Dr. Brad Tennant 

Brad B. Tennant

Presentation College
1500 N. Main
Aberdeen, SD  57401
W: (605) 229-8577
C: (605) 216-4283
brad.tennant@presentation.edu
 

EDUCATION

2007               University of South Dakota
                       Doctor of Education: History Education
                       Dissertation: A Comparative Analysis of Developing Countries and Their Progress
                       Toward Universal Primary Education

2003                University of North Dakota
                        Master of Arts in History
                        Thesis:  “Excluding Indians Not Taxed” – An Examination of the Phrase’s Impact
                        on the Legal Status of American Indian Individuals.

1987                Northern State University
                        Master of Arts in Teaching: Social Science (History emphasis)
                        Thesis: The Role of the Initiative in South Dakota Lawmaking.

1983               Northern State University
                        BS in Secondary Education (Magna Cum Laude)
                        Major: Social Science  Minor: History

TEACHING EXPERIENCE AND RELATED ACTIVITIES

2010-               Associate Professor of History (tenured 2008), Presentation College, Aberdeen,
                        SD.  Courses taught include: United States History I and II, World Civilization I and
                        II, History and the American Indian, The American West, The Middle Ages,  
                        Developing Nations, and the History of Food.

2006-2010      Assistant Professor of History, Presentation College, Aberdeen, SD.                          2001-2006      History Instructor, Presentation College, Aberdeen, SD.                                           1989-2001      Adjunct Instructor of History, Presentation College, Aberdeen, SD.                      

Fall 1990         Adjunct Instructor of Social Science Teaching Methods, Northern State University, Aberdeen, SD.

1983-2001      Social Science Teacher, Roncalli High School, Aberdeen, SD.

1988, 1994      Chair of the Aberdeen Catholic School System K-12 Social Science Curriculum Study Committee.

CONSULTATION ACTIVITIES

Interviewed and consulted as a historian for South Dakota Public Radio, National Public Radio, North Dakota Prairie Public Radio, numerous newspapers, and several area video programs.

Moderator for the South Dakota “National Youth Summit - The Dust Bowl Years.” A Smithsonian Institution grant administered by the South Dakota State Museum – Smithsonian Affiliates program, October 2012.

South Dakota Humanities Council program evaluator for the Storybook Land Festival (July 2011; July 2009) and the Dakota Conference (April 2008).

Contributor and consultant to “Brown County Personalities: A Look At Those Who Made It Happen.”  Kaleidoscope Media and the Dacotah Prairie Museum, June 2011.

Reviewer for the South Dakota Humanities Council's Life on the Farm & Ranch - South Dakota Stories, February 2010.

Reviewer for the State Historic Preservation Office's Central South Dakota Tourism Education Program - "Celebrating Pierre and Fort Pierre's Heritage," January 2010.

Reviewer for the Timber Lake and Area Historical Society’s book, Timber Lake and Area Centennial History 1910-2010, November 2009.

Reviewer for the SDSHS's traveling exhibit Living Traditions: Dakota, Nakota, and Lakota Art. February 2009.

Peer Reviewer for Analytical Reports in International Education, an international refereed journal.  November 2007.

Consultant for American Stories: A History of the United States (© 2008) by Brands, Breen, Williams, and Gross, Prentice Hall/Longman Publishers, 2007.

South Dakota Department of Education Accreditation reviewer for various South Dakota public and private universities  (2009, 2008, 2006, 2003, 2001, 1993).  Reviewed standards for History Education programs.

Summers 1988-1991    Architectural Surveyor and Historic Register Nomination Consultant,
Aberdeen/Brown County Landmarks Commission, Aberdeen, SD.  Prepared preliminary reports, presentations, grants, and nominations for the State Historic Preservation Center and the National Register of Historic Places.

PUBLICATIONS

“The 1861 Organic Act and Dakota Territory,” forthcoming in South Dakota History.

“Did Lewis and Clark Anticipate the Teton Encounter?”  We Proceeded On forthcoming February 2013.

“Catlin and Audubon: Impressions of the Fur Trade Frontier” Heritage of the Great Plains, vol. XLV, no. 2 (Winter 2013). (refereed)

 Making Sense of the American Civil War Discussion Guide, (Editor) South Dakota Humanities Council, 2012.

“The Arikara: Roadblock to the American Fur Trade on the Northern Great Plains,”  Heritage of the Great Plains, vol. XLIV, no. 2 (Winter 2012). (refereed)

"Lewis and Clark's 'Uneasy' Return Through South Dakota," The Pirogue - Encounters On The Prairie Newsletter, vol. 4, no. 1 (Fall 2011).

"'Excluding Indians Not Taxed’ - Dred Scott, Standing Bear, Elk and the Legal Status of Native Americans in the Latter Half of the Nineteenth Century,” International Social Science Review, vol. 86, no. 1/2 (Spring/Summer 2011). (international refereed journal)

“The Meaning of Wakan and Sacred Sites of the Sioux,” The Year of Change!  (2009 Monograph Series), Scarborough, ME: NAAAS & Affiliates, 2009.

"Reading Between the Lines," We Proceeded On, vol. 35, no. 1 (February 2009).

“To Preserve Peace on the Frontiers: Federal Regulation and the Fur Trade,” Rocky Mountain Fur Trade Journal, vol. 2 (2008). (refereed)

“The 1864 Sully Expedition and the Death of Captain John Feilner,"  American Nineteenth Century History, vol. 9, no. 2 (June 2008). (refereed)

“A Comparative Analysis of Six Developing Countries and Their Progress Toward Universal Primary Education,"  Analytical Reports in International Education, vol. 2, no.1 (March 2008).  (international refereed journal)

“After Lewis and Clark: Expedition Personalities and South Dakota History,” Heritage of the Great Plains, vol. XL, no. 2 (Fall/Winter 2007). (refereed)

“Forgotten Souls and Stories,” South Dakota Magazine, (September/October 2007).

“Fame over Misfortune – La Verendrye and the Opening of the Western Fur Trade,” Rocky Mountain Fur Trade Journal, vol. 1 (2007). (refereed)

Relief and Recovery: The New Deal in Brown County, (Book co-author) Aberdeen, SD: Aberdeen/Brown County Landmarks Commission, 2005. 

“Dakota Images – Elliott Coues,” South Dakota History, vol. 35, no. 1 (Spring 2005).

The Lewis and Clark Expedition: Then and Now (Two book chapters), Sioux Falls, SD: Center for Western Studies, 2004.

"Lewis and Clark and the Louisiana Purchase," We Proceeded On, vol. 29, no. 3 (August 2003).

“The Teton Incident,” Lewis and Clark’s Expedition, Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory, Spring 2000.

Economics Today Teacher’s Guide (Contributing author), New York: Glencoe Publishing, 2000. 

1992 Kids Voting South Dakota Curriculum Guide (Contributing editor), Kids Voting USA, Inc., 1992. 

BOOK REVIEWS

Fur, Fortune, and Empire by Eric Jay Dolin, Great Plains Quarterly, vol. 31, no. 3 (Summer 2011).

The North American Journals of Prince Maximilian of Wied, Volume II: April-September 1833, Stephen S. Witte and Marsha V. Gallagher, eds., South Dakota History, vol. 41, no. 2 (Summer 2011).

The North American Journals of Prince Maximilian of Wied, Volume I: May 1832-April 1833, Stephen S. Witte and Marsha V. Gallagher, eds., South Dakota History, vol. 39, no. 1 (Spring 2009).

The Chouteaus: First Family of the Fur Trade by Stan Hoig, South Dakota History, vol. 38, no. 3 (Fall 2008).

A Vast and Open Plain: The Writings of the Lewis and Clark Expedition in North Dakota, 1804-1806 by Clay S. Jenkinson, South Dakota History, vol. 34, no. 2 (Summer 2004).

SELECTED PRESENTATIONS

I presented approximately 200 programs on topics related to state and regional history to a variety of community and civic organizations.  As a South Dakota Humanities Council scholar, I presented over 150 programs on various aspects of the Lewis and Clark Expedition..  The presentations listed are a select sample.

NEH/ALA (SDHC/SDSL) “Making Sense of the American Civil War” reading/discussion series - Mobridge, Pierre, Sturgis, Sioux Falls, SD.

“The Lewis and Clark Expedition and American Indians,” South Dakota Association of Bilingual Bicultural Education (SDABBE) Conference, Rapid City, SD, October 6, 2012; Dunham Historical Society, Wessington Springs, SD, July 24, 2012.

“The Arikara,” LCTHF Fall 2012 Regional Meeting, Ft. Pierre, SD.

"Creating Dakota Territory." Aberdeen Area Genealogical Society, September 8, 2012; Dakota Midlands Corral of Westerners International, October 2011.

“La Verendrye and the Opening of the Western Fur Trade,” Dakota Midlands Corral of Westerners International, Aberdeen, SD, September 7, 2012; Museum of the Mountain Man, Pinedale, WY, 2007.

"The 1863 and 1864 Sully Military Expeditions," Pollock Visitor and Interpretive Center, Pollock, SD (August 12, 2012); Whitestone Hill [ND] Battlefield State Historical Site (August 2011); Groton Kiwanis, Groton, SD.

"The Meaning of Wakan and Sacred Sites of the Sioux." SDHC Speakers Bureau Program, Marshall County Historical Society, Britton, SD (May 24, 2012); National Association of Native American Studies (NANAS) Annual Conference, Baton Rouge, LA.

“The Arikara.”  Presentation College Lunch and Learn (Feb. 16, 2012); SDHC Speakers Bureau Program, Klein Museum, Mobridge, SD; EOTP Central South Dakota Lewis and Clark Chapter, Ft. Pierre, SD; Faulk County Historical Society Annual Meeting, Faulkton, SD.

“SD101:  Early South Dakota Ethnic Settlements.”  Zion Lutheran Church, Aberdeen, SD, October 10, 2011.

“Readings on Lakota/Dakota Traditional Values.” South Dakota Reading Council State Conference, Sioux Falls, SD, July 2011.

"Being Dakota: The 1861 Organic Act and Dakota Territory," South Dakota State Historical Society History Conference Keynote Address, Pierre, SD, May 2011.

"Early Ethnic Groups in Brown County," Aberdeen Lions Club, May 2011; Brown County Historical Society, Aberdeen, SD, March 2011.

"Images of the Northern Plains - The Pen and Brush of Alfred Sully," SDHC Speakers Bureau program - Faulk County Historical Society Annual Meeting, April 2011; Presentation College Lunch-n-Learn, October 2010; Dakota Midlands Corral of Westerners International, September 2010.

“Reading Between the Lines: Lewis and Clark’s Encounter with the Lakota,” Missouri Valley History Conference Panel Discussion on "The Lewis and Clark Expedition Revisited," Omaha, NE, March 2011.

"No Graves or Epitaphs - Remembering the Forgotten of Past Generations," West River History Conference Keynote Address, Rapid City, SD, September 2010.

"Encounter With the Teton Sioux: What Lewis & Clark didn't write about their 1804 experience at the Bad River."  Regional Meeting of the LCTHF, Ft. Pierre, SD, August 15, 2009.

“To Preserve Peace on the Frontiers: Federal Regulation and the Fur Trade.” Museum of the Mountain Man, Pinedale, WY, July 12, 2008.

"Lewis and Clark" and "Medicine Rock."  Presented at the Dakota Sunset Museum, Gettysburg, SD, June 28, 2008.

"The Opening of the Western Fur Trade."  Keynote address for the South Dakota State Historical Society History Conference, Rapid City, SD, May 2008. A variation of this program was presented for the Encounters on the Prairie Lewis and Clark Chapter at the Wakpa Sica Reconciliation Center, October 2008.

“New Deal Agencies in South Dakota.”  Variations of this program were presented to the South Dakota Rural Electric Association, Marshall County Historical Society, Groton Kiwanis, Aberdeen AAUW, South Dakota Lions Past District Governors, and All Aberdeen Reads. July 2007 – May 2008.

“Pioneer Life on the Northern Plains.” Westport Cemetery Memorial Dedication for Unmarked Pioneer Graves, June 2, 2007.

“Developing South Dakota’s Infrastructure during the New Deal Era,” South Dakota State Historical Society Annual Meeting, Pierre, SD, April 2006.

“Reading Lewis and Clark Across the Curriculum.” South Dakota Reading Council State Conference, Pierre, SD, 2006.

 “The Lewis and Clark Journals,” South Dakota Reading Council State Conference, Aberdeen, SD, 2005.

“Lewis and Clark in South Dakota,” South Dakota State Historical Society Annual Meeting, Pierre, SD, 2003.

Session Chair for the Dakota Conference 2000, 2006-2010, 2012.

Papers Presented at the Dakota Conference, Center for Western Studies, Augustana College, Sioux Falls, SD:

            2012 - "Catlin and Audubon: Impressions of the Fur Trade Frontier"
            2011 - "Images of the Northern Plains - The Pen and Brush of Alfred Sully"
            2010 - “The Arikara: Roadblock to the American Fur Trade on the Upper Missouri”
                         (Teagarden Professional Scholar Award)
            2009 -  "American Cousins: J. B. S. Todd and the Lincolns”                              

            2008 – “‘To Preserve Peace on the Frontiers’ – Federal Regulation and the Fur Trade”
            2007 – “Sacred Sites of the Sioux”
            2006 – “After Lewis and Clark: Expedition Personalities and South Dakota History"
            2005 – “Reading Between the Lines: Lewis and Clark’s Encounter with the Lakota”
                        (Teagarden Professional Scholar Award)
            2004 – “Understanding the Parameters of the Louisiana Purchase”
            2003 – “Lewis and Clark in North Central South Dakota” (Honorable Mention)
            2002 – “The Sexual Exploits of the Lewis and Clark Expedition”
            2001 – “The Military Aspects of the Lewis and Clark Expedition”
            2000 – “Fulfillment of Jefferson’s Expectations” (co-presenter)
            1999 – “Corps of Discovery – Scenarios of Disaster” (co-presenter)
            1998 – “An Interdisciplinary Study of Lewis and Clark in the Dakotas”
            1997 – “United States Citizenship and American Indians”
            1996 – “Tracing Intertribal Trade on the Northern Plains”
            1995 – “La Verendrye Family – Fame Over Misfortune”
            1994 – “More Than a Rock – The Historical Significance of Medicine Rock”
            1993 – “The 1864 Sully Expedition and the Death of Captain John Feilner”
            1992 – “Relief and Recovery: The WPA in Brown County” (Second Place)
            1991 – “A Gathering of Peoples – The Ethnicity of Early Day Brown County”
            1990 – “Historical Architecture of Brown County”
            1989 – “A History of the Initiative in South Dakota Lawmaking”
            1986 – “Red Horizons: South Dakota Prairie Fires”

GRANTS AND FELLOWSHIPS

NEH/ALA “Making Sense of the American Civil War” grant (2011-2013) - SDHC/SDSL Program
     Development and Professional Scholar. 
South Dakota Humanities Council Research Grant (2010) - Researched the "Alfred Sully Papers" at
     Yale University's Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library.
2010 Fulbright Scholar Program finalist - Letter of invitation from Marburg University (Germany)
James Madison Fellowship
Christa McAuliffe Fellowship
William Robertson Coe Fellowship
Council for Basic Education Research Grant
National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowship
South Dakota State Historic Preservation Office grant (1990)
South Dakota State Historic Preservation Office grant (1989)
Rotary International Group Study Exchange Fellowship to India.

PROFESSIONAL HONORS

April 2011 - Reappointed to the South Dakota State Historical Society Board of Trustees by Governor Dennis Daugaard.  Previously appointed to the BOT by Governor M. Michael Rounds in 2007 for a one year term and reappointed in 2008 for a full three year term.

2010 Ernest Teagarden Professional Scholar Award, Forty-Second Annual Dakota Conference on Northern Plains History, Literature, Art, and Archaeology.  Center for Western Studies, Sioux Falls, SD.

2008 Promotion of the Mission Award, Presentation College.

2005 Ernest Teagarden Professional Scholar Award, Thirty-Seventh Annual Dakota Conference on Northern Plains History, Literature, Art, and Archaeology.  Center for Western Studies, Sioux Falls, SD.

2003 Dakota Conference Award for Distinguished Contribution to the Preservation of the Cultural Heritage of South Dakota and the Northern Plains.  Center for Western Studies, Sioux Falls, SD.

2000 Stan and Ilene Schmidt Award for Roncalli High School Teacher of the Year.

1996 Pi Gamma Mu Honorary Alumni Member, Northern State University.

1994 Governor’s Award for South Dakota History Teacher of the Year.

1992 Outstanding Young Educator of the Year, Aberdeen Junior Chamber of Commerce.

PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES

South Dakota State Historical Society Board of Trustees - President (2008 - present)

AP Reader - United States History, 2011; 2012.

South Dakota Humanities Council Speakers Bureau – Presenter on various topics related to state and regional history.

Aberdeen/Brown County Landmarks Commission (Oct. 2003 – Sept. 2007; Feb. 2008 - present)

Presenter/historian – The Lewis and Clark Bicentennial Resource Guide, South Dakota Department of Tourism.

Committee assignments at Presentation College:

            -     Gallery Director - Wein Gallery, Presentation College (Fall 2009- present)
            -     Arts and Sciences Core Curriculum Committee and Sub-Committee (2009-present)
            -      BS in General Studies Committee (2011-2012)

            -      Promotion and Tenure Committee (2008-present)

            -      Interview Committee for Social Work Faculty (2009) 

            -      Outstanding Faculty Award Criteria Ad Hoc Committee Chair (2009)

            -      7-12 Education Program Development Committee (2008-present)

            -      Student Services and Facilities Committee (2007-2008)

            -      Institutional Technology Ad Hoc Committee (2008)                                                   
            -      Interview Committees for Library Director and Nursing Faculty (2007)
            -      College Honor Code Ad Hoc Committee Chair (2006-2007)
            -      Promotion and Tenure Ad Hoc Committee (2007; 2008)
            -      Faculty Assembly President (2003-2004)
            -      Faculty Assembly Vice-President (2002-2003)
            -      Academic Advising Coordinator (2002-2004)
            -      Academic Council (2004)
            -      General Education Curriculum Committee (2003)
            -       President’s Task Force on Faculty Research and Writing (2001)
            -       Learning Community Task Force (2001)

Leadership Aberdeen – Class of 2000.  Conducted by the Aberdeen Area Chamber of Commerce.

PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS

Lewis and Clark Trail Heritage Foundation
Encounters on the Prairie – Central South Dakota Lewis and Clark Chapter
South Dakota State Historical Society
Western History Association
Center for Western Studies

National Council for the Social Studies

South Dakota Council for the Social Studies
Dakota Sunset Museum
Brown County Historical Society (Vice-President)
Dakota Midlands Corral of Westerners International