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History at Fort Lewis College

June 2019

Dear Friends of History at Fort Lewis College,
 
It has been a very busy and rewarding spring semester!  I had the pleasure of working with our twelve History majors on their senior thesis projects. It is culmination of a year of reading, writing, and researching in which students write several drafts of a proposal and secondary literature review in the fall semester and then in the spring produce several progressively detailed and well-crafted drafts of a 20-30 page paper based on original research into primary sources. In early April the seniors presented their theses to their peers, the public, and other professors at an all-day extravaganza in Noble Hall… and then we had a party to celebrate! Please scroll down to Student Work section to see all the students’ names and project titles.
 
In February and March, Dr. Paul DeBell and I hosted two special speakers as part of a Title VI grant for teaching about Eurasia and Eastern Europe. The first, Dr. Laurie Stoff of the Barrett Honors College at ASU, spoke to our classes in February about socialism and presented an afternoon lecture titled “Russian Women on the Frontlines: The World War One Experience.” The second, Dr. Margaret Hanson of the School of Politics and Global Studies, visited our classes in March and gave a public talk titled "Managing the Predatory State: Civil Law and Courts in Post-Soviet Kazakhstan." 
 
In late March, we sponsored another special speaker: Nancy Geise told the story of a Holocaust survivor. She shared the broad outlines of Joe Rubinstein’s survival at Auschwitz, meeting Joe in Fort Collins, and the long process of conducting interviews, and the challenges of writing a coherent narrative in Auschwitz #34207:  The Joe Rubinstein Story (2015). Nancy was filled with gratitude for Joe and the honor of telling his often painful story, and she left us inspired by Joe’s journey of overcoming personal hardship and going on to live a full and joyous life.

NekolaThe annual Reece Kelly Distinguished Lecture in early April was our last special speaker of the semester. Dr. Martin Nekola, historian and political scientist from Prague, spoke about current events in the light of history in “The Czech Republic, European Union, and the Rise of Populism.” The lecture analyzed politics and issues caused by Brexit, the refugee crisis, and the rise of populist tendencies in the European Union. The image at left is of Martin answering questions after his talk in Noble Hall 130.

Ellen PaulIf you’re interested in contributing a short piece (biographical or otherwise) to our newsletter, please let me know. As always, we love to hear from our friends and especially from our alumni.

Sincerely, 
Ellen L. Paul
Chair and Associate Professor, History Department
     

CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR
GRADUATING SENIORS!


Graduating Seniors in the History Department, April 2019
From left to right: Kyle Sandoval, Noah Nieman, Nick Brandau, Chloe Kissner, Tory Franklin, Jordyn Atkinson, Rickey Thomas, Keegan Callahan, James Summers, Ben Huston, Colin Harris, Griffen Stacy

FACULTY PUBLICATIONS & ACTIVITIES


MICHAEL FRY

Michael FryDespite all appearances, Professor Michael Fry wants the readers of the newsletter to know that he is not dead. Not yet. Indeed, in preparation for his sabbatical of historical research in Guatemala in 2020, he will in July spend part of his usual Indiana Jones-styled summer working in the Archivo General de Centro América in Guatemala City, the principal archival repository for colonial Central America.

ANDREW GULLIFORD

Andrew GullifordDr. Andrew Gulliford’s new book The Woolly West: Colorado’s Hidden History of Sheepscapes (College Station: Texas A&M University Press) is a finalist for the Colorado Book Award. In April Dr. G. and his wife traveled to Oklahoma City to the National Cowboy Museum & Hall of Fame where Dr. Gulliford’s book received The Western Heritage Award for Outstanding Non-Fiction for 2019. Over 1,100 people attended the formal banquet whose keynote speaker was award winner Kevin Costner. Dr. G. was introduced to the audience by John Wayne’s son and by Will Rogers’ granddaughter. The Western Heritage awards at the National Cowboy Museum are considered to be “the Oscars for all things western.” Dr. G. received an engraved copy of The Wrangler, which is a bronze statue of a cowboy on horseback. He is delighted that the book is receiving recognition and he will continue to speak about sheepherders and sheepmen across Colorado.

Andrew Gulliford

His next sheep book talk is scheduled for the Pagosa Springs Public Library in June. He will also speak on the topic in Bayfield in September for their annual Sheep Trailing Days. Also Dr. G. will be speaking as part of the Center for Southwest Studies Summer Lecture series. His talk is titled: "La Estrella del Pastor - Hispano Sheepherders from Colorado and New Mexico: Culture, Tradition, and Sheepscapes." The talk is free and open to the public, on Wednesday, July 24, 1:30—3:00 p.m., in the Lyceum (Room 120) of the Center for Southwest Studies.

PAUL KUENKER

Paul KuenkerDr. Paul Kuenker just completed his first year here at Fort Lewis College as a Visiting Instructor in U.S. History. We are pleased to announce that Paul will be returning next year again as a Visiting Instructor for us and we could not be happier to have him back! Students have commented on how much they enjoy working with him, and he even jumped in and helped with the senior seminar projects for several students.

This Spring, Paul taught a topics course titled: Technology in America. From the course description: “This course begins from a central question: what has been the placed of technology in American society - a source of power, progress, or peril? The course will trace the history of technology and its relationship to political, economic, social, and cultural developments surrounding the rise of modernity in the nineteenth and early twentieth-century United States. Students will analyze the dynamics and effects of technologies and technological systems, in particular the significance they held to Americans who witnessed their rise and variously celebrated and lamented their influence.”
 
As part of this amazing course, he took students on several field trips, including one to the Powerhouse Science Center here in Durango where the students were able to ‘play’ with some of the steam boilers.

Field trip with Paul Kuenker

MICHAEL MARTIN

Michael MartinIt certainly was a busy semester for Dr. Michael Martin. He continued his work as Faculty Senate President and was reelected to that post for the upcoming 2019-2020 academic year. He was also a member of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Advisory Council, and was the External Departmental Reviewer for the Marketing Program in the School of Business Administration. He completed his work on the Provost Search Committee and is pleased to announce that Dr. Cheryl Nixon will be coming on board as Fort Lewis College’s next Provost. Dr. Nixon comes to us from the University of Massachusetts Boston, where she is currently the Associate Provost. She will begin July 1.

A Benedictine ReaderHis translation of two short Latin documents (with introductions) that help explore Benedictine monasticism and exegesis (biblical explanations) have finally arrived and can be found within A Benedictine Reader: 530-1530.

He will now focus this summer on completing his major book project of four years now. It is a critical edition of a Latin text, written in Ireland c. 800 c.e. The work is a commentary on the Psalms titled: Eclogae tractatorum in psalmis (essentially a selection of the best excerpts from existing commentaries on the Psalms). His book will be an important contribution to early medieval Irish studies as it will help provide support of early medieval Irish authored works. He has already traveled to Munich, Germany, and St. Gallen, Switzerland as part of his research process. He hopes to return to southern France this summer.

DOCTORAL FELLOW

 

PATRICK TROESTER

Patrick Troester completed his Center for Southwest Studies Doctoral Fellowship in April and returned to SMU to complete his dissertation during the next academic year. It was a very busy semester for Patrick. He continued work on his dissertation, and taught one course HIST 281 - U.S. History Since 1877. On March 21-22, Patrick participated in a symposium at The University of Alabama entitled "Race and Gender Explorations: War and Military Service in 19th and 20th Century America." Then on April 3, he gave a public talk at the Center of Southwest Studies on his work in the Center's archival collections. Finally, on May 9-12, he presented a paper at the Society for Military History Annual Meeting in Columbus Ohio, as part of a panel examining the social history of the U.S.-Mexican War.  The History Department would like to wish him well and good luck on his work. We really appreciated his hard work and dedication to his students this past year, and enjoyed his sense of humor and willingness to put up with all of us this year too!

ALUMNI UPDATES

 

L. CLARE JOHNSON, 2016

Clare Johnson and her family

[From her bio in the graduation pamphlet from the graduation ceremony honoring the graduates of the Native American Law Student Association and the Indigenous Law and Policy Center at Michigan State University College of Law:]

“Clare is from the State of Oklahoma and is a citizen of the Cherokee Nation. She served as President of the MSU Native American Law Student Association (2018-2019) and Associate Editor for the Journal of Animal and Natural Resource Law (2018-2019). Clare is a member of the National Native American Law Student Association and competed as a member of the MSU-NNALSA Moot Court Team. While at Michigan State University College of Law, Clare completed the Indigenous Law Certificate and participated in the Indian Law Clinic. She is a Cherokee Nation Graduate Scholar and regularly volunteers at the Greater Lansing Food Bank. While at Fort Lewis College she completed her thesis: Heresy in the New World: The Spanish Inquisition and the Lives of Crypto-Jews in Mexico 1525 to 1649.”

Clare recently graduated from Michigan State with a law degree and a certificate in Indian Law. She was awarded a full tuition scholarship to attend. She will be taking the Colorado Bar Exam in July.
 

RUSSELL R. THOMPSON, 1993


Ruseell Thompson

Russell Thompson was featured in our January 2019 newsletter, and it is with great pride that the History Department gets to remind everyone that Russell was the recipient of the first Alumni Fellows Award in History. Twenty-one alumni were recognized at the inaugural Alumni Fellows Award reception. From the Alumni Foundation webpage: “The Alumni Fellows Program recognizes alumni who have distinguished themselves in their careers. Fort Lewis College is proud of its graduates. After alumni establish themselves in their respective career fields and make exciting strides in some way, they deserve to be recognized. This program brings successful alumni back to campus to meet with students and faculty, and share their expertise in the classroom and during this celebration.”

Russell visited with faculty and students of the History Department, a cocktail reception at the President’s home, and finally, was officially recognized at a reception on April 18, 2019 during the Undergraduate Research & Creative Activities Symposium.

SUBMIT YOUR ALUMNI UPDATES


We would love to share more stories about our alumni on our website and in our newsletter. Please email me with stories of how you have used your History degree, or places you have visited with some historical connections you would love to share, along with a photo of you there, or at your job putting that degree to work!
 
We also have a map of the United States in our department hallway and we would love to pinpoint where our alumni are living. Eventually we would like to build up an electronic version to include on our website in the Alumni Updates section. Please let us know where you are!
 
Email alumni update information to Dr. Michael Martin, at martin_m@fortlewis.edu.

DONATE TODAY!


As always, your ongoing contributions are most appreciated and help our faculty and students do the work that you have been reading about above. Please consider donating to one of our funds to help us continue to do that work.
  • History Associates Fund       
  • Reese Kelly Excellence Fund  
  • Public History Fund     
If you wish to be removed from this email list, please contact Dr. Michael Martin at martin_m@fortlewis.edu.
     

STUDENT WORK


As Dr. Paul mentioned above in her welcoming comments, this April, 12 seniors presented their final senior capstone research projects. Here is the list of all who presented and the titles of their final projects.
 
Jordyn Atkinson
Portraits of Power: Examining Images of Ptolemaic and Eighteenth Dynasty Queens in Egypt, 323-30 BCE
 
Nick Brandau
Twenty-first Century American Complacency in War: A Byproduct of Government Mandates and Democratic Agency in WWII and Vietnam
 
Keegan Callahan
Protecting the Parks from People: A Case Study in Conservation Efforts in Big Bend National Park, 1950-2006
 
Tory Franklin
The Uranium Industry and Health Impacts on Navajo Families and the Navajo Nation Reservation, 1930 to 2018
 
Colin Harris
Unconventional Warfare in Vietnam: The TET Offensive, the Turning Point of the Vietnam War, and the Divided American Public, 1955-1975
 
Ben Huston
The Polish Home Army and Polish Jews: Allies or Anti-Semites (1935-45)
 
Chloe Kissner
Stepping into the Conversation: Early 20th Century American Women Grapple with Family Limitation
 
Noah J. Nieman
Sephardic Jews of Curacao: Mediators of the Atlantic World, 1600-1670
 
Kyle Sandoval
Positive Aspects of Indian Boarding Schools: Telling the Whole Story, 1879-1934
 
Griffen Stacy
Wartime Racism and the Enduring Spirit of Japanese Americans, 1941-1945
 
James J. Summers
The Effects of Race-based Assumptions towards African-Americans during Times of Welfare Reform in the United States from 1963 to 1974
 
Rickey R. Thomas
Locating the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem Using Water Source, Elevation, Architectural, Literary, and Archaeological Analysis

INTERNSHIPS

Our students over the past several years have interned at many amazing places. The work they have done provides them with invaluable practical application experiences of the many topics they learn in their classes. It also has helped many of them with obtaining work experience for jobs once they graduate. We wanted to highlight in this issue the various placements of our students over the past seven years. Many thanks to Dr. Andy Gulliford for overseeing all of our interns and the hard work he has done not only in helping to place them, but with managing all the paperwork that goes into setting each on up! If you have ideas for future internships please contact Dr. Gulliford.
 
Colorado Newspapers
Durango Herald, Durango, Colorado
 
Federal Agencies & Cooperative Associations
Bent’s Old Fort National Historical Site, National Park Service
La Junta, Colorado
Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, Gunnison, Colorado
Bureau of Land Management, Farmington, NM wildland fire engine crew and the history of women wildland firefighters
Mesa Verde National Park, Visitor and Research Center
San Juan Mountains Association & Tres Rios Office of the
Bureau of Land Management, Dolores, Colorado
Rural Colorado Cemetery Preservation, La Plata County, Colorado for the San Juan Mountains Association
 
Historic Preservation & Historical Interpretation
Cortez, Colorado Historic Preservation Board
Durango, Community Development Department/Historic Preservation
Historicorps, Colorado Preservation, Inc., Denver
Medicine Mountain Scout Ranch, Custer, South Dakota
 
Historical Societies and Museums
Animas Museum, La Plata County Historical Society, Durango
Beyers-Evans House, History Colorado, Denver
Center of Southwest Studies, Fort Lewis College, Curatorial Division
Center of Southwest Studies, Fort Lewis College, Archives Division
Delta County Historical Society Museum, Delta, Colorado
Galloping Goose Historical Society (GGHS), Dolores, CO
 
Law Firms
Law firm of Maynes, Bradford, Shipps, and Sheftel, LLP.
 
Public history students in history M.A. Programs
University of Colorado-Denver
Western Michigan University
Eastern Washington University

 
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Fort Lewis College · 1000 Rim Drive · Durango, CO 81301 · USA