Mark Metzler Sawin

DEPARTMENT: History and Political Science

POSITION: Professor

POSITION: Program Director

LOCATION: Main Campus, Harrisonburg | RLN 316

PHONE: (540) 432-4468

Mark Metzler Sawin grew up in Hesston, a small town in rural Kansas. He earned a B.A., studying Literature and Politial Science at Goshen College (Indiana) and then, after a stint training as a chef and doing free-lance journalism, he earned his M.A. and Ph.D. in American Studies at the University of Texas at Austin. in 2001 Mark joined Eastern Mennonite University as a professor of U.S. history; he currently also serves as the director of EMU's Honors program and president of the Faculty Senate. In the larger academic world Mark serves as a member of the Regional Chapters Committee of the American Studies Association; as a board member of the Eastern American Studies Association; and as the American Studies area chair for the Mid-Atlantic Popular and American Culture Association. In 2008-09 Mark was a Fulbright Scholar at the University of Zagreb, Croatia; he has remained connected there, returning to teach courses in 2017 and 2019. His scholarship focuses largely on the religious, literary, and popular culture of antebellum America (1850s); his first book Raising Kane addresses Arctic explorer Elisha Kent Kane who in the 1850s authored two “best-selling” books about his travels while masterfully manipulating the popular media to enhance his celebrity status. His most recent book is an edited version of popular 19th-century author Ned Buntline's Mexican-American War novel, The Volunteer; or, the Maid of Monterey--the first in a series of 19th-century popular fiction that he is editing for his newly founded Emu Editions publishing effort.
Mark is married to Erika Metzler Sawin, a nursing professor at James Madison University. They have two children.

Education

BA, Goshen College (English & Political Science)
MA, University of Texas at Austin (American Studies)
PHD, University of Texas at Austin (American Studies)

Publications
Book The Volunteer; or, The Maid of Monterey by Ned Buntline, edited by Mark Metzler Sawin. Harrisonburg, VA: Emu Editions, 2020.
Article "The Lynching and Rebirth of Ned Buntline: Rogue Authorship during the American Literary Renaissance." Text Matters 9, No. 9 (Nov. 2019): 167-184. Available Online.
Book Review "Perry Bush's Peace, Progress, and the Professor: The Mennonite History of C. Henry Smith." Pennsylvania Mennonite Heritage, Lancaster County Historical Society, 2016.
Article “Making Contact!: William Carlos Williams’ American Literary Aesthetic.” Umjetnost Riječi (The Art of Words: A Croatian/English Journal of Literary, Theatre and Film Studies) 58, nos. 3-4 (July-December 2014): 331-354. Available Online.
Mennonites in Encyclopedia of American Studies (Online Edition), Johns Hopkins University Press, 2014. Available Online.
Essay “Pickups, The History of a Love Story: A Cultural Study of Pickup Trucks in America” in Howard Zehr, Pickups: A Love Story. GoodBooks, 2013.
Book Raising Kane: Dr. Kane and the Culture of Fame in Antebellum America, Philadelphia: American Philosophical Society, 2008.
Review Article Exploring Other Worlds: Margaret Fox, Elisha Kent Kane, and the Antebellum Culture of Curiosity, by David Chapin; The Reluctant Spiritualist: The Life of Maggie Fox by Nancy Rubin Stuart; and Talking to the Dead: Kate and Maggie Fox and the Rise of Spiritualism, by Barbara Weisberg. Journal of the Early Republic, (Winter, 2005): 668-74.
Cover Article “U.S. History through American Studies.” American Studies Newsletter (Mid-Atlantic American Studies Association) 17, no. 1 (Fall 2005): 1.
Book Review Desert Patriarchy: Mormon and Mennonite Communities in the Chihuahua Valley by Janet Bennion. BYU Studies 4, no.2 (Fall 2005): 177-180.
Article “Heroic Ambition: The Early Life of Dr. Elisha Kent Kane.” American Philosophical Society Library Bulletin, Fall, 2001, n.s. 1:2. Available Online
Article “A Sentinel for the Saints: Thomas Leiper Kane and the Mormon Migration.” Nauvoo Journal, Spring, 1998, 10:1 17-27. Available Online.
Book Review The Earth is the Lord’s: A Narrative History of the Lancaster Conference by John Landis Ruth. Mennonite Quarterly Review, October, 2002 76:4.
Article “Moving Stubbornly Toward the Kingdom of God: Mennonite Identity in the Twenty-First Century.” Mennonite Quarterly Review, January, 2001 75:1 89-98.
Short Story “Jed Said No.” What Mennonites Are Thinking, 1999. Good Books, 1999.
Thesis Article “Raising Kane: The Making of a Hero, the Marketing of a Celebrity.” Elisha Kent Kane Historical Society, 1997. Online
Article “Mennonites & Amish.” Encyclopedia of Civil Rights in America. Salem Press, 1997.
Scholarly Presentations and Abstracts
- Keynote Address "Pick-Uppity: A New Cultural Frontier for a Threatened Masculinity." Anglophonia: New Frontiers Conference, University of Zagreb, Croatia (May, 2019, Invited)
- Panelist "Frontier Societies." Anglophonia: New Frontiers Conference, University of Zagreb, Croatia (May, 2019, Invited)
- Presentation "Masculinity and the Triumph of the Truck: Currents in the American Automotive Industry." Eastern American Studies Association, Harrisburg, PA (March 2019)
- Presentation with Students "Learning from Ned Buntline." Mid-Atlantic Popular and American Culture Association, Baltimore (Nov. 2018)
- Presentation “Like a Rock?: The Pickup Truck & American Masculinity” University Colloquium Series, Eastern Mennonite University (Jan. 2018)
- Presentation “Pickup Truck? Hell Yes!: The Truck as Cultural Dissent in American Suburbia” International Symposium, A Cultural History of Capitalism: Britain, America, Croatia, University of Zagreb, Croatia (April, 2017)
- Panelist “Where American Studies is at Home/not Home: Working in Different Disciplinary and Professional Contexts.” American Studies Association. Denver, CO (Nov. 2016)
- Moderator “In the Heart of the Shenandoah Valley: Visions of Harrisonburg, 1867-2017.” Virginia Forum. Jamestown, VA (March 2016)
- Panelist “Regional Chapters Committee: A Discussion with ASA Regional Student Award Winners.” American Studies Association. Toronto Canada (Oct. 2015)
- Presentation “What Makes America American?, or, Rock’n‘Roll & Pickup Trucks: An American Studies Look at U.S. Culture.” U.S. Consulate General, Chennai American Library, India (July 2015, invited)
- Presentation “There’s Somethin’ ‘bout a Truck: America’s Love Affair with the Pickup Truck.” Eastern American Studies Association, Eastern Mennonite University, Harrisonburg, VA (March 2013)
- Panelist “ASA Students’ Committee: Roundtable on the Results from the ASA Students Survey.” American Studies Association, San Juan, Puerto Rico (Nov. 2012)
- Presentation “Sensation, Science & Scandal: The Popular Press in Antebellum America.” Harrisonburg-Rockingham Historical Society, Dayton, VA (May 2012, invited)
- Moderator “Cultural Change through Popular Media.” Eastern American Studies Association, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ (March 2012)
- Presentation “Damsels, Demons, & the Sensationalized South: Ned Buntline’s Civil War.” American Studies Association, Baltimore (Oct. 2011)
- “The Prolific Profligate: Ned Buntline & His Literary World.” Mid-Atlantic American Studies Association, Pennsylvania State Capitol, Harrisburg PA (April 2011)
- “Scoundrels! Secession! Sensation!: Ned Buntline, the Civil War, and the Demon of Fire.” Mid-Atlantic American Studies Association, La Salle University, Philadelphia (April 2010).
- “Hope in Hard Times: Obama, FDR & the Construction of Hope in American Politics.” Klub Studenta Anglistike, Zagreb, Croatia (March, 2009).
- “Rock n Roll in Black & White: Cultural Creation in the US Since the 1950s.” American Corner, Zagreb, Croatia (Nov, 2008 & March 2009); School of Economics, Vukovar, Croatia (Jan, 2009); American Corner, Zadar, Croatia (Feb, 2009); Turkish-American University, Istanbul, Turkey (Feb, 2009); University of Sarajevo, Bosnia (Feb, 2009); University Dzemal Bijedic, Mostar, Herzegovina (Feb, 2009).
- with Dr. Iva Polak “Grave New World: The Early History of North America & Australia.” University of Sarajevo, Bosnia (Feb, 2009); University Dzemal Bijedic, Mostar, Herzegovina (Feb. 2009).
- “Playing with the Spirits: Séances in Antebellum America.” Mid-Atlantic American Studies Association, Rochester, NY (April 2008)
- Presidential Address “The American Studies Scholar: An Emersonian Perspective.” Mid-Atlantic American Studies Association, Baltimore, MD (March, 2007)
- “When Caliban Impressed Prospero: Rethinking 19th-Century Exploration & Race Narratives.” Organization of American Historians, Smithsonian Museum of the American Indian, Washington, DC (April, 2006)
- “Teaching the Violent Edge of Non-Violent Reform.” Faith in Action Conference, Samford University, Birmingham, AL (Jan. 2006)
- “Traveling Together: The Intertwined Ambitions of Elisha & Thomas Kane.” Kane Masonic Lodge / Elisha Kent Kane Historical Society, New York, NY (Jan. 2006, invited)
Exhibits, Performances and Productions
- Public Presentation "Race in the United States: A Very Brief History in Black & White" Mennonite Central Committee IVEP Program (Feb. 2020)
- Chapel "Where Have We Been? Where Are We Know?: A History of Racial Relations at Eastern Mennonite" Eastern Mennonite High School (MLK Day, 2020)
- Public Presentation "Pickups: An American Obsession" to multiple Rotary clubs & civic organizations across central Virginia (fall 2017-summer 2019)
- Public Presentation "A Wall Runs Through It: The History of U.S. Immigration Policy" Anabaptist Center for Religion & Society (March 2019)
- Public Presentation "Remembering the Confederacy: A Monumental Debate" Eastern Mennonite University MLK Day of Service (MLK Day, 2019, & 2020)
- TV Appearance 1-on-1: Remembering EMU Graduate Murdered in Congo. WHSV TV Harrisonburg, VA (March 2018)
- Public Presentation "The History of our Holiday Celebrations: Thanksgiving & Christmas" Park View Village (Nov. 2017)
- Public Presentation "Remembering and Re-Remembering the Past" National Honors Society Induction Ceremony, Spotswood HS (Oct. 2017)
- Radio Appearance "A Discussion of Elisha Kent Kane, American Hero." Mike Slater Show AM 760 San Diego, CA (June 2017)
- Public Interview with Civil Rights leader Dr. Vincent Harding Eastern Mennonite University (Feb. 27, 2014)
- Chapel "Take the First Step in Faith: A History of Change Toward Inclusion at Eastern Mennonite" Eastern Mennonite University (Jan. 17, 2014)
- TV Appearance Survey Questions How Challenging College Has Become. WHSV TV Harrisonburg, VA (May 2012)
- Baccalaureate Address: "Wisdom & Vanity: A Teacher’s Parting Words". Eastern Mennonite University (April 2012)
- Chapel "Faith This Far: African American History and Eastern Mennonite" (EMHS March 2011, EMU Feb. 2011)
- “The Histories We Tell Ourselves” Melva Kauffman Annual Lecturer (3 part series). Hesston College (Sept. 2010, invited)
- “A Croatian Fulbright Sabbatical” EMU Tuesday Lunch series (April 2010)
- Book Opening “Raising Kane: My 13-Year Obsession with a Dead Ex-Hero” American Corner, Zagreb, Croatia (April 2009)
- “The Times They Are a Changin’: American Student Movements in the 1960-1970s.” Student Symposium during the Faculty of Philosophy Student Strike, University of Zagreb, Croatia (April, 2009)
- “The First Thanksgiving: Cultural History & Cultural Construction” Gornjogradska Gimnazija, Zagreb, Croatia (Nov. 2008)
- Chapel “Colleges, Christ & the Construction of Belief, or, How to Make a Mennonite” (EMU Feb, 2007; Hesston College Jan, 2007)
- Baccalaureate Address “Wandering Wondering: An Eclectic Guide to ‘Walking Humbly with your God.’” Eastern Mennonite University (April, 2006)
- Radio Appearance “Touring Virginia’s Black History.” by Martha Woodroof. Morning Edition & All Things Considered, Virginia Public Radio (Feb. 2, 2006).
- Radio Appearance “Exploring Zenda.” by Martha Woodroof. Morning Edition & All Things Considered, Virginia Public Radio (Jan. 3, 2006).
Church, Community and Professional Service
Community & Professional Service
Church Service
Honors, Awards and Grants
- Visiting Scholar Grant. University of Zagreb, Croatia (2017 & 2019)
- Sabbatical Award. Eastern Mennonite University (2008-09, 2017)
- Fulbright Scholar, Faculty of Philosophy, University of Zagreb, Croatia (2008-09)
- Summer Teaching Grant. Eastern Mennonite University (2002, 2004, 2006, 2011)
- Lilly Faculty Pilot Project Grant. “Reaching Out, Teaching In: EMU & Harrisonburg’s African-American Community. (2005)
- Summer Research Grant. Eastern Mennonite University (2002, 2003, 2004)
- Quality Service Award. Eastern Mennonite University (Fall, 2002)
- Grundy Resident Research Fellowship at the American Philosophical Society, Philadelphia, PA (1999)
- University of Texas’ 2000-2001 Dissertation Fellowship (2000)
Professional Memberships
- American Studies Association (1996-present)
- Eastern American Studies Association (2001-present)
- Society of Americanists (2017-present)
- Mid-Atlantic Popular & American Culture Association (2018-present)
Professional Conferences Attended
- Eastern American Studies Association (Harrisburg, PA, March 2019)
- Mid-Atlantic Popular & American Culture Association (Baltimore, Nov. 2018)
- International Symposium on the Cultural History of Capitalism (University of Zagreb, Croatia, April, 2017)
- American Studies Association (Denver, CO, Nov. 2016)
- Eastern American Studies Association (Franklin & Marshall, PA, April 2016)
- American Studies Association (Toronto, Canada, Oct. 2015)
- Eastern American Studies Association (Philadelphia, PA, March 2014)
- American Studies Association (Washington, DC, Nov. 2013)
- Eastern American Studies Association (EMU, Harrisonburg, VA, March 2013)
- American Studies Association (San Juan, Puerto Rico, Nov. 2012)
- Eastern American Studies Association (Rutgers University, NJ, March 2012)
- American Studies Association (Baltimore, MD, Oct. 2011)
- Mid-Atlantic American Studies Association (Harrisburg, PA, April 2011)
- American Studies Association (San Antonio, TX, Oct. 2010)
- Mid-Atlantic American Studies Association (Philadelphia, PA, April 2010)
New Courses Taught
COURSES TAUGHT
- HONRS 111 Ruling Ideas
- HIST 121 Introduction to History & Methods
- HIST 131 American History to 1865
- HIST 142 American History 1865 to the Present
- HIST 222 African American History
- HIST 312 History of Nineteenth-Century America, A Novel Approach
- HIST 321 Modernizing America, 1865-1940
- HIST 411 History of Recent America, 1941-Present
- HIST 422 History Tutorial (changes topic each semester)
- HIST 452 Seminar in History
- History & Culture of Ireland & Northern Ireland (Cross Cultural)
- GVC 221 Cities
- HONRS 311 Honors Colloquia: The History We Tell Ourselves
- “Religion in American Literature & Culture” (University of Zagreb, Fall 2008)
- “America Since WWII: A Cultural & Literary History” (University of Zagreb, MA course, Fall 2008,)
- “Recent America, a Thematic Study” (University of Zagreb PhD course, Fall 2008)
- “American Literature: A Post-WWII Cultural Study” (University of Zagreb, Spring 2009)
- “American Literature: The Black Experience 1900-Now” (University of Zagreb, MA course, Spring 2009)
EMU Service
- Director, University Honors Program (2011-present)
- Chair, History Department (2003-04, 2009-12, & 2017-present)
- Chair, Honors Council and Committee (2011-present)
- Undergraduate Council (2003-04, 2009-present)
- Washington Community Scholars’ Center Advisory Board (2009-present)
- EMU Centennial Committee (2013-2017)
- Centennial Book Advisory Committee (2011-2017)
- EMU Presidential Search Committee (2015-2016)
- Admissions Committee (2009-2012)
- Intellectual Life Committee (2010-2012)
- Chair, Search Committee for Political Studies position (2009-2011)
- Gen-Ed Core/Undergraduate Council Executive Committee (2009-2011)
- Co-Leader of Summer Cross-Cultural to Ireland/Northern Ireland (2010)

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Mark Metzler Sawin

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