Holocaust Studies Educators
Robert Franciosi
Robert Franciosi, Ph.D., Professor of English
Department of English
(616) 331-3069
HNR 231, 02: SWS The Holocaust, Fall 2014
ENG. 360 Studies in Nonfiction: Holocaust Memories, Fall 2014
ENG. 605: American Literature and the Holocaust, Winter 2015
Dr. Franciosi's current research is centered on American cultural responses to the Holocaust. Dr. Franciosi is completing a study of John Hersey's epic novel of the Warsaw Ghetto, tentatively titled Imaging the Ghetto: Hersey's The Wall and American Holocaust Memory. He has escorted groups of Honors students to Germany and Poland as part of a seminar on Holocaust museums, memorials, and sites. A trip is planned in conjunction with an undergraduate class to be offered during Spring Term 2015.
Recent Publications:
Review of MetaMaus, by Art Spiegelman, Grand Rapids Press, 16 October 2011.
"Too Much Information" Inside Higher Education, August 3, 2009.
"Where Words Fail," Grand Valley Review (Winter 2008): 22-28.
"Designing The Wall: W.A. Dwiggins, George Salter, and the Challenge of Holocaust Memory," Book History (2008)
Review of My Germany, by Lev Raphael, Grand Rapids Press, 10 May 2009: 12.
Shadowed Grounds: Walking Auschwitz-Birkenau, Grand Valley Magazine (Fall 2006): 20-24.
Virtual Office Hours 24/7 Inside Higher Education, May 2, 2006.
Education
B.A., New York University
M.A., Ph.D., University of Iowa
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Jason Crouthamel
Jason Crouthamel, Associate Professor of History
(616) 331-3298
Current Holocaust related courses:
HNR 231, 01: SWS The Holocaust, Fall 2014
HST 400, 01: The Holocaust, Fall 2014
Publications:
The Great War and German Memory: Society, Politics and Psychological Trauma (University of Exeter Press, 2009)
An Intimate History of the Front: Masculinity, Sexuality and Ordinary German Soldiers in the First World War (2014)
Professor Crouthamel's research focus is on memory, trauma, and masculinity in Germany during the age of total war. He is most interested in how modern war reconfigured the "warrior idea," and his research focuses on how marginalized groups, including homosexuals, the mentally ill, working class, and disabled Germans defined themselves in relation to the "national community" and the memory of the war. Professor Crouthamel's focus on social and cultural history shapes his approaches to his classes. He uses a variety of media to complement lecture and discussion, including primary source analysis and documentary interviews. He challenges students to consider multiple perspectives on historical events, diverse systems of thought and values, and awareness of individual agency within the larger structure of power and ideology.
Dan Balfour
School of Public, Nonprofit and Health Administration
(616) 331-6594
Current Holocaust related courses:
PLS 240: The Holocaust, Winter 2015
Professor Balfour joined the public administration faculty at GVSU in 1996 and served as director of the school until 2007. Professor Balfour teaches courses in public management and ethics, organization theory, strategic management, and history of the Holocaust.
Publications
Unmasking Administrative Evil (co-author)
Journal of Public Affairs Education (founding managing editor)
William Baum
Professor Emeritus William Baum, a professor at Grand Valley for 40 years, came to the university in 1965 to teach political science. Dr. Baum planted the seeds of a program of Holocaust Studies at GVSU. Baum earned a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in political science from Kalamazoo College and a doctorate in political theory from the University of Iowa. His teaching career began at Creighton University and South East Missouri State College. His areas of expertise included the Holocaust, Constitutional law, and George Orwell. He had a major influence on thousands of students over the years. His scholarly work on the Holocaust gave roots to the book, Good Morning, by Joseph Stevens, and to two WGVU documentaries. Professor Baum retired in 2005. Following his death in 2007, an endowment in his name was established to bring outstanding speakers to the GVSU campus.