Stockton College Professor Earns Fulbright Grant

Richard Stockton College of New Jersey Historical Studies Professor Dr. Robert Nichols has been awarded with his fourth Fulbright Grant, the college announced this week. The grant will go toward establishing an American Studies Graduate Degree program at Quaid-i-Azam University in Islamabad, Pakistan.

The grant runs from August to mid-September of this year.

“Dr. Nichols exemplifies the college’s commitment to global perspectives, which are one of the cornerstones of a Stockton education and a hallmark of the Stockton faculty,” College President Herman J. Saatkamp said in a statement issued by the college. “We congratulate Rob on his fourth Fulbright, which just shows how distinctive he is."

Nichols has been a professor at the college since 2000. He specializes in the political, social, economic and cultural histories of Pakistan, South Asia and Afghanistan.

“I have been invited by the Area Studies Center of Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad, Pakistan to meet with the faculty and students of their long-established American Studies graduate degree program to discuss American Studies as taught at Stockton, to compare American Studies courses as taught in the United States and at their Center, and to confer about curriculum development opportunities as they expand and diversify their course offerings," Nichols said. “I have previously done research and lectured in Islamabad and around Pakistan and have specifically worked with colleagues at the Area Studies Center. These connections have led to the current grant.”

This grant is a specialist grant, which are for on-site work of a shorter duration than the research fellowships. It is Nichols' second specialist grant.

In 2011, he went to Islamabad, Pakistan, where he engaged in curriculum development consulting with the History Department faculty at Allama Iqbal Open University and with the American Studies faculty at Quaid-i-Azam University.

He also has two research fellowships. In 2010, he spent three months working on historical text research and translation projects in Pakistan.

He spent seven months in 2003 working on “An Indian Ocean Social History of Migration for Labor, c.1850-2000.”

He did research in India from January-April 2003 and the United Arab Emirates from May-July 2003.

“Dr. Nichols has been publishing extensively in the field of Indian Ocean history throughout his time at Stockton, and he has unique expertise in the histories of both Pakistan and Afghanistan,” said Robert Gregg, Dean of the School of Arts and Humanities. “It is very fitting that he should be selected for this great honor, so that he can work with colleagues at Quaid-i-Azam University, the leading university in Islamabad.”

“I have had good success at Stockton in pursuing a research agenda because of the complete support of the Dean of Arts and Humanities, Dr. Robert Gregg, a fine historian himself, and of the Provost's and President's offices,” Nichols said.

“Dr. Nichols is an extraordinary member of our faculty, and I am not surprised he has received this prestigious award and recognition,” Stockton Provost and Executive Vice President Dr. Harvey Kesselman said. “Having both a student and now a member of our faculty receive Fulbrights this year is substantial recognition of Stockton's growing academic reputation.”

Nichols has written or edited several books, including a recent publication, the edited volume "The Frontier Crimes Regulation, A History in Documents."

The Fulbright Program, founded in 1946 by the late William J. Fulbright, is sponsored by the U.S. Department of of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. It is now operational in 155 countries, and provides funding for students, scholars, teachers, and professionals for graduate study, advanced research, university teaching, and teaching in elementary and secondary schools.

There are many Fulbright grants, including those for post-doctoral research, specialist grants that allow American scholars to work on foreign campuses for shorter periods, and awards for graduate students.

Other Stockton faculty members have won Fulbrights over the years, including most recently, Dr. Joseph Lema, associate professor of Hospitality & Tourism Management. Dr. Lema’s Fulbright took him to the Republic of the Maldives in 2012, where he worked in cooperation with the Maldives College of Higher Education, the Ministry of Human Resources, the Ministry of Tourism Arts and Culture, and various stakeholders in the resort industry.