Texas Wesleyan University History Page

05/27/2026

05/27/2026

One of the great privileges of my work at Texas Wesleyan University is serving as the faculty sponsor for the Sumners Scholarship students. Through seminars, conferences, and guest lectures, these scholars engage deeply with the institutions, ideas, and responsibilities that sustain our democratic process. Over the years, I’ve also had the opportunity to develop additional programming, including civil and voting rights trips that connect classroom learning with the lived realities of American history.

This year, our group traveled to Tulsa to visit the historic Greenwood District. In the early twentieth century, this forty-block community—often called “Black Wall Street”—was one of the most prosperous and self-sufficient Black communities in the United States, home to luxury hotels, banks, theaters, and hundreds of thriving Black-owned businesses.

One hundred and five years ago, on May 31 and June 1, 1921, white mobs—many of whose members had been armed and deputized by local officials—attacked and systematically destroyed Greenwood. As many as 300 Black residents were killed, thousands were left homeless, and approximately 6,000 people were detained in internment camps in the aftermath of what is now recognized as the Tulsa Race Massacre.

Our group was guided by Chief Egunwale Amusan of The Real Black Wall Street Tour. Born and raised in Tulsa and descended from three survivors of the massacre, Chief Amusan brought a deeply personal and powerful perspective to the experience. Following the walking tour, we visited the Greenwood Rising museum, whose exhibits chronicle both the destruction of Greenwood and the resilience of the community in its aftermath.

It was an emotional and sobering experience, but confronting difficult history is essential to any honest understanding of the American experience. As James Baldwin observed, “Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.”

Texas Wesleyan University School of Arts & Sciences

05/14/2026

Texas Wesleyan University School of Arts & Sciences graduation Spring 2026! Largest graduating class at TXWES!

05/01/2026

Happy Labor Day!

04/29/2026

On Tuesday, April 21, Dr. Brenda Matthews' hosted the authors of "The Purifying Knife: The Troubling History of Eugenics in Texas," Michael Phillips and Betsy Friauf. Dr. Matthew's Texas History students had read the text as part of the class. The talk was open to the Texas Wesleyan University community and ended with a lively conversation.
Texas Wesleyan University School of Arts & Sciences

04/29/2026

Today, Christopher Ohan's Civil Rights history class hosted Jim Schutze, author of The Accommodation: The Politics of Race in an American City.
Schutze, according to Dallas County Commissioner John Wiley Price, is "a reporter, an analyst, a satirist, and a scholar ... respected for his performance, purity, and his world-class ability to p**s people off." He appears to do the latter well by offering an honest account of the past. The class is reading his book about Dallas' history through the civil rights era.
It was a great visit!
Texas Wesleyan University School of Arts & Sciences
Texas Wesleyan University

04/24/2026

Who doesn’t like a good potato? 🥔
Texas Wesleyan University School of Arts & Sciences students serving the community Tarrant Area Food Bank

04/19/2026

Another great Friday Service Learning day for Texas Wesleyan University School of Arts & Sciences students who bagged oranges, oranges, and more oranges 🍊 at the Tarrant Area Food Bank.

04/12/2026

Four History students traveled to Abilene this weekend to attend the 2026 Phi Alpha Theta Regional Conference hosted by Abilene Christian University. Each was able to present their research.

Jack Magness, "Red, Black, and White: The First Barbadian Slave
Codes & Bocon's Rebellion"
Alex Franco Reyes, "Reexamining the Spanish Conquest of Tenochtitlan"
Keith Hilliard, "An Evolving 'Understanding': So**my and Homosexuality in 17th Century British and dutch Colonial America"
Jordan Martinez, "Christ and the Empire: The Clash of the Revolutionary Christ with Imperial Rome"

The students were accompanied by Dr. Alistair Maeer and Dr. Christopher Ohan, both of whom chaired sessions at the conference. The day-long conference featured Dr. Theodore Francis, who presented the keynote talk, "Insurgent Itineraries: Travel, Tourism and Desegregation in the British Caribbean."

Participation of Texas Wesleyan History students is made possible because of generous funding provided by the Elizabeth Alexander Fund. Dr. Alexander is Professor Emerita of History at Texas Wesleyan University.

04/08/2026

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/christopher-ohan-b4380a90_servicelearning-activity-7447451543441952768-iLEk?utm_source=social_share_send&utm_medium=member_desktop_web&rcm=ACoAABNXaeMBdNLRlF3SOphHe-ackTa270Qu1sk

I was humbled that the Texas Wesleyan University TAFB volunteers were honored tonight to receive the Tarrant Area Food Bank's Core Value Award 2026 for our "unwavering dedication to caring for others, leading with integrity, showing respect, and bringing an innovative spirit to the [TAFB] mission--c...