Faculty/Staff
Arts and Humanities

Dr. Don Buerk,
Associate Professor of History

Office: 2 Dana Hall

• Advisor to Tau Kappa Epsilon
  
• Co-Advisor to Black Action Student Association
  
• Co-Advisor to Carolyn M. Small Honors Program
  

Bio
Professor Buerk retains a keen interest in comparative history, primarily of Western Europe from the end of the Middle Ages to the present and of North America. Especially interested in the variety of ways that nations have organized themselves in order to address their social, political, and economic problems, he also studies how historical investigation has developed during the last several centuries. Comparing modern nation-states and how accounts of their past have been recorded is of value in no less than three ways. First, by identifying historical similarities among nations students can begin to develop generalizations about what those nations have in common and what their people can learn from one another. Second, recognizing historical differences among nations allows us to appreciate the uniqueness of each human society to a greater extent than might otherwise be the case. Finally, learning the history of others is an enjoyable and worthwhile endeavor in its own right because it reminds us that ours has been neither the only way, nor necessarily the best way.

Education

• Ph.D., University of Toledo
• B.S., Bowling Green State University
  

Courses taught:

• Global Civilizations I & II AH 111, AH 112
  
• U.S. History to 1900 HI 221
  
• Modern Europe HI 222
  
• Ohio Region HI 345
  
• U.S. Constitution HI 346
  
• Historical Methods HI 398
  
• Seminar Capstone HI 498
  

Contact
Phone:419-783-2454
e-mail: dbuerk@defiance.edu