ProfessorHistory
Office Location: Eckhart Hall, Room 409
Telephone: 630-844-5499
Fax: 630-844-5242
Email Address: spalmer@aurora.edu
As a longtime professor at Aurora University, I have tried to serve both the university community and the larger Aurora community, trying to make history come alive and be relevant for students and non-students alike. I have created photo exhibits, conducted oral history projects, and lectured on numerous topics at Aurora University. In the city of Aurora, I have long been associated with the Aurora Historical Society--as supporter, board member, and board chair. I have given countless, historical lectures to various community groups and served as a Sesquicentennial Commissioner when Aurora celebrated its 150th birthday. Finally, as a lover of old houses, I served on the Aurora Preservation Commission. All of these activities have enriched my teaching and helped to create internship opportunities for Aurora University students.
Education
Ph.D. in History - Northern Illinois University
MA in History - Northern Illinois University
BA in History - Aurora College (University)
Areas of Specialization
20th-Century American History (especially urban, ethnic, and labor history)
Modern European History
Russian History
Women's Studies
Local History
Courses Taught
American History I (to 1877)
American History II (since 1877)
American Urban History
The African American Experience
Women in American History
American History since the 1960s
The American West
Problems in History
Hitler and the Nazi Revolution
Senior Seminar in History
Highlights of Publications, Honors and Professional Contributions
Academic Advisor of the Year Award, Aurora University, 1984 / 1984 Certificate of Merit from the ACT/NACADA National Recognition Program for Academic Advising
Mexicans in Aurora Oral History Project, 1987-1988
Aurora College Oral History Project - - AAurora College: The Early Years, 1913-1940"
(for Aurora University=s Centennial), 1991-93
The Community-Building Experiences of Mexicans in Aurora, Illinois, 1915-1935.@ Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society (Special Issue--Mexican Immigrants in Illinois History: Across Generations and Borders) 98 (Autumn 2005): 125-143.
Member of the Advisory Committee for the Records of Congress, 1999-2006
Highlights of Campus Involvement
Chair of the Aurora University Faculty, 1987-88 and 1988-89
Author, Aurora University=s Social Studies Teaching Certification Program and
Accreditation Report for the State of Illinois, 1988
Chair, Civilizational Studies Program, 1996-97
Creator of Historical Photo Exhibits: Aurora History, the Early Years of Aurora College, and the Advent Christian Denomination
Curator of the Jenks Memorial Collection of Adventual Materials, Aurora University Library (February 2006- Present)
Other Interests
Reading
Films
Genealogy
Decorative Painting
Historic Houses / Interior Design
