To fill the vacancy left by the retirement of Professor Snyder, and to continue the college’s prominent role in this area, Dr. Troy Osborne has been appointed as Assistant Professor of History at Conrad Grebel University College, beginning July 1, 2011. He comes to Grebel from Bluffton University in Ohio where he has taught for the past three years.
Osborne notes:
The college has a reputation for scholarly excellence in Anabaptist studies, and I hope to continue the tradition of producing scholarship that contributes to both the historical discipline and the identity and life of the church. What makes Grebel an exciting place to work is the way its faculty contribute to their denominational communities while they pursue rigorous scholarly agendas.
Thrilled about the opportunity to join the Grebel community and faculty this summer, Osborne adds:
Grebel’s mission and values resonate deeply with my own identity, which has been shaped by a range of Mennonite institutions: family, church, colleges, seminary, and the InterMenno exchange program.
Professor Osborne is a historian whose research and teaching interests center generally on Mennonite history and the Reformation and particularly on the development of the Dutch Anabaptist tradition. He is revising his dissertation, Saints into Citizens: Mennonite discipline, social control, and religious toleration in the Dutch Golden Age for publication, and he is translating the 16th Century Dutch martyrology Het Offer des Heeren (The Sacrifice of the Lord) as part of the Classics of the Reformation series. At Bluffton University he taught Humanities, European and World History, Europe on Film, Medieval and Early Modern European Women’s History, Political Theory, The Reformation, and Mennonite History and Thought. Prior to his five years of teaching, Osborne studied the cultural history of religion at the University of Minnesota and theology and ethics at Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary.
Reflecting on his visit to the Grebel campus, Osborne was struck by:
the number of times that both the residential and the graduate students expressed a deep appreciation for the relationships they had with their professors. Without exception, they said that Grebel’s greatest strength comes from its sense of community. I will enjoy helping to build that community in the future through my teaching, research, and collegiality.
James Pankratz, Academic Dean, states:
We are confident that Troy Osborne will be a great asset to Grebel, to the University of Waterloo, and to those interested in Anabaptist-Mennonite history. His knowledge and expertise will continue the tradition of excellent scholarship established by Klaassen, Packull and Snyder. His creative teaching will bring fresh perspectives to the classroom and his friendly, approachable demeanour will enhance student-faculty rapport. We look forward to welcoming Troy, his wife Emma, and their two young daughters to our community.