with David Nichols
Born and raised:
Herlock, Md.
Resides:
Glen Ridge
Education:
B.A., politics, Wake Forest University
M.A., political Science, Northern Illinois University
Ph.D., government, University of Virginia
Family:
Wife, Mary of 25 years, sons Keith, 20, and John, 15
Pastimes:
Watching old movies ("I'm a big Humphrey Bogart fan") and sports
(baseball, tennis and college basketball)
Hobbies:
Building things. "We have a summer cottage in upstate New York and
my sons and I built a study. We're always doing major projects."
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David Nichols was just a young boy when he started his career in politics.
"I remember handing out leaflets in a factory with my father for
a local congressional candidate when I was about 10 years old," he
recalled.
Growing up in a small town in Maryland outside of Washington, D.C., with
a father who once ran for state legislature, David's early exposure to
government became a passion.
A political science professor, David is now directing the Honors Program,
and says he is trying to stay immersed in the field while tending to his
new administrative duties.
He took over the role of director in July and although he's unable to
spend as much time in the classroom as he would like, he says being involved
with the program is worth it. "As Montclair State gets larger, it's
important to have smaller communities within the University that students
can feel a part of, and the Honors Program has been doing that for about
10 years. I think we will be expanding some," said David, "and
the primary goal will be to keep the sense of community for some of our
best students."
One initiative David is spearheading is for more departments to offer
Honors courses and to develop more upper level classes. "Students
take four courses in their freshman year, then take four more courses
over their time here, but it's typically between the freshman and sophomore
years," he explained. "I'd like to see more upper level courses
so students stay a part of the program."
Changing to a more administrative role has had its positive effects. "Being
in this position has helped me get to know the faculty more," said
the 14-year MSU veteran. "Now I get to learn about people in other
departments and find out what they're doing. It makes me feel more a part
of the University community."
But it's connecting with students that means the most to him. He spends
as much time in his office as he can to be available to students and is
teaching a course in constitutional law. "I do miss teaching full
time, but I'm really glad I have the one course. You get an immediate
response when you're teaching that you can't get when you're dealing with
administrative matters," he said. “I've always liked the students
at Montclair because they are bright and engaging. They're very much open
to learning things and discussing things."
To pique students' curiosity further, David often brings his own interest
of politics in film and literature into the classroom. "It's a good
way to broaden people's conceptions of politics and to get at some political
questions," he said. "The students seem to like it. I originally
started doing it as a teaching method and then began looking at it more
in terms of research."
David has written numerous articles on the subject including studies of
the works of Shakespeare, Saul Bellow, Jane Austen and Eugene O'Neill
among others, and the films of Humphrey Bogart.
He and his wife Mary, a professor at Fordham University, have even launched
a Web site, www.greatbooksandfilm.com,
which offers an innovative approach for teachers to introduce high school
students to classic works of philosophy and literature that have shaped
intellectual heritage and tradition.
While David's career path took him from handing out fliers to handing
out syllabuses, his goal has remained making a difference in people's
lives. "I've been fortunate to have a good rapport with students
I still stay in touch with," he said. "A number of them have
gone into politics. One was finance director for the Mondale campaign
and another student is the second ranking Republican in the state senate
in Connecticut."
Is there a colleague you'd like to nominate for "On the Job?" If so, e-mail his/her name along with a brief description of how he/she contributes to the campus community, to Jennifer Fusco at fuscoj@mail.montclair.edu.