DOCSLIB.ORG

Ninety-Fifth Commencement

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text

Load more

19433_Prog Cover_2020.qxp_Commencement Program Cover 5/4/20 2:59 PM Page 1 R OBERT M ORRIS U NIVERSITY Ninety -Fifth Commencement Robert Morris University 6001 University Boulevard | Moon Township, PA 15108-1189 C LASS OF 2020 RMU.EDU Traditions Founded in 1921 as the Pittsburgh School of Accountancy, Robert Morris University was renamed in Dear students and families, 1935 after the Philadelphia Please accept my congratulations on your long- merchant, patriot, and first senator awaited accomplishment, made all the more from Pennsylvania, who is known significant and impressive for the circumstances as the “Financier of the American under which you have achieved it. Revolution.” The university seal honors Robert Morris and his service You members of the Class of 2020 have faced trials to his country. no other graduates in our lifetime have dreamed • The fleur-de-lis represents France, from which Morris, of. After years of diligent study and work, just as as superintendent of finance, borrowed large sums of you were approaching the finish line, everything money to keep the American army in the field. was suddenly hurled into uncertainty. Rather than celebrating this occasion with your classmates and • The lion represents England, because Robert Morris families as you had always imagined, you instead was born in Liverpool. were forced into isolation by a global crisis beyond • The feathered quill represents Morris’s signing of the your or anyone’s control. Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation, and the C onstitution. Yet I am confident that you will emerge from this trying time even stronger, and that a future of • The three keys represent how education increases triumphs and successes awaits you. Some things students' understanding, wisdom, and authority to act. will not change. This formal commencement • The crown with flowing tasseled ribbons represents program is a symbol of that, a tradition that we the crowning glory of education. have shared with graduating students and their • The scallops along the edge represent the 13 colonies. families for many years and that lives on now. GOWN I am proud of every RMU class upon whom it is The bachelor’s gown is navy blue, while the master’s my privilege to confer their degrees. But the Class gown is black. of 2020 will always hold a special place in my memory. You have been tested, and you have CAP passed that test with resolution, kindness, and Master’s and bachelor’s candidates wear the square courage. I expect great things from each of you. mortarboard with tassel. Candidates wear the tassel over My sincere and deepest regards, the right eye, and move the tassel to the left side after receiving their degree. HOOD The hood is ceremoniously placed on a graduate student who has earned a master’s or doctoral degree. It is black, Christopher B. Howard, D.Phil. President, Robert Morris University marked with a chevron in the university’s colors of blue and white, and trimmed with a velvet band representing the degree being awarded. Gold - Science (M.S., D.Sc.) Drab - Business (M.B.A.) Dark Blue - Philosophy (Ph.D.) Apricot - Nursing (M.S.N., D.N.P.) Light Blue - Education (M.Ed.) 1 Commencement Speakers BRENDA J. LAUDERBACK ‘72 Chairman of the Board, Denny’s Inc. As the nation’s first African American board chair of a public food service company, Brenda J. Lauderback is an executive trailblazer who drives bottom line results, supports her community, and invests in future generations. Her track record of success, grounded in hard work and strategic thinking, has led her into the senior ranks of corporate America, including her present role as chairman of the board of Denny’s, one of America’s largest full-service family restaurant chains. Lauderback’s career in retailing began at Gimbel’s department store in downtown Pittsburgh, where she worked in multiple departments learning how to become an effective leader. Next she went to Minneapolis as a merchandise buyer for Dayton-Hudson, now known as Target, and rose to vice president and general merchandise manager for shoes, cosmetics, accessories, and intimate apparel. Lauderback was then recruited to become president of U.S. Shoe, and when Nine West acquired the company she became president of its wholesale and retail divisions until retiring in 1998. In addition to Denny’s, where she was named chairman in 2016, Lauderback serves on the boards of Sleep Number and Wolverine Worldwide. Savoy Magazine lists her among its 2020 Most Influential Black Executives in Corporate America, and she has been featured on the covers of Forbes, Essence, Black Enterprise, and Ebony . As someone who values the importance of paying it forward, Lauderback is a major supporter of the James E. Clyburn Scholarship and Research Foundation and the Tom Joyner Foundation, providing assistance to students attending historically black colleges and universities. She also supports the International African American Museum in Charleston and the South Carolina Aquarium. Lauderback is a member of several black women’s organizations — The Links, Smart Set, Chums, and The Girlfriends — and as a breast cancer survivor, she supports Susan G. Komen for the Cure Worldwide. A native of Penn Hills, Lauderback earned her B.S. in marketing from Robert Morris University and is a recipient of the RMU Alumni Achievement Award. She and her husband, Dr. Boyd Wright, have two adult children and homes in both Dallas and Charleston. 2 Commencement Speakers DWAN B. WALKER ’99 Mayor of Aliquippa Known for his warm greetings and welcoming smile, often accompanied by a bearhug, Dwan Walker is a mayor committed to a close-knit and unified family community in his hometown of Aliquippa. Walker, who took office in 2012 and has been reelected two times, is the first African American to be elected mayor of Aliquippa and only the second black elected official in Beaver County history. Overseeing a 45-member city operations staff that serves nearly 9,000 citizens, Walker is dedicated to transparency in city financial and budgetary business while building up a local economy that was devastated by the closure of the local steel mill. Working with the Aliquippa Economic Development Corp., he helped to attract grants totaling more than $3 million to fund social and educational programs and clear blighted properties for more development. He also is working to attract sponsors and corporate donors for a new city youth recreation center. Walker is deeply involved in volunteering and community service. He is on the board of the local Head Start and coaches in the local youth football league. Gov. Tom Wolf has named Walker to the state’s advisory commission on African American affairs, and he is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Beaver County NAACP Human Rights President’s Award, the Dignity and Respect Champion Award, the Jefferson Award for Community Service, and Talk Magazine 101 Influential Pennsylvanians. Besides his mayoral duties, Walker also works at Guardian Protection Services as a customer loyalty specialist. Before joining Guardian, he was an account executive at FedEx Services. Walker received a B.A. in communication from Robert Morris University. He and his twin brother, Donald, played football for the Colonials, following their cousin, Myron Walker, who is the all-time leading scorer for the Colonials in men’s basketball. Walker was on two championship-winning teams, and recorded two solo tackles in the 1997 ECAC Bowl victory over Georgetown. The proud father of three daughters, Walker is grateful for the love and support of his parents. 3 Faculty and Staff Emeriti BRUCE GOLMIC CHUCK ZIMMERMAN Associate Professor Emeritus of Education Professor Emeritus of Mathematics (posthumous) Ray Alford Thomas Gaydos Yildrim Omurtag Professor Emeritus of Finance Associate Professor Emeritus Professor Emeritus of Engineering Leonard Asimow of Communication and Science Professor Emeritus of Mathematics Roger Gillan Francis Perry and Actuarial Science Associate Professor Emeritus of English Registrar Emeritus Lutz Bacher John Graham Norbert Pietrzak Professor Emeritus of Media Arts Professor Emeritus of Education Professor Emeritus of Quantitative Fran Caplan Nell Tabor Hartley and Natural Sciences Dean Emerita of Libraries University Professor Emerita Valerie Powell Donald Caputo of Management University Professor Emerita of Associate Professor Emeritus of Adora Holstein Computer Information Systems Computer Information Systems Professor Emeritus of Economics James Rebele Jay Carson Linda Kavanaugh Professor Emeritus of Accounting University Professor Emeritus of English Associate Professor Emerita of Daniel Rota Dorothy Cibulas Computer and Information Systems Associate Professor Emeritus of Professor Emerita of Administrative G. James Leone Computer and Information Systems Management and Business Education Associate Professor Emeritus of Norman Schnurr Virginia Crawford Computer Information Systems Associate Professor Emeritus of Marketing Associate Professor Emerita of Computer Donna Lund James Seguin and Information Systems Professor Emerita of English Studies Professor Emeritus of Communication Felix Defino and Communications Skills and Media Arts Associate Professor Emeritus of Nancy Malley Jon Shank Quantitative and Natural Sciences Professor Emerita of Social Sciences Professor Emeritus of Education Robert Delgreco John Mazzola Dan Shelley Associate Professor Emeritus of Education Dean Emeritus University Professor Emeritus of Education Michael Dilauro Mary McKune
Recommended publications
  • Minting America: Coinage and the Contestation of American Identity, 1775-1800

    Minting America: Coinage and the Contestation of American Identity, 1775-1800

    ABSTRACT MINTING AMERICA: COINAGE AND THE CONTESTATION OF AMERICAN IDENTITY, 1775-1800 by James Patrick Ambuske “Minting America” investigates the ideological and culture links between American identity and national coinage in the wake of the American Revolution. In the Confederation period and in the Early Republic, Americans contested the creation of a national mint to produce coins. The catastrophic failure of the paper money issued by the Continental Congress during the War for Independence inspired an ideological debate in which Americans considered the broader implications of a national coinage. More than a means to conduct commerce, many citizens of the new nation saw coins as tangible representations of sovereignty and as a mechanism to convey the principles of the Revolution to future generations. They contested the physical symbolism as well as the rhetorical iconology of these early national coins. Debating the stories that coinage told helped Americans in this period shape the contours of a national identity. MINTING AMERICA: COINAGE AND THE CONTESTATION OF AMERICAN IDENTITY, 1775-1800 A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of Miami University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Department of History by James Patrick Ambuske Miami University Oxford, Ohio 2006 Advisor______________________ Andrew Cayton Reader_______________________ Carla Pestana Reader_______________________ Daniel Cobb Table of Contents Introduction: Coining Stories………………………………………....1 Chapter 1: “Ever to turn brown paper
  • Pennsylvania Magazine of HISTORY and BIOGRAPHY

    Pennsylvania Magazine of HISTORY and BIOGRAPHY

    THE Pennsylvania Magazine OF HISTORY AND BIOGRAPHY John Swanwick: Spokesman for "Merchant-Republicanism ' In Philadelphia, 1790-179 8 HE literature on the era of Jeffersonian democracy is largely- dominated by the great triumvirate of Thomas Jefferson, TJames Madison, and Albert Gallatin.* During the last dec- ade, however, historians have been paying more attention to state and local political leaders who played significant roles in the Demo- cratic-Republican movement.1 Among the more notable second-rank * In a somewhat abbreviated form this article was presented as a paper at the annual meeting of the Pennsylvania Historical Association held at Williamsport, Pa., on Oct. 22-23, 1971. The author wishes to express his gratitude to his colleague, Bernard Sternsher, for his helpful editorial suggestions. 1 Historians have given most of their attention to secondary Federalists, but since i960 the number of modern scholarly biographies of less prominent Republicans has increased. We now have first-rate biographies on Robert R. Livingston, David Rittenhouse, Aaron Burr, Daniel D. Tompkins, John Breckinridge, Luther Martin, Benjamin Rush (2), Samuel Smith, and James Monroe. There are also a number of good unpublished doctoral dissertations. Among the more notable studies are those on Elkanah Watson, Simon Snyder, Mathew Carey, Samuel Latham Mitchell, Melancton Smith, Levi Woodbury, William Lowndes, William Duane, William Jones (2), Eleazer Oswald, Thomas McKean, Levi Lincoln, Ephraim Kirby, and John Nicholson. Major biographies of Tench Coxe by Jacob E. Cooke, of John Beckley by Edmund Berkeley, and of Thomas McKean by John M. Coleman and Gail Stuart Rowe are now in progress. 131 132 ROLAND M.
  • Landmark Towns Regional Revitalization Strategy

    Landmark Towns Regional Revitalization Strategy

    LANDMARK TOWNS REGIONAL REVITALIZATION STRATEGY Introduction The Landmark Towns Initiative is a cooperative venture between the historic boroughs of Bristol, Morrisville, New Hope and Yardley Pennsylvania The purpose of the Landmark Towns Initiative is to establish a regional approach to economic development and community revitalization focused on the commercial opportunities and growth in tourism identified by four the Delaware riverfront boroughs of Bristol, Morrisville, New Hope and Yardley Bucks County. To pursue these opportunities, the four municipalities joined with the Delaware & Lehigh Heritage Corridor Commission Inc., in a 'Cooperative Venture' in the spring of 2006 and produced a scope of work and a work plan. This $25,000 planning effort, (see attached) was self funded and has resulted in the development of this following strategic plan. Since September of 2006, staff of the Delaware & Lehigh National Heritage Corridor Commission and the selected consulting firm of Keystone Heritage Group LLC. have worked with the four municipalities to develop this strategic plan. This effort, which has been done in regular consultation with Ms. Antoinette Crawford Major, Regional Director DCED, has included town meeting and site visits within each municipality, meetings with various stakeholders and regular monthly meetings of the Landmark Towns of Bucks County Steering Committee They are now seeking the Commonwealth's support, through the New Communities Program, for participation in the multi-year Regional Coordinators Program Elements
  • The Library of Robert Morris, Civil Rights Lawyer & Activist

    The Library of Robert Morris, Civil Rights Lawyer & Activist

    View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Digital Commons @ Boston College Law School Boston College Law School Digital Commons @ Boston College Law School Boston College Law School Faculty Papers 6-21-2018 The Library of Robert Morris, Civil Rights Lawyer & Activist Laurel Davis Boston College Law School, [email protected] Mary Sarah Bilder Boston College Law School, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://lawdigitalcommons.bc.edu/lsfp Part of the Civil Rights and Discrimination Commons, Legal Biography Commons, Legal History Commons, Legal Profession Commons, Political History Commons, and the United States History Commons Recommended Citation Laurel Davis and Mary Sarah Bilder. "The Library of Robert Morris, Civil Rights Lawyer & Activist." (2018). This Article is brought to you for free and open access by Digital Commons @ Boston College Law School. It has been accepted for inclusion in Boston College Law School Faculty Papers by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ Boston College Law School. For more information, please contact [email protected]. The Library of Robert Morris, Antebellum Civil Rights Lawyer & Activist∗ Laurel Davis** and Mary Sarah Bilder*** Contact information: Boston College Law Library Attn: Laurel Davis 885 Centre St. Newton, MA 02459 Abstract (50 words or less): This article analyzes the Robert Morris library, the only known extant, antebellum African American-owned library. The seventy-five titles, including two unique pamphlet compilations, reveal Morris’s intellectual commitment to full citizenship, equality, and participation for people of color. The library also demonstrates the importance of book and pamphlet publication as means of community building among antebellum civil rights activists.
  • George Washington, the Newburgh Conspiracy, and the Fate of the American Revolution by David Head

    George Washington, the Newburgh Conspiracy, and the Fate of the American Revolution by David Head

    2021-007 25 Jan. 2021 A Crisis of Peace: George Washington, the Newburgh Conspiracy, and the Fate of The American Revolution by David Head . New York: Pegasus, 2019. Pp. xvii, 284. ISBN 978–1–64313–081–1. Review by Ciaran Jones, St. Mary’s University School of Law ([email protected]). In A Crisis of Peace , historian David Head (Univ. of Central Florida) recounts the waning days of the American Revolution, when anger over Congress’s inability to pay Continental officers roiled the Northern Army encamped in upstate New York. He argues that the gathering of officers at Newburgh in March 1783, which inflamed fears of a military coup and goaded Congress into a par- tial settlement of the soldiers’ grievances, was not the product of a conspiracy. “My research has made me skeptical that a true conspiracy unfolded at Newburgh” (xii). Head eliminates possible conspirators and argues that prominent nationalists acted independently during the winter of 1782–83 to achieve greater unity among the states. He discusses George Washington’s leadership ability, the economic uncertainty afflicting Continental officers, the severity of Congress’s fiscal predicament, and the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation. The United States struggled financially for most of the Revolutionary War. As expenses mounted in the wake of Lexington and Concord, Congress printed more money, which caused soaring inflation: “In January 1777, $1.25 in paper equaled $1 in specie. By April 1781, it took $167.50 in paper to get $1 of specie, a 13,300 percent increase” (13). As the Continental dollar ceased to cir- culate due to its diminishing value, states issued soldiers loan certificates as payment.
  • National Constitution Center Fun Facts

    National Constitution Center Fun Facts

    CONTACTS: Ashley Berke Lauren Saul Director of Public Relations Public Relations Manager 215.409.6693 215.409.6895 [email protected] [email protected] NATIONAL CONSTITUTION CENTER FUN FACTS The Making of the National Constitution Center: • The National Constitution Center is the first-ever museum dedicated to the U.S. Constitution. • A permanent memorial to the U.S. Constitution in Philadelphia was first proposed around the celebration of the centennial of the Constitution in 1887. It did not begin to take shape until the idea was proposed again 100 years later during the celebration of the document’s bicentennial in 1987. • President Ronald Reagan signed the “Constitution Heritage Act of 1988” on September 16, 1988, which established that a national center for educating, studying, and interpreting the Constitution was to be built at a site on or near Independence National Historical Park in Philadelphia. • The Center is made of American products, including 85,000 square feet of Indiana limestone, 2.6 million pounds of steel, and a half-million cubic feet of concrete. • The limestone used in building the Constitution Center is from the same quarry as the Empire State Building’s materials. • The Center’s address is 525 Arch Street, specifically chosen because May 25th (5/25) is the date that the Constitutional Convention began in Philadelphia in 1787, right across the street from our building at Independence Hall. • During the design process, Governor Ed Rendell (who was at the time Mayor of Philadelphia) came up with the idea of putting the Preamble on the front of our building.
  • Pantes Theoi, Polemos and Ares on the Battlefield. the Greek Concept of the War Deity

    Pantes Theoi, Polemos and Ares on the Battlefield. the Greek Concept of the War Deity

    SYMBOLAE PHILOLOGORUM POSNANIENSIUM GRAECAE ET LATINAE XXI/1 • 2011 pp. 41–48. ISBN 978-83-7654-160-0. ISSN 0302-7384 Lucyna Kostuch Instytut Historii Uniwersytetu Humanistyczno-Przyrodniczego Jana Kochanowskiego ul. Żeromskiego 5, 25-369 Kielce Polska – Poland Pantes theoi, Polemos and Ares on the Battlefield. The Greek Concept of the War Deity AbstrAct. Kostuch Lucyna, Pantes theoi, Polemos and Ares on the Battlefield. The Greek Concept of the War deity. The Hellenes created a concept of potential military engagement by all the gods. In martial contexts, Greek authors often included the concepts of “all the gods” (pantes theoi), “the gods” (theoi), “god” (theos), divine being (daimonion) and holy power (hieros), which signify interference by unidentified divine forces. The relationship between war and gods may thus be defined ex definitione. The question arises as to the basis of this way of thinking. It seems that the answer should be sought in the basic definition of war – polemos. War is only occasionally personified. The answer to the question of why Polemos never became a clearly defined divine figure and mythological hero can be found in Homer. In the Iliad many deities, although not all, have military might (polemos) at their disposal and participate in directing martial activities. It is for this very reason that this force never became an independent one – war arises as a result of what can be termed a divine “chain reaction”. The existence of war is thus dependent on the gods who make it active as the result of a stimulus. It is significant that Ares, just like Polemos, is not fully autonomous.
  • National Register of Historic Places Inventory

    National Register of Historic Places Inventory

    Form No. ^0-306 (Rev. 10-74) UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SERVICE NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES INVENTORY - NOMINATION FORM FOR FEDERAL PROPERTIES SEE INSTRUCTIONS IN HOWTO COMPLETE NATIONAL REGISTER FORMS TYPE ALL ENTRIES -- COMPLETE APPLICABLE SECTIONS NAME HISTORIC Independence National Historical Park AND/OR COMMON LOCATION STREET & NUMBER 313 Walnut Street CITY. TOWN CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT t Philadelphia __ VICINITY OF STATE CODE COUNTY CODE PA 19106 CATEGORY OWNERSHIP STATUS PRESENT USE ^DISTRICT —PUBLIC —OCCUPIED —AGRICULTURE 2LMUSEUM -BUILDING(S) —PRIVATE X-UNOCCUPIED —^COMMERCIAL 2LPARK .STRUCTURE 2EBOTH —WORK IN PROGRESS —XEDUCATIONAL ^.PRIVATE RESIDENCE -SITE PUBLIC ACQUISITION ACCESSIBLE —ENTERTAINMENT —RELIGIOUS -OBJECT —IN PROCESS X-YES: RESTRICTED ^GOVERNMENT —SCIENTIFIC —BEING CONSIDERED — YES: UNRESTRICTED —INDUSTRIAL —TRANSPORTATION —NO —MILITARY —OTHER: REGIONAL HEADQUABIER REGION STREET & NUMBER CITY. TOWN STATE PHILA.,PA 19106 VICINITY OF COURTHOUSE, ____________PhiladelphiaREGISTRY OF DEEDS,ETC. _, . - , - , Ctffv.^ Hall- - STREET & NUMBER n^ MayTftat" CITY. TOWN STATE Philadelphia, PA 19107 TITLE DATE —FEDERAL —STATE —COUNTY _LOCAL CITY. TOWN CONDITION CHECK ONE CHECK ONE ^EXCELLENT —DETERIORATED —UNALTERED 2S.ORIGINALSITE _GOOD h^b Jk* SANWJIt's ALTERED _MOVED DATE. —FAIR _UNEXPOSED Description: In June 1948, with passage of Public Law 795, Independence National Historical Park was established to preserve certain historic resources "of outstanding national significance associated with the American Revolution and the founding and growth of the United States." The Park's 39.53 acres of urban property lie in Philadelphia, the fourth largest city in the country. All but .73 acres of the park lie in downtown Phila-* delphia, within or near the Society Hill and Old City Historic Districts (National Register entries as of June 23, 1971, and May 5, 1972, respectively).
  • North Carolina State Champions

    North Carolina State Champions

    NORTH CAROLINA JUNIOR STATE CLOSED CHAMPIONS by age division Boys’ 10s 1979 Singles: Michael Leonard (Laurinburg) def Sammy Stinnet (Bess City) Doubles: Michael Leonard (Laurinburg) / Victor Meir (Raleigh) def John Bristow (Hendersonville) / Joel Adelman (Greensboro) 1980 Singles: Victor Meir (Raleigh) def Willie Ellison (Laurinburg) Doubles: Willie Ellison (Laurinburg) / Scott Fligel (Charlotte) def ?? 1981 Singles: John Moody (Greensboro) def Marshall Burroughs (Raleigh) Doubles: John Moody (Greensboro) / Jon Hodges (Henderson) def Thomas Arnold/ John Ferguson 1982 Singles: Chad Alala (Hickory) def Marshall Burroughs (Raleigh) Doubles: Chad Alala (Hickory) / Marshall Burroughs (Raleigh) def Ako Barnes (Greensboro) / David Kim (Hickory) 1983 Singles: Peter Ayers (Charlotte) def Matt Rogers (High Point) Doubles: Matt Rogers (High Point) / Robert Wein (Greensboro) def Peter Ayers (Charlotte) / Mark Smith (Morganton) 1984 Singles: Stuart Sherrill (Charlotte) def Chris Hill (Chapel Hill) Doubles: Stuart Sherill (Charlotte) / Chris Hill (Chapel Hill) def Chris Menocal (Wilmington) / Jay Parker (Goldsboro) 1985 Singles: Jimmy Jackson (Chapel Hill) def Quentin Huff (Winston-Salem) Doubles: Chris Menocal (Wilmington) / Dan Parham (Wilson) def Ben Rubin (Winston-Salem) / Quentin Huff (Winston-Salem) 1986 Singles: David Britt (Charlotte) def. Ted Kaplan (Chapel Hill) Doubles: David Britt (Charlotte) / Rashad Simpson (Greensboro) def Chad Copenhaver (Hendersonville) / Ryan Fleming (Asheville) 1987 Singles: Rashad Simpson (Greensboro) def Fritz
  • Teacher Packet for Newburgh Conspiracy Lesson

    Teacher Packet for Newburgh Conspiracy Lesson

    Teachers’ Packet for the Newburgh Conspiracy Lesson - 1 - Introduction This packet has been created for teachers who want their students to learn about the Newburgh Conspiracy. It contains enough material for at least two lessons, and everything in this packet has been arranged in the order that it should be presented during classes. Consequently, all sections that are intended for use during the first lesson are located in the first half of the packet, and all sections that are intended for use during the second lesson are located in the second half of the packet. Although teachers using this packet will see that it contains the background material and the two original documents that students have to read, and the exercises they subsequently must do, they really don’t need to photocopy it for the young men and women they are teaching; they can simply make and distribute photocopies of the student handouts packet, which has everything they need. The material in this lesson is suitable for high school and college students, but probably not for anyone below that level. However, teachers working with elementary and middle school students are certainly free to look at all the materials in this packet and the Additional Resources listed in the back to create their own lessons pertaining to the Newburgh Conspiracy. They also may contact Dave Richards, the person who created the material in this packet and the author of Swords in Their Hands: George Washington and the Newburgh Conspiracy, through his website, which appears with his book in the Additional Resources list, for suggestions.
  • Robert Morris: America’S First Financier from Forbes Greatest Business Stories of All Time by Daniel Gross, Et Al

    Robert Morris: America’S First Financier from Forbes Greatest Business Stories of All Time by Daniel Gross, Et Al

    Robert Morris: America’s First Financier from Forbes Greatest Business Stories of All Time by Daniel Gross, et al. As the richest person in America during the Revolutionary War, Robert Morris was commonly known by the single name that encompassed his profession, his accomplishment, and his genius: he was referred to simply as “the Financier.” In the 1770s, when the United States was in its first throes of independence, Morris served as a statesman in the company of Adams, Franklin, and Jefferson. But by 1781, with the nation on the verge of forfeiting that independence to bankruptcy, he was the only choice for the newly created government post of Super- intendent of Finance, a position equivalent in the desperate days of 1781-82 to the head of the emerging executive branch. Before resigning in 1784, Morris had formulated a workable plan to restore the solvency of the United States. Though hindered from instituting his strategy completely, Morris at least staved off panic and managed to maintain the army—an estimable accomplishment. He also replaced the uncomfortable standoff between government and commerce that remained from the colonial era, establishing a closer yet freer relationship between government and business. “To do any good, [we] must infuse into traders of America a spirit of enterprise and direct their attention to such objects as will most benefit the pub- lick,” Morris insisted. “. Their own interest and the publick good goes hand in hand and they need no other prompter or tu- tor.” Robert Morris was the country’s first real businessman, and in many ways his life is a model for the mil- lions of people who have found success in the American economy he helped to create.
  • The Panic of 1796-1797

    The Panic of 1796-1797

    The Panic of 1796-1797 The first major financial crisis in the United States What came to be later known as the Panic of 1796-1797 was a series of cross-Atlantic economic slumps which hit the United States and Great Britain. History records that the primary cause for the crisis was a land speculation bubble which burst in 1796. In the run up to the crisis, wealthy people had invested a lot of their money in real estate, only to end up incarcerated in debtors’ prison after things went downhill. Perhaps the most prominent investor to meet this fate is Robert Morris Jr., a Founding Father and financier of American troops during the American War of Independence and a former U.S. Superintendent of Finance. A similar fall from grace as that of Morris came from another Founding Father, Henry Lee III, who, too, ended up in debtor’s prison. James Wilson, also a Founding Father, was also briefly locked up, until his son paid his debt. But luckily for Morris and Lee, they had friends in high circles, in the U.S. Congress. Both men were released under the Bankruptcy Act of 1800 that Congress passed, and repealed years later in 1803. Events such as these stimulated charges of nepotism and corruption in nascent U.S. politics. The crisis worsened under the Bank Restriction Act of 1797 after the Bank of England suspended specie payments, thus placing the Bank of England under no obligation to convert depositors’ banknotes into gold or silver coinage. This Act of Parliament had been necessitated because bank notes were overprinted, which goes to show the evils of fractional reserve lending.