The Scholarship section of the portfolio provides explanation and documentation of the scholarly work I have produced since coming to ACU, as well as my reflection on the nature of scholarship and the benefits and challenges posed to scholarly productivity at a teaching institution. You may navigate through this section using the menu below, or use the links at the bottom of each page to follow a linear narrative.
Publications, Conference Presentations, and the Importance of Scholarly Networking
Reflection: Scholarship and Productivity
This section includes a Letter of Support from Dr. Joseph Stubenrauch. A colleague in nineteenth-century British religious history, Joe teaches at Baylor University and has participated with me on several panels at national conferences. He and I have also corresponded quite a bit regarding our respective book projects. Because he is an expert in my field, he can speak more authoritatively to my scholarly record than any of my ACU colleagues are able to do, and so I asked him if he would write a letter in support of my application for tenure and promotion. He graciously agreed. For your reference, here is his CV, as well.
As I have noted elsewhere, to me, scholarship is a critical component of good teaching. My engagement in my field allows me to discuss the most current historiographical interpretations and methodological approaches with my students, keeps my research and writing skills sharp and fresh, and helps maintain my passion for my discipline. Scholarship feeds good teaching, and vice versa. Thus when I teach, I’ll often give students examples to read and discuss that I pulled out of archival sources myself. This makes history more concrete and immediate for them, and also gives them a chance to think about how historical narratives are made. I talk with them about the process of research and about how to understand a source’s context, audience, and intended meaning. These kind of conversations also help students see me as someone who is, like them, figuring things out–asking questions, looking for information, editing. I think maintaining my scholarly work and talking about that work with students when relevant is another way to create classroom community. It’s a way to show that we are all learners.
My scholarly specialization within the doctoral field of Modern British and Imperial History is colonial Christianity and British Baptist missions in the context of British imperial expansion, particularly in South Asia and the Caribbean, in the nineteenth century. This section describes my ongoing projects, publications, and presentations in that field.