Richard Christen PhD

My Resume/CV

Background Narrative

Rich Christen is a professor in the University of Portland’s School of Education. A high school history teacher in North Dakota and Minnesota for eighteen years, Rich completed his PhD in Social and Philosophical Foundations of Education at the University of Minnesota. At UP since 1998, he teaches courses in the social and cultural foundations of education, secondary classroom assessment, and social studies methods. Over the years, Rich has written on historical and cultural topics from the arts and crafts movement to graffiti to handwriting, all united by his interest in the relationship between hand and mind and in the ways hand-mind practices embody educational goals and conceptions of social identity. He has been a partner in a multi-district grant to improve the teaching of American history, has collaborated with the Roosevelt High School Writing and Publishing Center on their highly successful “Freedom Fighters” project, and is currently coordinating the OMAT program, a MAT teacher preparation in partnership with Open School.

Education

• Doctor of Philosophy, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis
• Master of Arts, University of Montana
• Bachelor of Science, Minot State University

Awards

• 2005, Outstanding Teacher Award. University of Portland
• 2005, Award for Commitment and Dedication to Gender Equality. University of Portland
• 1990, Distinguished Teacher Award. White House Commission on Presidential Scholars
• 1985, National Endowment for the Humanities Summer Seminar. Yale University
• 1982, Fulbright Summer Seminar in The Netherlands.

Professional Affiliations

• History of Education Society
• American Educational Research Association
• Oregon Historical Society
• Rethinking Schools