Professor Troy Osborne, associate professor of History at Grebel and the University of Waterloo, has been selected as Grebel’s new dean, beginning January 1, 2019.
Troy is a historian whose research and teaching interests centre on Mennonite history and the Reformation, particularly on the development of the Dutch Anabaptist tradition. He is a creative and well-respected professor, teaching courses on the sixteenth-century Reformations, the Radical Reformation, Mennonite Studies, and European History. He is keenly interested in pedagogy, having researched and implemented novel forms of teaching in his classroom.
“We believe that Troy will be an enthusiastic advocate for the arts and Mennonite involvement in higher education,” said President Marcus Shantz. “He has expressed a firm commitment to the development of Grebel’s faculty by encouraging innovative teaching and supporting original scholarship, emphasizing the cultivation of a collegial culture amongst faculty, and between academic units and residence communities. He has a strong desire for his academic leadership to be imaginative and collaborative, and to be accessible to faculty, staff, and students.”
“I’m excited about taking on this new role at Grebel, a remarkable community of talented and accomplished teachers, scholars, staff, and students,” remarked Troy. “The college has an invaluable legacy of contributing to the Mennonite community, the University of Waterloo, and the broader community. I’m eager to build on our accomplishments and cultivate a vision for Grebel’s future.”
With a solid record of publishing in his field, including a forthcoming textbook on Anabaptist history, Troy is a strong scholar. In his seven years at Grebel, he has actively promoted scholarly engagement at the College through faculty forums, presentations, and discussions, as well as supervising graduate student research. He has served as acting director of Theological Studies, is currently the book review editor for The Conrad Grebel Review, and serves on the editorial board of Classics of the Radical Reformation.
Troy offers deep knowledge of and connection to other Mennonite institutions in North America and Europe. As a student, he attended Hesston College, Goshen College, and Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary, and then served as a professor of history at Bluffton University before coming to Grebel. While working on his PhD at the University of Minnesota, Troy conducted dissertation research in the Netherlands, connecting him to European Mennonite communities.
Troy succeeds Professor Marlene Epp who has skillfully served as Dean for a three-year term. This was her second term as Dean—the first occurred from 2002 to 2005. Marlene will continue at Grebel as professor of History and Peace and Conflict Studies.
