Welcome to the History Alumni Newsletter! We hope that this exciting new initiative will enable us to stay in touch with our History Alumni, let you know about our faculty’s and students’ accomplishments, and most important, to hear from you.

History at Northeastern has continued to expand on its long-standing tradition of scholarly and teaching excellence. This past year alone has brought new milestones: Professor Raymond Robinson completed a half century of teaching at Northeastern, Professor William Fowler returned to full-time teaching as Distinguished Professor of History, and History alum Pamela Brooks (Ph.D. 2000) received tenure and was promoted to Associate Professor at Oberlin College. Professor Emeritus Patrick Manning published his collection Migration in World History (Routledge, 2005), Professor William Fowler published his Empires at War. The French and Indian War and the Struggle for North America 1754-1763 (Walker, 2005) and Professor Laura L. Frader published The Industrial Revolution (Oxford University Press, 2006).

History undergraduates continue to astound us with their exciting research. Jahel Dumornay (Class of ‘07) won a Provost’s Research Grant to examine the colonial foundations of racial distinctions and racial conflict in Rwanda. Read More about undergrad research

As the new academic year begins, we welcome the New England Quarterly and its editor Lynn Rhoads back to its former home in the History Department. Assistant Professor Ilham Khuri-Makdisi returns from a one-year fellowship leave at the Wissenschaftskolleg in Berlin; Assistant Professor Timothy Brown, who joined the faculty last year in German and transnational history has received a Provost’s Research and Scholarship Development Fund grant to conduct research in Germany for his book on 1968 in Germany and the world.

Now tell us your news! We invite you to fill out the Drop Us A Line Form on the Alumni Website. If you include some information about yourself, we will happily feature it in the newsletter. Tell us what you would like to see on the Alumni Website and in the Newsletter. We look forward to hearing from you soon and to what we hope will be the start of an ongoing conversation.

Sincerely,
Laura L. Frader
Professor and Chair

History may be the study of change over time, but for Professor Raymond Robinson, the more things have changed the more they have stayed the same.

Over the past fifty years, Professor Robinson has witnessed considerable changes in Northeastern and in the historical profession. But through it all, his passion for teaching and his commitment to his students has never wavered.

In 1961, shortly after earning his Ph.D. from Harvard, Professor Robinson joined Northeastern as chair of the History Department, a position he would occupy for the next thirty-one years. Although he had opportunities to teach elsewhere, Robinson’s attachment to Boston drew him to Northeastern. A small commuter school in the early 60s, Northeastern also afforded him the opportunity to personally develop the History Department. Despite his obligations overseeing the department, and a rising demand in the profession to publish original research, Professor Robinson insisted upon teaching a full course load.

Indeed, even today, a conversation with Professor Robinson inevitably shifts to his endeavors in the classroom. With the enthusiasm of a young post-grad, Professor Robinson eagerly discusses his teaching experiences. He has taught a survey course in U.S. History for decades, but still finds new approaches and topics that keep it fresh for himself and his students. He also teaches courses on American Elites and the Media in America.

The secret to his success as an educator and mentor is his commitment to his students. “They’re like my academic children,” expresses Robinson. Among the many students he has influenced, two currently hold faculty positions in the History Department at Northeastern: Professors William Fowler and Gerald Herman. Fowler, an undergrad at Northeastern during the 1960’s, originally had his eyes firmly set on law school. Until he took a class with Professor Robinson. “The joy and enthusiasm he brought to the classroom made a significant impression upon me,” recalls Fowler. Robinson quickly recognized the abilities of his young student, and like he has done for so many others, took him under his wing. Professor Robinson steered his young protégé toward a career as an educator. “I told him that he was going to be a college professor.”

Last March, the seventy-eight-year-old Robinson was honored by Northeastern for his longevity and his enormous contributions to the university and his many students. Although the tributes and encomiums heaped upon Professor Robinson are just rewards for a lifetime of service, they hardly signify the end of his teaching career.

Years after most would have happily accepted retirement, Professor Robinson gives little thought to slowing down. He currently has three projects in the works – a study of the first 222 doctoral recipients in History in the United States, a local history on the early families living on Commonwealth Avenue, and a project on siblings in film. Not surprisingly, each of these topics stemmed from the courses he teaches at Northeastern.