AN AUGURY OF REVOLUTION: THE IRANIAN STUDENT ...

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
There are many people who have played a major role in my academic development.
First of all, I would like to thank the history department at UNCW. First as an undergraduate,
and then as a graduate student, various members of the faculty have helped me develop my skills
as a historian, and cultivate my ideas intellectually.
First and foremost, Taylor Fain has been there for me anytime I had a question, or just the
desire to talk about American foreign policy. The classes that I had with him as an
undergraduate provided me with a solid base of knowledge, and his graduate colloquium on
American foreign relations was the most enjoyable class that I have ever been a part of. His
tutelage on American foreign relations has helped me better understand subject, and he has
encouraged me so that my own ideas could flourish. Michael Seidman has added a much needed
dynamic to my training as a historian. He has opened my eyes to a number of historical ideas
that I would not have been exposed to otherwise. It was during research for his class on the
1960s that I first became aware of the Iranian student movement, and gained the abilities to
contextualize both the Iranian student movement and American foreign policy into the larger
themes of the decade. Lisa Pollard has also been a major influence, and she has helped me to
understand the complexities of modern Middle Eastern history. Her classes have always been
enjoyable, and her engaging personality refreshing. Her input has made me aware of the larger
themes in modern Middle Eastern history that would have been missed otherwise.
Numerous other professors at UNCW have helped me grow as a historian. Laura
Wittern-Keller is a wonderful professor who helped me become a better writer. She also helped
me gain a better understanding of modern American history. Larry Usilton, with whom I took
many classes with as an undergraduate, helped me develop my research skills. One feels like
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