Historians Named to Honor Roll of Speakers

Four more faculty members of the Department of History have been named to the Organization of American Historians’ Distinguished Lectureship Program: Kathryn Olmsted, professor and chair; Andrés Reséndez and Louis Warren, professors; and Lisa Materson, associate professor.

With their appointments, UC Davis now has eight historians in the speakers bureau, the most of any UC campus. The others from UC Davis are Ari Kelman and Eric Rauchway, professors; and Gregory Downs and Ellen Hartigan-O’Connor, associate professors.

“I’m honored to be selected to receive this distinction,” Olmsted said. “And as chair, I’m thrilled that so many members of our department have been selected. I think these distinctions demonstrate the depth and breadth of the research in U.S. history here at UC Davis.”

Lecturers are invited to speak each year to audiences at museums, libraries, universities, community centers, churches and synagogues and other venues across the country.

More than 400 scholars nationwide have been OAH Distinguished Lecturers for their contributions to the field of American history. Participating speakers each give at least one lecture a year and donate their fees to the OAH, which promotes scholarship, teaching and presentation of American history. “We thank these historians for their service to the organization and for helping advance our mission,” said Katherine Finley, the OAH’s executive director. “And we congratulate them on achieving this high honor.”

More than 400 scholars nationwide have been Organization of American Historians’ Distinguished Lecturers for their contributions to the field of American history. Participating speakers each give at least one lecture a year and donate their fees to the organization, which promotes scholarship, teaching and presentation of American history.

— Kathleen Holder, content strategist in the UC Davis College of Letters and Science