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Spring 2013

Kristina Felton, Lindsey Light, and Anthony Smith received the MA degree in History at the May 2013 Commencement Ceremony.

The following students received the BA degree in History at the May 2013 Commencement Ceremony: Leslie Blansett, Chelsea Gray, Russell McCarson, John McGee, Luke Newman, and Yovanne Uribe.

Jordan Baldridge, William Blythe, Justin Fondon, Zachary Jones, Christine Mojezati, Christopher Nelon II, and Jesse Putnam received the BS degree in Political Science at the May 2013 Commencement Ceremony.

The following students received the BS degree in Sociology at the May 2013 Commencement Ceremony: Madison Cooley, Kimberly Crawford, Amanda Hernandez, and Rosalind Pilcher.

History major, Chelsea Gray, was named Outstanding Graduate for the Department of Social Sciences at the May 2013 Commencement Ceremony.

History graduate student Cody McMillian served as a graduate assistant in the Department of Social Sciences for the 2012-2013 academic year. Mr. McMillian has already been instrumental in reviving Phi Alpha Theta (the History Honorary Society) and starting the new History Club.  He will return as a graduate assistant for the 2013-2014 academic year.

Dr. Michael Landis, our new Assistant Professor of History who started at Tarleton in January 2013, took a group of students from his HIST 312 class (Age of Jackson), including History major Yovanne Uribe, to attend the Symposium on the Battle of San Jacinto and Texas Annexation in April 2013 at the Hilton University of Houston Hotel and Conference Center.  They heard many interesting papers and witnessed a number of historical re-enactments.

Mr. Ted Roberts, who received his M.A. in History from Tarleton will return to teach for us in the Fall 2013 semester.  Ted has proven to be a valuable asset to our department and we are overjoyed that he has agreed to continue working for us.

The Sociology faculty (Dr. Lori Anderson, Dr. Carol Key, Dr. Jason LaTouche, and Dr. Leslie Stanley-Stevens) have joined the Department of Social Sciences. They were formerly in the Department of Sociology, Social Work, and Criminal Justice. The current faculty of the Department of Social Sciences welcome their new colleagues and look forward to working with them to make this department even better.

Sociology added a "Pre-Ministry" concentration to the BS degree in Sociology.  This new concentration will include such courses as the sociology of religion, social psychology, several religious studies courses, and communications and psychology courses.  Other sociology courses that are related to religious or ethical issues include sociology of the family, aging, medical sociology, and death and dying.  Dr. Lesilie Stanley-Stevens, who earned a MA in religion from Ashbury Theological Seminary in Kentucky as well as a Ph.D in Sociology from the University of North Texas, will serve as the advisor for students enrolled in the Pre-Ministry concentration.

Dr. Jason LaTouche, Associate Professor of Sociology, was named Tarleton's Director of Academic Assessment on January 1, 2013. 

Mr. Anthony Smith, who just received his MA in History in May 2013, won the "Best Student Essay Award" from the West Texas Historical Association for his paper, "The Creation of Cleburne State Park by the CCC," in April 2013.  Mr. Smith presented this paper at the annual meeting of the West Texas Historical Association (Midwestern State University, April 2013) and will publish it in the West Texas Historical Association Yearbook shortly.  Mr. Smith also gave a short talk on his research to the Dean's Circle of Tarleton's College of Liberal and Fine Arts in April 2013.  We are all very proud of him.

History students Leslie Blansett, Michelle Lloyd, Ryan Cheek, Cody Mcmillian, and faculty member Matthew Hallgarth all gave papers at the Phi Alpha Theta Regional Meeting at Midwestern State University in April 2013.  Ms Blansett presented a paper entitled "Unsung Heroines of World War II," Ms Lloyd gave a paper on "An Analysis of Rommel and Hitler," and Mr. Mcmillian presented a paper on "A Chronological Examination of the Development of the U.S. Military Award System."  The precise titles for Mr. Cheek's and Dr. Hallgarth's papers are not available but Mr. Cheek's presentation concerned collectivization in the former Soviet Union and Dr. Hallgarth's concerned the ethics of using drones in modern combat. 

Dr. Matthew Hallgarth offically received tenure and was promoted to Associate Professor of Philosophy in May 2013.  He is in his second year as the representative of the Department of Social Sciences on the Tarleton Faculty Senate. 

Taylor Anderson, who received both his B.A. and M.A. degrees in history from Tarleton (he also taught for us as an adjunct for several years), has published a three-volume series of science fiction with RoC Press, entitled Destroyermen. Set during World War II when a naval vessel accidently enters an alternative universe, the series (which includes Into the Storm, Crusade, and Maelstrom, has received good reviews and has enjoyed excellent sales. Taylor is currently working on a fourth volume in the series. Taylor was honored as the "Outstanding Alumnus" of the Department of Social Sciences in March 2010.

Gene Rhea Tucker, who earned his BA and MA degrees in history from Tarleton, has just had a book published by Texas Tech University Press. Based on his Tarleton MA thesis (written under the direction of Dr. T. Lindsay Baker) and entitled "Oysters, Macaroni, and Beer," this book deals with the history of the company store operations in Thurber, Texas. Mr. Tucker currently teaches at Navarro Community College and received his Ph.D. in history from the University of Texas at Arlington in May 2011.

History students Russell Zimmerman, Chelsea Gray, Russell McCarson, and Cody McMillian all attended the Northeast Texas Regional Conference of Phi Alpha Theta at East Texas A&M University in April 2012. All four students presented papers at this conference: Russell Zimmerman, "Confederate Comet: The Rise and Fall of Major General Patrick Cleburne, CSA;" Cody McMillian, "A Brief Analysis of the Battle of Milliken's Bend;" Russell McCarson, "Factors in Vietnam's Fall in Popularity;" and Chelsea Gray, "Mission in Savannah." Congratulations to all involved.

Political Science instructor, Eric Morrow, received his Ph.D from Baylor University on May 12, 2012. The title of his dissertation was "Transnational Religion in Greek American Political Advocacy." Dr. Morrow was promoted to Assistant Professor of Political Science and put on tenure track in April 2013.

Dr. Matthew Hallgarth 's essay, "Just War Theory and Killing by Remote Control," has appeared in a book of essays published by Oxford University Press. The book is entitled Killing by Remote Control: The Ethics of an Unmanned Military, edited by Dr. B.J. Strawser of the Naval Postgraduate College.

Patrick Crawford, who received his MA in history at the December 2010 Commencement Ceremony, presented a paper, entitled "Tracking the Ancient Beasts: The Saga of the Glen Rose Dinosaur Footprints," at the West Texas Historical Society meeting at Texas Tech University in April 2011. Originally written as a research project for Dr. T. Lindsay Baker, this paper investigates the history of paleontological investigations of the dinosaur trackways in the Paluxy River Valley in Somervell Country.

History major, Adam Joiner, was selected as a National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) Undergraduate Fellow in December 2012.  As a fellow, Adam will have opportunities to explore the field of student affairs administration through a campus-based mentorship with Ashley Tull, Tarleton's assistant vice-president for Student Life Studies, as well as participation in other professional development activities.

Dr. Jeff William Justice, assistant professor of Political Science, recently presented a paper, entitled "Ideological Impacts Upon Environmental Problem Perception," at the Oxford Round Table, Harris Manchester College, University of Oxford. He also presented a paper, "Post-materialism and Environmental Problem Perception: A Reconsideration," at the 2011 meeting of the Southwestern Political Science Association. Dr. Justice has also completed his term as president of the Soutwestern International Studies Association and vice-president of the Southwestern Political Science Association. Both organizations are affiliates of the Southwestern Social Science Association, where Dr. Justice has just been elected secretary at their 2013 annual meeting in New Orleans. He was also recently appointed to the Boy Scouts of America's national committee on educational relationships. He is also the Pre-Law Advisor for the Department of Social Sciences and sponsor of the Tarleton Pre-Law Society.

Dr. Jeff William Justice has also continued his Scottish Studies Program for 2013. He took 11 students to Edinburgh in June 2012, where they earned six hours credit. They visited and heard lectures at the Scottish Parliament and various Scottish government ministries, the Scottish National Party's headquarters, Edinburgh Castle, Stirling Castle, the Royal Society of Edinburgh, the National Museum of Scotland, the National Library of Scotland, the Palace of Holyroodhouse, the High Court of Justiciary, and other venues.  He and Dr. Dean Minix will continue this successful program and take more students to Scotland in June 2013.

Students in HIST 509 (Historic Preservation) undertook a four-month hands-on learning project in Glen Rose, Texas during the Spring 2012 semester. Dr. T. Lindsay Baker had negotiated a contract between Tarleton State University and the City of Glen Rose for the students to prepare the individual building histories and architectural descriptions for more than two dozen historic structures fronting onto the courthouse square in the town to form the core of a nomination of that district to the National Register of Historic Places. The 1893 Somervell County Courthouse is already a listed structure. The students documented each of the structures using published and unpublished family histories, historic tax rolls, current tax records, interviews with property owners, historic maps, and especially helpful historic photographs preserved in the Somervell County Heritage Center. As part of the agreement between the university and the city, Dr. Baker was able to transport the students to participate in the annual Preservation Summit meeting hosted by Preservation Texas in Austin, in March 2012. The students' work constituetes the central element of a district nomination to the NRHP that Dr. Baker will complete for the City of Glen Rose during the summer of 2012.

Dr. Jesus Valasco has joined the faculty of the Department of Social Science as the holder of the Joe and Teresa Long Endowed Chair in Political Science. An expert in Mexican and Latin America history and government, Dr. Valasco has dramatically strengthened our course offerings in those important areas and has greatly enhanced the prestige of our department. Dr. Velasco has also just published an important book in political science: Neoconservatives in U.S. Foreign Policy Under Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush: Voices Behind the Throne (Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2010).

Dr. T. Lindsay Baker has also been named editor of the Tarleton State Book Series on Southwestern Studies in the Humanities. The series produces one book a year and is published by Texas A&M University Press.

Dr. Christopher Guthrie, professor of history just completed his third year as a  Faculty Fellow in the Excellence in Teaching Program run by Tarleton's Center of Instructional Innovation. His duties center around the facilitation of discussion regarding classroom instruction and the design and implementation of methods to improve teaching at Tarleton. He made a presentation with Drs. Credence Baker and Kayla Peak about this program at The Teaching Professor Conference in Atlanta, GA in May 2011 and made two presentations at the same conference in Washington D.C. in June 2012. He will make another presentation at The Teaching Professor Conference in June 2013 with Drs. Kayla Peak, Philip Sudman, and Javier Garza.  This conference will he held in New Orleans.

History graduate Benjamin Brown was accepted into the history graduate program of Southern Methodist University. Highly recruited by the University of North Texas, Baylor University, and the University of Texas at Arlington, Mr. Brown chose SMU because of the strength of its history program and the generosity of its financial offer to him. We know that he will make Tarleton proud at SMU.

Mr. Micah Adkinson, a recent graduate with a degree in Political Science, is currently a captain in the United States Marine Corps.He serves as an instructor at the Marine's training facility at Quantico, Virginia.

Mr. Aaron Smith, who received his MA in History in Spring 2006, is now stationed with the 10th Mountain Division at Fort Drum, New York. He is a Kiowa Warrior helicopter pilot who was deployed in 2008.

History graduate Michael Baird now teaches English in South Korea. He visited South Korea while participating in Tarleton's Study Abroad program as an undergraduate. He fell in love with the country, its people, and its culture and decided to work there after his graduation in 2005.

Mr. Michael McLatchy, who received his MA in History in 2005 and a MA degree in Political Science in 2007 assumed a teaching position at Claredon College in 2007.

Mr. Kenneth Davis, who graduated with a B.A. in History in May 2006, has obtained a job teaching World and Texas History at Roby High School (Roby, TX).

Ms Cynthia Johnson, who obtained her MA degree in history in May 2001, teaches world and American history at Cisco Community College and has just been awarded tenure there.

Mr. Frank Chamberlain, who earned his M.A. degree in history in May 2007, teaches U.S. History part-time for our department.He also works with Jennifer Green, who received her masters degree in history in 2004, in the Upward Bound program at Tarleton. Ms. Green is the director of the program.

Mr. Michael Silverman, who earned his M.A. degree in Political Science from Tarleton in 1996 achieved the rank of lieutenant colonel in the United States Army. He served two years with the CIA Office of Military Affairs. In 2006, Mike commanded a tank battalion out of Fort Stewart, Georgia, and served 15 months in Iraq where he played a crucial role in the Battle of Ramadi. Mike has recently retired from the army and lives in Midway, Georgia where he is working on a book on the battles of Ramadi and al Anbar as well as teaching at Armstrong Atlantic State University.

Dr. Paula Martin, who earned her MA in history in 1998 under the direction of Dr. Christopher Guthrie, has completed her dissertation on Dr. Suzanne Noel, an early 20th century French plastic surgeon and an influential feminist leader, and earned her Ph.D. in history from the University of Nevada at Reno. She has obtained a tenure-track teaching position at Georgia Southern University and is working on a book based on her dissertation. Johns Hopkins University Press has expressed an interest in publishing it.

Mr. Christopher Lehman, who earned his BA degree in history in Spring 2004, completed his masters degree in Public History at Texas State University-San Marcos. He now works for Texas State as a computer technician.