Truman State University
Field: Ancient History; Disability
Studies; World History
Position:
Professor of History, Truman State University
EDUCATION
University of Minnesota; Minneapolis, Minnesota: Ph.D. History, 1995
University of Minnesota; Minneapolis, Minnesota: BA History, 1985
Dissertation: “Physical Disability in the Ancient Greek World” (Advisor: Thomas
Kelly)
POSITIONS HELD
Truman State University
Assistant Professor, 1995-2000
Associate Professor, 2000- (tenured 8/2000)
Professor (2008- )
Martin Luther
Halle-Wittenberg Universität
Institut für
Klassische Altertumswissenschaften
Guest
Research-Lecturer, 2003-4
Metropolitan State University-Mpls.
Instructor, 1994-1995
University of Minnesota-Mpls.
Instructor,
1989-1995
TEACHING EXPERIENCE, 1995-PRESENT
Ancient World: Survey Courses
"Ancient West Asia and
Egypt” (regularly since 1995)
“Ancient Greece” (regularly
since 1995)
“Ancient Rome” (regularly
since 1995)
“Ancient Rome: Pedagogy”
(2008)
“Ancient Israel” (2000)
Topical and Thematic Courses“Ancient Body/Ancient Mind”
(2004)
“Alexander the Great” (2000;
2003)
“Classical Athenian Society”
(1997)
“Disability in Imperial
Roman History” (Research Course, 2004)
“From Alexander to
Cleopatra” (2008)
“From Alexander to
Cleopatra: Pedagogy” (2008)
“Gilgamesh” (Research
Course, 2006)
“Gossip, Glory, and Graves:
The Julio-Claudians” (1999; 2000; 2002; 2003)
“Mental Retardation in
Classical Greek Literature” (2003)
“Mental Retardation in the
Ancient Greek World” (2003)
“Mental Retardation in Attic
Comedy” (Independent Study, 2003)
“Persian Thermopylae”
(Independent Study, 2007)
“Queering Disability
Studies” (Independent Study for the Women’s Studies Program, 2008)
“Virtus Vulnerum”
(Independent Study, 2008)
Classical Greek Tutorials
“Homer” (1996)
“Sappho” (1997)
“Herodotus and Thucydides”
(1998)
“Hippocrates” (1999)
“The Historians of Alexander
the Great” (2000)
World Civilization Surveys
“World Civilization I” (from
Mesolithic settlements to AD 1500) (1995-1997)
“World Civilization I” (from
Mesolithic settlements to AD 500) (regularly since 1997)
“World Civilization II” (AD
500 to 1750) (regularly since 1997)
Advanced Placement Summer
Institute Faculty Leader (2003; 2005; 2006; 2007; 2008)
Advanced Placement Summer
Institute Workshop Leader for Experienced Teachers (2007)
Method Courses
“Introduction to History and
Historiography” (regularly since 1996)
“Senior Seminar in History”
(regularly since 1997)
Interdisciplinary Seminars (JINS)
“Cultural Crossroads:
Istanbul” (team-taught) (2000)
“Contexts of Disability:
Disability and Film” (2001; 2002)
“Contexts of Disability:
From the Personal to the Political” (2003)
“Contexts of Disability:
Feminism and Freakery” (2004)
Study Abroad (team-taught)
“The Art of Power” (Italy
and Germany) (1999)
“Sacred Sites in Greece”
(Mainland Greece, Crete, and islands) (1999-2000; 2000-2001; 2003; 2005; 2007)
“The Sacred Feminine in
Greece” (June, 2006)
Training for "Missouri in Greece" (Athens, May, 2008)
Graduate Courses
“Arabic Literature”
(Independent Study, 2007)
“Ancient West Asia and
Egypt” (regularly since 2004)
“Ancient Greece” (regularly
since 2004)
“Ancient Greek Military
History” (2000)
“Ancient Rome” (regularly
since 2004)
“From Alexander to
Cleopatra” (2008)
“Sources of Roman History”
(Independent Study, 2001)
“Teaching Ancient Greece”
(Independent Study, 2000)
On-Line Course
“American Institutional
History” (2005-2007)
PUBLICATIONS
Book
The Staff of Oedipus: Transforming Disability in Ancient Greece
(Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press), 2003 (Corporealities:
Discourses of Disability series).
Current project: book-length study of intellectual disability in ancient Greece.
Essays
"Ability and Disability in the Ancient Greek Military Community," End Results
and Starting Points: Expanding the Field of Disability Studies, ed. Elaine
Makas and Lynn Schlesinger (Portland, Maine: The Society for Disability Studies
and the Edmund S. Muskie Institute of Public Affairs), 1996: 29-36.
"Constructions of Physical Disability in the Ancient Greek World: The Community
Concept," Discourses of Disability: The Body and Physical Difference in the
Humanities, ed. David Mitchell and Sharon Snyder (Ann Arbor: University of
Michigan), 1997: 35-50.
"Deaf and Dumb in Ancient Greece," The Disability Studies Reader,
ed. Lennard Davis, 2nd ed. (New York: Routledge), 2006: 17-32.
“‘Let There Be a Law That No Deformed Child Shall Be Reared’: The Cultural
Context of Deformity in the Ancient Greek World,” The Ancient History
Bulletin 10.3-4 (July 1997): 79-92.
“Philoctetes in Historical Context,” Disabled Veterans in History, ed.
David Gerber (Ann Arbor: University of Michigan), 2000: 55-69.
"Social Stigma and Mobility Impairment in Ancient Greece," Accessing the Issues: Current Research in Disability Studies, ed. Elaine Makas and Lynn Schlesinger (Portland, Maine: The Society for Disability Studies and the Edmund S. Muskie Institute of Public Affairs), 1998: 41-44.
“Teaching Gilgamesh in the Historical Context of Archaeology and Imperialism (co-authored with Truman students Shannon Crowder, Shahrbonu Rezaiekhaligh, and Jennifer Roberts) The International Journal of the Humanities 4.6 (2007): 65-72.
“Women and Physical Disability in Ancient Greece,” The Ancient World 29.1 (1998): 3-9.
PRESENTATIONS
With Steven Reschly, “Amish Tourism: Open-Air Freak Show,” proposal accepted for presentation at the 2008 Media, Religion, and Gender Area for The Second International Conference on Religion and Media, Tehran, Iran, November 2008.
“The Murder of Arrhideus,” invited paper to be presented at the International Association for the Scientific Study of Intellectual Disabilities World Congress, Capetown, South Africa, August, 2008. (panel proposal accepted).
“Three Models of Disability”: invited lecture presented for International Women’s Day, United Arab Emirates University-Al Ain, Al Ain, UAE, March 8, 2008.
“Discarding Disability: Infanticide in Greece,” invited paper presented for Claremont College’s Institute for Antiquity and Christianity Lecture Series., Claremont, California, October 4, 2007.
With Steven Reschly, “Amish Tourism in Lancaster County as Open-Air Freak Show.” invited paper presented for Claremont College’s Transdisciplinary Studies Program, Claremont, California, October 2, 2007.
“The Fat Lady and the Freak Show in the Twenty-First Century,” invited lecture, Institut für Anglistk/Amerikanistik, Universität Rostock, Rostock, Germany, July 12, 2007.
With Steven Reschly, “Third-Wave Feminism: Women’s Abilities and Disabilities in the Twenty- First Century,” invited keynote lecture for International Women’s Day, American University of Kuwait, Kuwait City, Kuwait, March 8, 2007.
"Teaching Gilgamesh: The Historical Context of Obliteration," paper presented at the New Directions in the Humanities, University of Carthage, July 5, 2006, Tunis, Tunisia.
"Disabling Mythologies: Spartan Traditions in Imperial Rome," paper presented at the meeting of the Association of Ancient Historians, May 6, 2005, Columbia, MO.
"The 'Era of Extermination': Ancient Greece and Intellectual Disability," paper presented at the Classical Association of the Middle West and South, April 2, 2005, Madison, WI.
“Killing Defective Babies: The Construction of Widespread Infanticide in the Ancient Greek World,” invited lecture, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, March 2005, Leuven, Belgium.
“Ancient Greek Medical Writers and the Ecology of Intellectual Disability," invited paper for the International Association for the Scientific Study of Intellectual Disabilities World Congress, 18 June 2004, Montpellier, France.
“Shifting Perspectives: Intellectual Disability in Ancient Greece,” presentation of research by 2003-4 Mary E. Switzer fellows, May 4, 2004, Washington, DC.
“‘The Courage of Subordination’: Women and Mental Retardation in Ancient Greece,” invited lecture, Universität zu Köln, 27 April, 2004, Cologne, Germany.
“`But Why Are Those People So Angry?’: Teaching The Contexts of Disability,” Society for Disability Studies, 8 June 2002, Oakland, CA.
“Framework for an Investigation of Mental Retardation in the Ancient Greek World,” Society for Disability Studies, 21 June 2001, Winnipeg, Canada.
With Steven Reschly, “The Art of Power Over Time: A Study Abroad Workshop,” Group for Early Modern Cultural Studies, 18 November 2000, New Orleans, LA.
Workshop Participant, “Hrotsvit’s Pafnutius, or the Conversion of the Courtesan Thais,” Second Biennial Feminism(s) and Rhetoric(s) Conference, 9 October 1999, Minneapolis, MN. (Repeat performance, Truman State University, 13 April 2000.)
“‘The Standard Which Nature Has Set’: Classical Rhetoric of Anatomy and Difference,” Social Science History Association meeting, 22 November 1998, Chicago, IL.
“Infanticide in the Classical Greek World and Two Disability Studies Models,” American Historical Association, 9 January 1998, Seattle, WA. (I organized the panel, “Disability History: Not Just Another ‘Other’,” of which this paper was part.)
“‘The Standard Which Nature Has Set’: Classical Rhetoric of Anatomy and Difference,” Western Association of Women Historians, 31 May 1997, Asilomar, CA.
“Infanticide in the Ancient Greek Community,” Society for Disability Studies, 25 May 1997, Minneapolis, MN.
“Periphoretus and Two Disability Studies Models,” Classical Association of the Middle West and South, 5 April 1997, Boulder, CO.
"Women and Physical Disability in Ancient Greece," Pacific Coast Branch of the American Historical Association, 9 August 1996, San Francisco, CA.
With Tamara M. Green: "On Misinterpreting Hephaistos the Crook-Foot God," Society for Disability Studies, 14 June 1996, Washington D.C.
"'Let There Be a Law That No Deformed Child Be Reared': Infanticide and Disability Studies in the Ancient Greek World," Association of Ancient Historians, 21 April 1996, Atlanta, GA.
"Labda, The Babylonian Marriage Market, and Women with Physical Disabilities in Ancient Greece," Classical Association of the Middle West and South, 11 April 1996, Nashville, TN.
"Seeing Beyond Teiresias: Toward a History of Blindness in the Ancient Greek
World," Missouri Valley History Conference, 8 March 1996, Omaha, NE.
"Ability and Disability in Lysias 24," American Philological Association, 29
December 1995, San Diego, CA.
"Mobility Impairment and Social Stigma in Ancient Greece," Society for Disability Studies, 17 June 1995, Oakland, CA.
"Croesus' Other Son: Ancient Greek Attitudes to Deafness," Classical Association of the Middle West and South, 22 April 1995, Omaha, NE.
"Ability and Disability in Ancient Greek Warfare," Society for Disability Studies, 25 June 1994, Rockville, MD.
ENTRIES
Contributing
Author for numerous entries in Encyclopedia of Disability, ed. Gary L.
Albrecht, 5 vols. (Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Press), 2006.
Translator and
Commentator, Anonymous #744 (On Carthage) for Brill’s New Jacoby
(entry submitted).
BOOK REVIEWS
Over twenty five book reviews altogether are published in the Ancient History Bulletin, The Classical Outlook, Cloelia (the Women’s Classical Caucus newsletter), the Disability Studies Quarterly, H-Net, The Historian; History: Reviews of New Books, Isis, and Mental Retardation.
PROFESSIONAL SERVICE, INTERNAL
· Academic Advisor (History) (normally, about fifteen advisees), 1996-present.
· Admissions Office Liaison (meet with visiting prospective students), 2000-.
· Co-advisor for the Truman State University chapter of Phi Alpha Theta, 2000-2002.
· Co-advisor for the Truman State University Historical Society, 2001-2002.
· Classical Studies Committee, 1997-present.
· Facilitator for first-year students (discussion of reading) Truman Week, 2004, 2005.
· Faculty Research, Scholarship, and Creative Endeavors Caucus Member, 2007-.
· Faculty Committee Member for Faculty Summer Grant Competition, 2008.
· Fulbright Application Advisor (for Student Fulbright application), 2007.
· Grant-Writing Workshop Leader for GlobeMed, April 2008.
· History Honors Committee, 1996-1999; Chair, 1998-9.
· Indo-European Workshop Participant, 2000.
· Intercultural Interconnecting Perspectives Task Force Member, 2005-6.
· Interdisciplinary Task Force Workshop Participant, 1996.
· Interviewer, Truman State University’s Interview Project (for graduating seniors), 2006, 2007, 2008.
· Keynote Speaker for Honors Convocation of National Society of Collegiate Scholars, October 5, 2006.
· Liaison for Transfer Students, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006.
· Mentor for McNair Program, 2008.
· NCUR (National Conference on Undergraduate Research) Academic Mentor, 2004, 2008.
· Outside Reader for Senior and Graduate Projects (Art History, Classical Studies, English), 2005; 2008.
· Participant in “Family Day” (recruitment activity), 1996-2001.
· Participant in “Fall Premier” (recruitment activity), 1996-2002.
· Participant in “Junior Visit” (recruitment activity), 1996-2001; 2006; 2007.
· Participant in “Major/Minor Day” (recruitment/informational activity), 2002; 2004.
· Participant in “President’s Distinguished Scholar Day (recruitment activity), 2005, 2007.
· Peer Review (Tenure) Committee Member (Classical Studies; Communication), 1996; 2000.
· Phi Alpha Theta Scholarship Award Committee, 1996-1998; Chair, 1999-2003; 2008.
· Search Committee Member (for several positions in Classical Studies; History; Science), 1996-2000; for Departmental Secretary, 2008.
· Study Abroad Scholarship Award Committee, 2008.
· Student Research Conference Faculty Mentor (for over 50 student projects altogether), 1996-2008.
· Truman Faculty Forum Advisory Member, 2005-2007.
· TSU Research Fellowship Committee, 2008.
· University Club House Officer, 2006-2007; President, 2007-.
· Women's Resource Center Advisory Board Member, 1995-1999.
· World Cultures Task Force Workshop Participant, 1998.
· Workshop on Interdisciplinarity Implementation Participant, 1999.
PROFESSIONAL SERVICE, EXTERNAL
Advanced Placement Summer Institute Faculty Leader, World History, July 2003, Kirksville, MO.
Advanced Placement Summer Institute Faculty Leader, World History, July 2005, Kansas City, MO.
Advanced Placement Summer Institute Faculty Leader, World History, August, 2006, Blue Springs, MO.
Advanced Placement Summer Institute Faculty Leader, World History, Blue Springs, MO, August, 2007.
Advanced Placement Summer Institute Faculty Leader, World History, Blue Springs, MO, July, 2008 (scheduled).
Advanced Placement Workshop Faculty Leader, World History, St. Paul, MN, November, 2007.
Associate Editor, International Journal of the Humanities.
Chair, “Ethnicity, Religion and Warfare in the Ancient World,” Missouri Valley History Conference, 12 March 1998, Omaha, NE.
Chair, “Exploring the Next ‘Other’: Disability as a New Perspective on Gender, Politics, and History,” Berkshire Conference on the History of Women, 5 June 1999, Rochester, NY.
Chair and Discussant, “Women, Education, and Work: Comparative Perspectives,” Social Science History Association, 17 November 2001, Chicago, IL.
Co-founder and co-moderator, DS-Teaching electronic discussion group, 2002-2005.
Co-syllabus administrator for DISC (Disability Studies Academic Community), 2002-2005.
Discussant, “Women in the Ancient World,” MO Valley History Conference, 8 March 1997, Omaha, NE.
International Advisory Board Member and contributor for Encyclopedia of Disability (Sage Publications), 2002-2006.
Invited faculty member for NEH Institute, “Integrating Disability Studies into the Humanities,” July/August, 2003.
Invited Workshop Participant, "Reconsidering Disability in the Ancient World," University of Leeds, Leeds, England, January 29, 2009.
Member at Large, American Association of University Professors.
Organizer and Chair, “The Down Under Writing Group: Creating a Research Subculture at a Teaching Institution,” Classical Association of the Middle West and South, 15 April 1999, Cleveland, OH.
Organizer and Chair, “Exclusionary Boundaries,” Social Science History Association meeting, 17 October 1997, Washington, D.C.
Organizer and Co-Discussant, “Definitions of Disability in Cultural Context,” Social Science History Association meeting, 18 October 1997, Washington, D.C.
Organizer, Moderator, and Participant in “Disability History Roundtable: Interdisciplinary Perspectives,” Society for Disability Studies, 5 June 1998, Oakland, CA.
Reader for Longman Publishers, 2005.
Referee for the 1998 Irving K. Zola Emerging Scholar Award (Society for Disability Studies).
Respondent, “Hidden Brilliance: Spiritual Challenges of Children with Cognitive Disabilities,” panel session for the American Academy of Religion meeting, 22 November 1997, San Francisco, CA.
Reviewer for FWF (Fonds zur Förderung der wissenschaftlichen Forschung), the Austrian Science Fund, 2003.
Reviewer for The Historian, July, 2002
Reviewer for The International Journal of the Humanities, 2007.
Reviewer for McGraw-Hill, December 2006.
Reviewer for Mental Retardation, July, 2003; July/August 2005.
Reviewer for Oxford University Press, 2006.
GRANTS AWARDED
Truman State
University College of Arts and Sciences Research Grant, Summer 2008
Truman State
University College of Arts and Sciences Travel Funds, Summer 2008
Mary E.
Switzer Distinguished Fellowship (NIDRR, U.S. Dept. of Education), 2003-4
Faculty
Research Grant, Truman State University, 2001
Instructional
Improvement Grant, Truman State University, 2000
Faculty
Research Grant, Truman State University, 1998
Interim
Project Grant, Truman State University, Winter 1998
Summer Project
Grant, Truman State University, Summer 1998
Summer Project
Grant, Truman State University, Summer 1997
Faculty
Research Grant, Truman State University, Summer 1997
Faculty
Research Grant, Truman State University, Summer 1996
HONORS
Biographical
summary in Who’s Who in American Women, 2009.
Biographical
summary in Who’s Who in America, 2008, 2009.
Biographical
summary in Who’s Who in American Education, 2007-8
International
Award for Excellence (one of ten) for “Teaching Gilgamesh: The Historical
Context of Obliteration,” Common Ground Publications, 2007.
CASE (Carnegie
Foundation) National Educator of the Year for Missouri, 2006.
Campus Leader,
National Society of Collegiate Scholars, 2006.
Outstanding
Teacher of the Year, Missouri COPHE (Council on Public Higher Education), 2006.
Truman State University
Educator of the Year, 2005.
ΗΣΦ (Classics
Club) Professor of the Month, May, 2005.
Truman State University Faculty Appreciation Award, 2004 and 2005.
Mary E.
Switzer Distinguished Fellow, National Institute for Disability Rehabilitation
and
Research (U.S. Department of Education), 2003-4.
Outstanding
Teaching Assistant, College of Liberal Arts, University of Minnesota, 1995.
Meritorious
Award for Writing Practice (Comp 1011) from NUCEA (National University
Continuing Education Association), 1994.
CURRENT PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS
AAH
(Association of Ancient Historians)
ACL
(American Classical League)
AMWS (Classical Association of the Midwest and South)
IASSID (International Association for the Scientific Study of Intellectual
Disabilities)
NSCS (National Society of
Collegiate Scholars)
SDS
(Society for Disability Studies)
WCC
(Women’s Classical Caucus)