Eat Their Dust! - Robert Morris University

Kent State and the Community College of AlleghenyCollege. In the classroom, he tries to impart upon hisstudents that history is not just dates and facts,but rather it’s the “how” and the “why” thatreally matter.of the social history revolution that cameout of the 1970s and gave rise to legitimateAmerican Indian history rather than themyths and stereotypes that had existed forso long.“Modern history is definitely much morebalanced and fair,” says Barr. “But it’s hard toerase those images from popular culture.”Barr is also a big fan of baseball, and hewrote a chapter called “Looking Backward:The Life and Legend of Louis Francis Sockalexis,the Original Cleveland Indian,” for Native Athletes inSport and Society: A Reader. In addition, he’s coachedbaseball for 13 years at George Junior Republic inGrove City, a boarding school for troubled boys, andis currently in his final season. Barr also was a walkonplayer in college, and he still plays baseball todayin a competitive adult league during the fall.Barr was hired by RMU in the fall of 2004, afterteaching briefly at Clarion University, Slippery Rock,“The reason I teach history is so that I can understandand help others understand how we got to where weare today and where we’re going as we moveforward,” says Barr. “I’ve found that people enjoystories about people, so I try to weave in as manyhuman elements into history as I can. That’s whereyou really capture the student’s imagination andinterest. Most of all, you have to have enthusiasm forwhat you’re teaching. Enthusiasm will translate to thestudents. If you’re engaged in it, you have a betterchance of engaging the student.”With Pittsburgh celebrating its 250th anniversary thisyear, Barr thinks it’s important that we have a betterunderstanding of the early history of southwesternPennsylvania.“I’ve always been interested in formative history,”says Barr. “For me, I find so much of what it meansto be Americans comes out of that story of initialcolonization and starting to settle the first West – thetrans-Appalachian frontier. It resonates very stronglywith me. This region played such an important partin who we are as Americans today. It’s my hope thatwe can learn to embrace our heritage and really startto appreciate and celebrate the fascinating earlyhistory of the Pittsburgh region.”WRITTEN BY VALENTINE J. BRKICH24 • For a list of other recent RMU faculty awards, visit www.rmu.edu/foundations.