.I definitely,absolutely recommend him.
great teacher,fair grader,will take another class with this teacher
To put it short, easy A, but you won't learn a thing. Just do what the guy asks and tell him what he wants to hear.
Very, very good teacher and class. Interesting topic.
Awesome teacher, awesome class.
Mr Fries was a great teacher, defiantly easy A. He never really seemed to have a lesson plan though, but he did have some neat group projects! I would recommend him to anyone taking Journalism for their first time.
My favorite teacher. He'smart and teaches things that relate to real life. Grades are fair.
ok to start off this teacher is absolutely horrible. he is extremely arrogant and should not be teaching because he is extremely rude also. he does not know how to treat people nice even after they do so much of his useless projects. he has no clue what he is even teaching and claims he has written scripts for movies. but i highly doubt he has.
good teacher - not too hard
He's ok. Doesn't really care about your pov but makes sure you know what his is. He does teach the fundamentals about the film industry well, but will brag about his own past work while doing it. There's 4 tests (you need the book!), a small group pp prsntn and a large group film project. You'll actually make a short movie which i really liked.
Awesome teacher! My favorite class,he teaches in a way that is interesting. Grading is very fair and he gives extra ctedit too. I definitely reccomend him. Awesome!!!!
My favorite teacher...very helpful, his assignments are enjoyable and you learn at the same time. Excellent class and teacher.
This class is relatable. Fries may not be the most intresting professor, but I cant complain. After expending very little effort, I walked out of the class with an "A". He does extra credit for little things, such as punctuality.
I can honestly say I didn't learn a single thing in his class. The majority of his classes consisted of class discussions in which people just gave their opinions on a particular event in the media. Occasionally he can come off as arrogant, but for the most part he's very nice. He also offers a lot of extra credit.
A GOOD TEACHER!!!!
Prof Fries keeps the class interesting and engaging with more activity and participation then lecturing. He really goes out of his way to help students succeed, not just in class but in life/career as well.
He was one of the nicest teachers I've had at COD! He is a very easy grader and was sometimes funny. He inspired me to think about the future of media and the world and made class interesting. I would recommend him to anyone pursuing a Journalism career!
Fries is not the best teacher in the world. I didn't learn anything new in his class and he was a big favorites person. If you didn't suck up to him you didn't stand a chance. However, he was a nice man who gives lots of compliments at the end of term if he likes you. Just be yourself and you'll find out what he thinks of you!
He is the best teacher I have ever had! He makes the class interesting and enjoyable.
Great teacher and class!
Excellent!
You have to attend class otherwise points are deducted. Fair grader and gives extra credit. Only 2 tests and 2 presentations in his class.
Professor Fries class was easy. Although he strays from the syllabus, he assigns no homework. There were two projects: the midterm and the final. He also gives out a ton of extra credit. Keep up with the reading because the tests are based off the book, while his lectures are not. He is often late, but he marks you off for attendance. Participa
He was okay. Better stay on his good side or he will call you out in front of the whole class. He did have favorites & you could tell. I liked that he gave out extra credit; he was nice if you stayed on his good side. He will take points off if you don't show or leave early.
Professor Fries is brilliant. I went to his office to get my test grade and was amazed since Prof.Fries had pictures of him with President Clinton, President Carter, Rudy Giuliani from NY Etc. on his wall. Google said the Prof. was an NBC News Fellow, got an Emmy nomination and has worked with amazing people. Wow. Really, really good class & Prof.
This professor is completely unorganized. There is no structure to the class, and he is extremely biased on everything. The way he treats his students is unfair, because he plays favorites. He does, however, give a ton of extra credit. He will embarrass you in front of class if you are late, caught texting, forget your homework etc.
Prof. Fries is a very good teacher. He is fun and fair and it's easy to get an "A" in this class. He also does really interesting lectures and fun field trips. I definitely would recommend him.
A very good teacher,very good class and the class relates to current topics. I liked the class a lot!
A friend of mine went from college of Dupage to University of Chicago. U of Chicago is one of the top ten schools in the country. My friend told me the admissions person at U. of Chicago said one of the big reasons he got into that school is because he got such a good letter of recommendation from Prof. Fries. Big Universities know Prof. Fries.
This Prof. knows his subject well. He gives a lot of extra credit. Lots of people in my class got an "A." It's fun, you learn also, so I reccomend the class. I give the class an"A plus."
Easy class, easy teacher. Failed first two tests and still got an A in the class. Test are filled with questions from the book, so reading the chapters is recommended. Did 2 group projects and watched a few movies. Overall, if you want an easy A, take this class/teacher.
GREATEST TEACHER ALIVE! He's awesome! Looks like Lewis Black and he is...well...awesome! Took him twice and I am taking 2 classes with him this semester.
when a point of contingency is raised in the class, one of the way professor fries would deal with the problem is to take a vote. Foe example: the criticism of a controversial member of society was not commonly known to the majority of the class, and there for the minority of the class that was aware were told that they were wrong based on majority
This teacher cares about students and makes class something to look forward to. Grades are fair, the class is fun. An interesting, fun teacher.
This teacher is my favorite from college or high school. The teacher is brilliant! He even wrote for Star Trek, Next Generation and Quantum Leap!
A brilliant teacher who makes learning interesting. Amazing class. i recommend class and teacher.
I think you will like this teacher and class.
This Prof. knows his stuff and knows how to teach.
I expected there would be lectures and powerpoints but we mostly just talked about mass communication. Field trip to the Daily Harold is mandatory, else you write an essay. Two group projects and three tests. He doesn't open the book once or talk about it, just expects you to do the readings. He wasn't bad, his style of teaching is just different.
I have taken three classes with this professor and they all were awesome! I looked forward to going to class because the professor made the topics interesting, fun to learn about and showed how the things we learned about had importance in the real world and life in general. Prof. has good sense of humor, is clear, gives extra credit if needed.
A really, really great professor. I give the professor and the class an A Plus. You can get help if you need it, extra credit if you need it and it's a really interesting subject.
I recommend this professor 100% .
I think you will definitely like this professor and any class the Prof. teaches!!!!!!!!
Super easy grader and expectations. However he will make you jump through endless hoops to get that grade. Bare out all his pointless lectures and projects and it's an easy A.
Professor. Fries is a goofy caring guy, and I liked that about him! The class is pretty group project and test heavy, there's not really any homework at all. He wants all of his students to do well and honestly, achieving an A isn't hard. I will say this, he needs to prepare students better for the exams, his lectures weren't helpful for the tests.
I have taken 3 classes with Prof. Fries and thought they were all really, really good. He is fair grader and has smart advice for students about careers.
I always looked forward to going to this class with this Professor. Fun and interesting teacher. Good discussions in class.
Professor Fries is an adequate film teacher. His tests are "based off the book" but you can get by without wasting your money on the book. There are 4 tests but they are only 10 questions each so you better hope you do good, or else your grade could be skewed negatively. Fortunately he gives a TON of extra credit and yes he gives Oreos out a lot.
I have had about 25 college professors and professor Fries is the best. His lectures are great and the class work is fun. He has a good sense of humor.
He has helped students get amazing jobs and internships in Mass Comm and film. I reccommend him.
hes really nice and really wants his students to pass, he cares a lot and will help you thru any trouble youre having, he's also originally a hollywood writer so he doesn't have best teaching expiriance and expects a lot from you, if you take him my advice is to not take criticism too personally, and do your best to ty and enjoy yourself
Professor Fries was really helpful throughout the class and offers a lot of insight on mass communication and related fields.
Took his intro to film. Seriously such a good guy. He's hilarious and has lots of experience and gives great perspective. The class is about what you'd expect. Watch some old school films and discuss, learn about the principle of film and how movies are shot, etc. If you need an elective, take Prof. Fries. You'll get an A and enjoy the class
Insisted we send all coursework to his email, I guess because he doesn't know how to use blackboard. This wouldn't be too inconvenient, except it's a fully online class. Also, he assigned an ebook he himself wrote, so each of us would purchase it off Amazon. I know other professors have done this too, but I still think it's a scummy move.
Enjoyed the class, take it!
An A++++ Professor. A fun, interesting, helpful teacher.
Professor Fries made the class something I looked forward to every week. An awesome Professor and person! He also has a lot of real world experience.
This Prof. is the best.
A nice person who really helps students if they need help. He also gives really good advice about careers and how to get a job. Fair grader. Interesting.
Although Sandy is well experienced in the TV industry and clearly skilled as a writer, he is not the greatest teacher. His weekly discussions were bland and some of his film choices were questionable to say the least. Nice man though.
Prof. Fries was my favorite teacher this semester! A truly great guy and he is definitely knowledgeable in film. If you did not like watching movies, you do now! What I loved most about his class were the blog assignments he gives! I've always enjoyed watching movies or tv but this class has made me appreciate the talent of everyone in the industry
Professor Fries is a wonderful asset to this College, his teaching criteria is phenomenal, highly respected instructor,I highly recommend for any of his classes
Professor Fries is an outstanding and well respected instructor at this college, He has been involved in a large part of the film and movie industry. Has an awesome sense of humor I would highly recommend any of his classes. .
A great professor, clear grading criteria, very inspirational and encouraging. Highly recommend taking his classes has an amazing record in the journalism and movie industry highly respected
The thing I really liked about prof. Fries is that she gives a generous amount of extra credit to students as well as being clear with the grading criteria within the online syllabus. She is a fast replier when sending emails also. This is my last semester at COD and I am overall glad to have had this class to finish my COD term😊.
Professor Fries has taught me a lot through the semester. Having a hybrid class in Intro to film was a surreal moment and introduction to college for me. Professor Fries is very caring teacher and puts you before the work. I would say in a matter of a few months he has taught me a lot mentally and recommend taking his classes. He's truly amazing.
Take this class!! Fun & easy. Sweet professor who actually makes you want to talk in class. Didn't always meet each week. Basically, 2 quick assignments each wk (all posted on day 1, so you could finish the hw part of the course as quickly as you wanted). No essays, exams. Sweet & understanding guy, especially if you can't make it to class. Easy A!
Class Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
88%
Textbook Required
80%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
A+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Improving
+0.96 avg changeRatings by Course
JOURNALISM100
5.0
(1)ENG102
5.0
(1)INTROMASSCOMM
5.0
(2)COMP101
5.0
(1)COMM1100
5.0
(1)Difficulty by Course
INTRO104
5.0
MASSCOM
4.0
ENGLISH103
3.5
INTROTOFILM
3.5
FILMASLIT
3.0