Listening to a history lecture in a large lecture hall might make some students yawn, unless they’re in Professor Joseph Glatthaar’s “War and American Society Since 1902.”[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zRuhhAf0LiI&list=UUtWAPF8RlSqd6kkVPqAyJNg&index=2&feature=plcp[/youtube]
“History is an incredibly powerful force that affects people’s lives every day,” he said.
Glatthaar employs that powerful force in his teaching, connecting events from the turn of the century with parallels in modern American society, engaging and energizing his students all the while.
Professor Glatthaar doesn’t find it difficult to convey the importance of history to his students. “You can’t really know where you’re going if you don’t know where you’re coming from,” he said, “and I try to remind them of that.”
Glatthaar is the Stephenson Distinguished Professor of History as well as the author of eight books, including The March to the Sea and Beyond: Sherman’s Troops in the Savannah and Carolinas Campaigns.
Professors with Passion is a video series spotlighting outstanding teachers and scholars in the College of Arts and Sciences throughout 2012. If you know a professor who deserves to be in the spotlight, contact Dee Reid, director of communications, at deereid@unc.edu.
[ Text and video by Mary Lide Parker ’10 ]
