By Nicole Frank -Department of History
Doug Harvey teaches a number of courses within the history department, including U.S. History surveys and Modern World Civilization as well as upper-level courses on Colonial and Revolutionary America; Early American Republic; and The Atlantic World, 1450-1800. Occasionally, he also teaches Historiography.
Harvey has been at FHSU since 2009, teaching on-campus during Spring 2009, as well as the entire academic year of 2011-12. Along with teaching at FHSU, he also teaches for KU, Johnson County Community College, and Metropolitan Community College – Blue River campus (KC). In the past, he has also taught for Washburn, Emporia State, Friends, and Donnelly College in Kansas City, KS.
Harvey earned his BA at Missouri State, his MA at Wichita State, and his PhD at KU.
He researches cultural and intellectual history of the late colonial, revolutionary, and early republic periods. He explains that he is “particularly interested in understanding why people think what they think and don’t know they’re thinking it – the history of assumptions, in other words.”
Harvey has one book out, The Theatre of Empire: Frontier Performances in America, 1750-1860 (London: Pickering and Chatto, 2010 – now owned by Routledge), and is currently working on a biography of Herman Husband, an 18th century revolutionary figure whom he considers, “under-remembered.” In addition, Harvey has partnered with an illustrator on a series of graphic novels on The Whiskey Rebellion, an event in the early 1790s in the new republic. At present he is teaching a number of face to face courses in the KC area, so he finds himself giving history lectures often.
Within the Virtual College, Harvey enjoys teaching students from a variety of backgrounds and world views, all from home. He feels that the most challenging part of teaching online is “making up for the loss of face-to-face interaction,” and he uses online discussions and a slightly meatier, more rigorous reading component in his online courses, to help ensure a rich interactive experience for his students.
Harvey and his wife, Kathleen Hoff, were both born and raised in Hays. They enjoy gardening and are active in the Kansas City Food Circle, although they are not currently growing anything commercially. They also visit art museums throughout the Midwest and enjoy taking pictures in the countryside. Hoff is a landscape artist, which provides Harvey the opportunity “to be surrounded by art all the time.” Finally, Harvey is also a musician and has been working on a solo recording project, a concept album on various aspects of the Great Plains. In the past, he played in the Celtic band, Rowan.
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