Each individual has the ability to be successful, but it’s up to you to work to your fullest potential. Walter Greason, Ph.D., associate professor and Chair of the Department of Educational Leadership and Counseling, used his knowledge to become a scholar and role model at Monmouth.
“It’s a pretty amazing place. I’ve been part of the Monmouth University community since 1984. My first college experiences were here. It’s given me so much and I just love having the opportunity to give back,” said Greason.
A graduate of Villanova University, Greason earned his bachelor’s degree in history, and he achieved three minors in English, philosophy, and peace and justice studies.
He also had a concentration in Africana Studies as a Presidential Scholar. Greason earned the Future Faculty Fellowship award and Ph.D. in U.S. and African American history from Temple University.
In the last 15 years, Greason focused on the economic history of how slavery developed the core assumptions of what economic development is and how it transitioned to Industrial Segregation, which is one of the names of his books. In today’s global economy, Greason studies how many people continue to reinforce inequality.
At Monmouth, Greason has taught business and economic development in U.S. history, corporate leadership courses in the Leon Hess business school for first year seminars, perspective courses on the evolution of American media, and a perspective course on the Black Panther Movement.
He also served as the former Dean of the Honors School, supervising over 70 honors thesis research projects from every department and/or school at Monmouth.
“The Honors School has been the most fun I ever had at Monmouth – supervising all the Honors research projects across the university. In the School of Education, I train principals and superintendents. I basically teach graduate education classes so that we get better educators here in New Jersey,” said Greason.
However, Greason found that being Dean offered many opportunities. “The Dean of the Honors School position is definitely underestimated. For me, the challenge was to attract more business, nursing, and social work students. These were schools that were not as connected to the Honors School in the past,” said Greason.
“As a Dean, there are a lot of administrative responsibilities that most faculty do not have. We completed a number of high profile, demanding initiatives that raised our profile nationally and internationally,” Greason continued.
“This past fall, for the first time, a Monmouth University Honors student won a top prize at a major national conference for his research. The Honors School always produced outstanding students, but my skill set was really helpful to get nationally ranked institutions to appreciate Monmouth University,” Greason added.
“I like that Dr. Greason has a wide range of knowledge and expertise in a variety of fields and is also personable. His ability to navigate interdisciplinary issues with ease, and his strong support of Monmouth’s student population, makes him someone that I am proud to call a mentor,” said Mehdi Husaini, junior biology student.
“His influence was vital in my being able to be a successful president of the Honors School Association and win a national award for research,” Husaini continued.
“It was great to work for Dr. Greason. I was always so impressed at the way he made time for every student,” said Kate Sosnowski, Assistant to the Dean of the Honors School.
Greason has also written or edited six academic books, and over one hundred academic essays and articles.
He believes that part of being a faculty member is publishing regularly. Greason noted that if you are not publishing, your level of teaching decreases.
“I have been involved in honors education my entire life. At dozens of different institutions, I acquired a dedication to accelerated research in undergraduate education. My whole life is built around honors education in a lot of ways,” said Greason.
He believes that the publication of his third book, The American Economy, and the recognition of his research with a grant from the National Endowment of the Humanities on the Black Digital Humanities, contributed to him being named Dean of the Honors School. This award took him to Purdue University in 2016 and Hamilton College In 2017.
“The combination of publishing the book in 2015 and winning the national grant in 2016 drew everyone’s attention to both my research agenda and my innovative pedagogy,” said Greason.
Gianni Mazzone, a junior finance and economics student, further confirmed Greason’s impact on his students. “Dr. Greason has been a great influence on my academic career. Completing research with him was great, as his vast array of knowledge allowed me to analyze my work from different viewpoints,” said Mazzone.
She continued, “He was a fantastic Dean of the Honors School, and he helped to guide me and many other honors students on a path to success.”
PHOTO COURTESY of Walter Greason
