Columbus State University

Faculty Member, History and Geography

Associate Professor

College of Letters and Sciences

Thesis Title: Envisioning the Great Plains: Contemporary Narratives of the Landscape

About

Research

My interests revolve around the meaning of space and place at different scales from urban and rural cultural landscapes to the region scale.  At the cultural landscape scale I explore production, contestation, and where appropriate historic interpretation and preservation.  I have worked on federally funding projects in Wyoming as well as my own research projects that explore the historic interpretation of various cultural landscapes from Wyoming to Georgia. 

At the urban scale I have explored the meaning and contestation of urban spaces in historical and contemporary Britain and the United States focusing particularly on historical industrial planned communities such as Pullman and Port Sunlight as well as the work on contemporary New Urbanist (US) and Urban Village (UK) projects.  Most recently I've become interested in the role of the university in urban economic redevelopment and look forward to pursuing that avenue with my students using our own institution (Columbus State University) as a case study.

At the regional scale I'm interested in the production and contestation of regions with a particular focus on the Great Plains and the American West.  I am presently working on a book-length manuscript on the regional debates fueled in the 1980s about the future of the American Great Plains.  I am also working on a book-length project on popular culture, tourism, and the production of region in the American West. 

Teaching

My upper level courses include cultural landscapes, global urban spaces, historic interpretation, and tourism.  Students usually choose a landscape they wish to complete research on together we develop a research project on one space.

My cultural landscapes course runs from the interpretation of cemeteries to land redevelopment issues and gentrification.  My urban spaces courses explore the concept of the city in a global context.  I'm beginning to develop a course exploring global urban concepts using film to create a virtual field work experience of cities.

My historic interpretation courses have ranged from developing materials for interpretive plans, to having students work in the field to know a landscape and gather data for interpreting a historic landscape or district, to including students in preparing reports and planning documents for federal and state agencies.  Most recently my students and I took part in a large-scale multi-disciplinary course with the Dept of Theater to develop materials for a proposed historic district including of the mill community Bibb City.  Students were involved in writing a large scale history exhibit and adult and children's guides, walking and audio tours, a 1 hour play using oral histories, and a web site offering these interpretive and other educational materials.  When this district receives federal recognition these materials can then be used and modified as appropriate for the large-scale historic interpretive plan.

In my urban spaces courses we explore the concept of the city.  Students take part in data collection of a longitudinal study on the role of the university in urban redevelopment while placing our own community in a regional, national and transnational context. 

Finally in my introductory World Regional Geography course; a course almost unique to the American education system.  I particularly enjoy taking my students around the world in 16 weeks and helping them learn how to interpret spaces and places within various cultural contexts.  I enjoy pairing up my course with geology, environmental studies, and world history, literature and arts to create an integrated first year learning experience.  I am presently exploring the role of on-line peer writing and review along with the expansion of student f-s-f engagement using I-clicker technology.

Service

I am increasingly interested in two areas of faculty professional development and creating networks to support that development. First, I am interested in developing and supporting strategies to engage students in peer support of thinking and writing in core and upper level classes both f-2-f and online.  Second,  I am interested in developing and supporting faculty learning communities.  In particular I am assisting in the development of CSU's International Learning Community.  Finally, I am presently involved in a task force to internationalize the university with a particular interest in curriculum development.

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