The Department of History would like to congratulate Sean A. Wempe (Class of 2009) who will begin a tenure track job in Modern European History at California State University- Bakersfield.  Dr. Wempe is a second generation MSU student, following in his father’s Joseph Wempe’s footsteps, who attended MSU when it was SMSU.   Dr. Wempe’s appointment fulfills a dream of his.  He writes, “I have wanted to be a history prof since I was 6 yrs old sitting with my mom in her college night classes.” His mom, Kelly Wempe, attended Avila University in Kansas City, and was like many of our students–a first generation, adult student who juggled multiple responsibilities to gain a college education.  That desire clearly influenced her son, who has worked diligently to not only fulfill his own dream but also make college accessible to students like his mom.  Like many newly minted Ph.D’s in history, Dr. Wempe did not obtain a tenure track job right out graduate school.  He accepted a Teaching Postdoctoral Fellowship in the History Department at Washington State University to become a better teacher and to continue his scholarship.  Since his graduation from Emory (where he obtained his Ph.D. in 2015) Dr. Wempe has published two articles and has two book contracts with Oxford University Press. His first book, Revenants of the German Empire: Colonial Germans, the League of Nations, and the Redefinition of Imperialism, 1919-1933, is in production and is scheduled for a 2019 release with Oxford University Press. This first monograph is framed by the 1919 Treaty of Versailles, the formation of the League of Nations Mandates System, the 1925 Locarno Conference, and the Manchurian Crisis of the early 1930s.  In Dr. Wempe’s words, “The book explores how German men and women from Germany’s former African colonies exploited transnational opportunities to recover, renovate and market their understandings of European colonial aims in order to reestablish themselves as “experts” and “fellow civilizers” in European and American discourses on citizenship, nationalism, and imperialism.” His second book, A Global History of Public Health and Inequality, will be a textbook, pre-contracted with Oxford and scheduled for a 2019 completion and a 2020 release.  His ongoing research interests include imperialism, internationalism, Germany, Africa, and the history of Public Health.

Dr. Wempe has distinguished himself as a generous teacher/scholar.  He writes, “I am very excited about the new post and very grateful to the History department at  Missouri State for all the help the department gave me in reaching grad school and attaining this life-long goal. I am especially grateful to Steve McIntyre, Eric Nelson, Wayne Bartee, and the late and sorely missed Andy Lewis. All of them put in extraordinary efforts and worked countless additional hours mentoring me, even after I graduated with my BA in 2009. They are educators that truly go above and beyond the call of duty.”  He continues, “I never thought I could afford it or succeed. I made it and I am so happy that I can go on helping students like the professors who helped my mom get through college as a non-traditional, first gen student.”

Dr. Wempe’s success is his own but we are thrilled that Missouri State University played a role in helping him obtain his dream.   We also hope that his example will encourage other students to follow their passion and “find their place” as students and teachers of history.”