Visiting Speakers
Visiting Speakers
Colin Calloway
Colin G. Calloway is the John Kimball Jr. 1943 Professor of History and Professor of Native American Studies at Dartmouth College. A leading scholar of early American and Native American history, he is the author of numerous award-winning books, including The Indian World of George Washington, which was a finalist for the National Book Award. His research explores the complex relationships between Native peoples and European settlers during the colonial and early national periods of U.S. history.
Native Americans and the New Nation
Native Americans are likely to be sidelined in the 250th anniversary of the birth of the United States. In this talk, expert Colin Calloway will restore them to their central role in the coming and course of the Revolution, in the presidency of George Washington, and in the development of the new nation.
Greg Clements
Greg Clements is the Associate Director for Research and Technology in the Exploration Research and Technology Programs Directorate at NASA’s John F. Kennedy Space Center in Florida. He oversees advanced research initiatives and technology development supporting NASA’s Artemis missions, deep space exploration, and sustainable lunar operations. With decades of experience in aerospace engineering and leadership, Clements has contributed to numerous programs advancing human and robotic exploration, fostering innovation in propulsion, life support, and autonomous systems.
America and Space... Reaching for the Stars
This session will share insight on the role of space travel in shaping the nation's scientific and technical prowess, and the “soft power” of influence that NASA has provided to bolster America's international relations. Greg Clements, Associate Director of Research and Technology, in the Exploration Research and Technology Programs Directorate at the John F. Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida, will also give an update on recent happenings occurring at NASA.
Francis D. Cogliano
Francis D. Cogliano is Professor of American History at the University of Edinburgh and serves as the university’s Dean International for North America. A leading scholar of the American Revolution and early United States, his work explores the founding era, transatlantic connections, and historical memory. He is the author of several books, including Emperor of Liberty: Thomas Jefferson’s Foreign Policy and Revolutionary America, 1763–1815. Cogliano frequently lectures internationally and co-authored Most Blessed of the Patriarchs with Peter S. Onuf, offering new insight into Thomas Jefferson’s life and political vision.
Jefferson’s Moment
Co-authors Francis D. Cogliano and Peter S. Onuf offer a fresh interpretation of Thomas Jefferson's powerful appeal to fellow patriots of his own and future generations to vindicate the new American nation's claims to independence. What we call “democracy” emerged in the midst of war as a new, self-declared people mobilized to defend their country and the liberties they cherished. Seeking a more perfect union, Jefferson and his fellow Revolutionaries were acutely conscious of their own imperfection, recognizing that Americans in the future would also face crises that threatened the republic's survival. Jefferson did not have all the answers, but he raised the right questions. Jefferson's moment anticipates ours: that is why he matters.
Dr. Ron Cooper
Dr. Ron Cooper is a novelist, philosopher, and professor of humanities at the College of Central Florida. He holds a Ph.D. in philosophy from Florida State University and has published both fiction and scholarly work. His novels include Purple Jesus, Hume’s Fork, and The Gospel of the Twin. Cooper’s writing often explores themes of Southern identity, humor, and the intersection of religion and philosophy. His work has been featured in The Southern Review and The Georgia Review.
Religion in the American Colonies
Although much Colonial literature came from New England ministers, religion in early America was far more diverse and complex. Beyond the well-known European struggles of the Protestant Reformation, the colonies faced their own conflicts shaped by slavery, Native American presence, and competing faith traditions.
Christopher Daley
Christopher Daley is a historian, author, and lecturer with over 25 years of experience presenting on American history topics. He holds a Master’s degree in History and has taught at Silver Lake Regional High School and served as President of the Pembroke Historical Society. Daley has been featured on PBS and other media for his expertise in New England and American cultural history. His engaging presentations bring historical events and figures to life for audiences throughout the country.
Steel Rails to Sunshine State — Henry Flagler and the Railroad That Built Florida
Journey back to the Gilded Age in this dynamic lecture and explore how Henry Flagler transformed Florida's coasts. His Florida East Coast Railway built cities from Palm Beach to Key West, overcoming swamps, storms, and engineering challenges. Discover how partnerships with pioneers like Julia Tuttle helped create Miami and how Flagler's grand hotels and infrastructure turned Florida into a premier winter retreat and global destination.
Rick Kistner
Rick Kistner is a multifaceted professional with a diverse career spanning law enforcement, performance arts, and education. He served as a Chief of Police before transitioning into the performing arts, where he has had a 50-year career on stage, in film, and in television commercials. Additionally, he is a professional voice artist with "Lit2Go" and has consulted for the National Center for State Courts. In his role as a lecturer, Kistner brings his extensive experience to the classroom, offering courses that blend his expertise in law enforcement with his passion for the arts. His diverse background allows him to provide unique perspectives and engaging content to his students.
Fascinated by Flight: How the Wright Brothers Changed the World
In the 19th century, many believed human flight was impossible: "If God had meant for men to fly, he would've given them wings." But Wilbur and Orville Wright, two bachelor brothers running a bicycle shop in Dayton, Ohio, saw flight as a problem of mechanics, not providence. On a windy December day in 1903, they proved the skeptics wrong at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. Self-taught and determined, the Wrights pioneered powered flight, laying the foundation for a science that would eventually take humans to the moon and shape the modern, globalized world. This remote presentation explores their lives and challenges.
Steve Kochersperger
Steve Kochersperger is a historian for the United States Postal Service whose work focuses on how stamps tell America’s story. He has written extensively on U.S. commemorative stamp design, exploring how art, culture, and national identity intersect through postage. His presentations bring a fresh perspective on how history is communicated through everyday objects, connecting philately with larger themes in American heritage.
Revolutionary Communications: American Independence
and the Postal Service
A year before the declaration, Congress created two things: the Army and the Post Office. Learn how the Postal Service helped America win independence and about the fascinating men and women who risked everything for the cause. Colorful commemorative postage stamps will help illustrate our history. Discover how their legacy still shapes mail service today.
Edward G. Lengel, Ph.D.
Edward G. Lengel, Ph.D. is an American military historian and author specializing in early American military history, particularly George Washington and World War I. He earned his Ph.D. from the University of Virginia and served as Director of the George Washington Papers Project, overseeing major expansions of the collection. He has written several acclaimed books, including General George Washington: A Military Life and To Conquer Hell: The Meuse-Argonne, 1918, and has received honors from the National Humanities Medal, the Army Historical Foundation, and other organizations. Dr. Lengel currently serves as Chief Historian for the White House Historical Association.
George Washington: Man of Peace
George Washington, our nation's greatest military leader, won the Revolutionary War and secured independence. A seasoned combat veteran since the French and Indian War, he knew both the costs of battle and the value of peace. As president, he drew on this knowledge to safeguard the nation's future. Award-winning historian Edward G. Lengel, Ph.D., author of General George Washington: A Military Life and former director of the Washington Papers Project, brings Washington's story to life. A National Humanities Medal co-recipient and frequent media commentator, Lengel offers a vivid portrait of Washington as soldier and statesman.
Fredrik Logevall
Fredrik Logevall is a Pulitzer Prize–winning historian and the Laurence D. Belfer Professor of International Affairs at Harvard University. A leading scholar of U.S. foreign relations and modern American history, he is the author or editor of ten books, including the acclaimed biography JFK: Coming of Age in the American Century, 1917–1956. His work has been recognized with numerous awards, and he frequently appears in national media as an expert on the Vietnam War, diplomacy, and presidential history.
JFK: The Making of a Leader – A Presentation by Fredrik Logevall
Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Fredrik Logevall, one of the foremost experts on John F. Kennedy, brings fresh insight into the life of America’s 35th president. His revelatory biography, JFK: Coming of Age in the American Century, 1917–1956, a New York Times Notable Book of the Year, draws on Oval Office tapes, interviews with Jackie Kennedy, and declassified CIA documents. Logevall, Laurence D. Belfer Professor at Harvard, is the author or editor of ten books and past president of the Society for Historians of American Foreign Relations.
Peter S. Onuf
Peter S. Onuf is the Thomas Jefferson Memorial Foundation Professor Emeritus in the Corcoran Department of History at the University of Virginia and a Senior Research Fellow at the Robert H. Smith International Center for Jefferson Studies at Monticello. A leading scholar on Thomas Jefferson and the early American republic, Onuf has authored and co-authored several influential works, including Most Blessed of the Patriarchs: Thomas Jefferson and the Empire of the Imagination and Jefferson’s Empire: The Language of American Nationhood. He is also a co-host of the public radio program BackStory with the American History Guys.
Jefferson’s Moment
Co-authors Francis D. Cogliano and Peter S. Onuf offer a fresh interpretation of Thomas Jefferson's powerful appeal to fellow patriots of his own and future generations to vindicate the new American nation's claims to independence. What we call “democracy” emerged in the midst of war as a new, self-declared people mobilized to defend their country and the liberties they cherished. Seeking a more perfect union, Jefferson and his fellow Revolutionaries were acutely conscious of their own imperfection, recognizing that Americans in the future would also face crises that threatened the republic's survival. Jefferson did not have all the answers, but he raised the right questions. Jefferson's moment anticipates ours: that is why he matters.
Julia Ott
Julia Ott is Associate Professor in the History of Capitalism at The New School and co-director of the Robert L. Heilbroner Center for Capitalism Studies. Her research examines how financial institutions, investment practices, and economic thought have shaped American political culture. She is the author of When Wall Street Met Main Street: The Quest for an Investors’ Democracy, which won the Vincent DeSantis Prize.
Rethinking the Great Crash of 1929
This presentation revisits a pivotal era in U.S. history- the Great Bull Market of the 1920s and the Crash of 1929. In this lecture, Organization of American Historians Speaker Dr. Julia Ott, Associate Professor of History at The New School, explores why asset prices fluctuate and how financial values are shaped by politics, institutions, and culture. Her re-examination reveals how World War I bond drives, mass investment campaigns, and utopian promises of citizenship and prosperity transformed the American economy and society.
Allen Pietrobon
Allen Pietrobon, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor and Program Director of Global Affairs at Trinity Washington University in Washington, D.C., and an award-winning historian of 20th-century U.S. history and foreign policy. He is also an adjunct professor at Johns Hopkins University and a recognized speaker for the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute programs nationwide. His engaging lectures explore the intersections of politics, culture, and everyday life in America, combining scholarly insight with accessible storytelling.
A History of American Dining
From colonial taverns to TV dinners and farm-to-table cuisine, this course explores how America's food traditions evolved alongside its social and economic history. Dr. Pietrobon examines the ways in which immigration, technology, and cultural trends shaped what and how Americans eat — revealing how dining reflects the nation’s values, innovations, and identity through time.
Cathy Salustri
Cathy Salustri is an award-winning Florida author, journalist, and editor based in Gulfport, Florida. She is the owner, publisher, and editor of The Gabber, the oldest independent weekly newspaper in Florida, which she and her husband Barry Loper purchased during the pandemic. Salustri's writing focuses on Florida lifestyles and history. Her portfolio includes publications such as USA Today, Flamingo Magazine, Visit Florida, regional magazines, the Tampa Bay Times, and Creative Loafing. In 2016, the University Press of Florida published her travel narrative Backroads of Paradise, which retraces WPA-era driving tours of Florida. The book received national attention, including coverage in The New York Times. In 2024, Salustri released Florida Spectacular: Extraordinary Places and Exceptional Lives, a book that uncovers centuries of forgotten Florida lore—from the Everglades to springs, ranchlands, and scrub habitats—and reveals the state’s environmental wonders and unique human stories.
It Came From Florida: Florida’s Best B-Movies
Ever heard of Frogs? How about Sharkansas Women's Prison? This fun look at Florida's relationship to some of the (often intentionally) worst science fiction movies showcases Florida's B-movie glory, starting with Creature From the Black Lagoon and moving through not-quite-classic sci-fi "masterpieces" like Devil Fish and 2-Headed Shark.
Paul Sparrow
Paul M. Sparrow is a writer, historical consultant, and former Director of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum. He was a senior executive at the Newseum, where he directed interactive exhibits and managed educational programs, and earlier in his career he produced Emmy-Award television content and worked in journalism. He holds degrees from UC Santa Cruz and Mills College.
Awakening the Spirit of America: FDR's War of Words
With Charles Lindbergh And the Battle to Save Democracy
Join historian and author Paul Sparrow, former director of the FDR Presidential Library, for an engaging look at his book *Awakening the Spirit of America: FDR’s War of Words With Charles Lindbergh and the Battle to Save Democracy*. Sparrow offers an insider’s view of how Roosevelt used powerful language, media, and political strategy to overcome isolationism and lead the U.S. into WWII. This course reveals how FDR reshaped American identity and global leadership, offering timely lessons on democracy, resilience, and the enduring power of words.
Geoffrey Wawro
Geoffrey Wawro is University Distinguished Research Professor and founding director of the Military History Center at the University of North Texas. He earned his Ph.D. in history from Yale University and previously taught in the Department of Strategic Studies at the U.S. Naval War College. A specialist in modern military and diplomatic history, he has authored seven major books and often appears as an analyst on History, CNN, Discovery, and other media outlets.
Reassessing Vietnam: New Revelations from
Geoffrey Wawro's The Vietnam War: A Military History
The Vietnam War left a lasting mark on the American psyche. It triggered budget deficits, ignited campus protests, and weakened U.S. influence abroad. Even decades after the final helicopter lifted off from Saigon, Americans remain divided over whether the war was justified or even winnable. Attend this remote presenter presentation to hear directly from the author as he explores the war's complex legacy, enduring impact, and his use of recently declassified government archives in the US and UK to gain a fuller understanding of all aspects of the Vietnam War- political, military, economic, financial, and cultural. Geoffrey Wawro is an eminent historian and author of seven books. He is University Distinguished Research Professor and Founding Director of the Military History Center at the University of North Texas. He was previously Professor of Strategy & Policy and Professor of Strategic Studies at the U.S. Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island from 1996-2005. He has appeared as an expert on History Channel, Netflix, Discovery, and other outlets.
Craig Whitlock
Craig Whitlock is an investigative reporter at The Washington Post and author of the #1 New York Times bestseller The Afghanistan Papers: A Secret History of the War. A three-time Pulitzer Prize finalist, he has reported extensively on national security issues, including military affairs and the global war on terrorism. His investigative work has received the George Polk Award, the Investigative Reporters and Editors Award, and the Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award.
At War With the Truth: How U.S. Officials Misled the Public
about the War in Afghanistan
The U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in 2001 began with overwhelming public support and clear goals: defeat al-Qaeda and prevent another 9/11. After removing the Taliban from power, however, the mission quickly lost direction. Distracted by the war in Iraq, U.S. forces became entangled in an unwinnable guerrilla conflict in a country they did not fully understand. Successive presidents escalated troop levels and claimed progress, even as officials recognized victory was unlikely. Investigative reporter Craig Whitlock, author of the #1 New York Times bestseller The Afghanistan Papers, reveals the hidden truths behind America's longest war.
William & Sue Wills
William and Sue Wills are veteran actors and co-creators of Presidents and Their First Ladies, Dramatically Speaking, a nationally recognized historical performance series. Since 1997, they have performed in 36 states and at over 30 presidential sites, including presidential libraries and museums. Their program offers a personal look at the lives of America's first couples, aiming to humanize historical figures through engaging storytelling and period-accurate portrayals. William researches and writes the scripts, while Sue designs and creates the costumes, many of which are her own designs. Together, they have delivered over 5,400 performances nationwide.
Abe and Mary Lincoln
The Lincolns are one of the most intriguing First Couples. Abe, with no formal education, had to hold the Union together and lead it through its most troublesome internal period, the War Between the States. Mary, besides carrying the burden of running the mansion, was also suffering deep personal tragedies. The positive and negative qualities of both are shown in this 60-minute presentation.
