Rate My Professor Scott Stabler

Scott Stabler is a Professor of History in the History Department at Grand Valley State University, where he joined the faculty in 2004 as Assistant Professor, was promoted to Associate Professor in 2010, and to full Professor in 2017. He holds a Ph.D. in History from Arizona State University (2005), with a dissertation entitled 'Race, Reaction, Policy and Perception: A tri-cultural study of postbellum America through the life of General O.O. Howard'; an M.A. in History from the University of Houston (1999), with a thesis on 'The Policy of Peace: U.S. Grant and the Foundations for His Indian Policy'; and a B.A. in Business from Baylor University (1989). Prior to his academic career, Stabler served as a certified high school social studies teacher in Texas public schools (1994–1998) and as a professional baseball umpire for Major League Baseball's Umpire Development program (1990–1993). His teaching portfolio includes courses on the Civil War and Reconstruction, U.S. history surveys, and social studies methods, and he supports preservice teachers during their student teaching experiences. Stabler served as a Fulbright Scholar and Visiting Professor of History at the University of Cape Coast in Ghana (2011) and as Visiting Professor at Pädagogische Hochschule Schwäbisch Gmünd in Germany (2012).

Stabler's research focuses on the U.S. Civil War era, Reconstruction, African American troops, and U.S. Indian policy, particularly through figures like Oliver O. Howard and Ulysses S. Grant. His publications include the forthcoming book Onward Christian General: Oliver Otis Howard’s Civil Wars and Postbellum America (University of Kansas Press); “The Odd Couple: William T. Sherman, O.O. Howard, Loyalty, Soldiery, and the Freedpeople” (with Eleanor Gleason), The Journal of America’s Military Past (2021); “Slave to Soldier: United States Colored Troops in the West During the Civil War” (with Martin J. Hershock), Critical Race Studies Across Disciplines (2021); “‘Standing on the Banks’: African American Troops in the Vicksburg Campaign” (with Martin J. Hershock), Vicksburg Besieged (2020); “Two Paths to Peace: Oliver Otis Howard, Negotiator to Cochise and Joseph,” Military History of the West (2018); and co-editor of ABC-Clio’s Ideas and Movements that Shaped America, 3 vols. (2015). He has contributed to editorial roles as Book Review Editor for H-CivWar and referee for journals like Oregon Historical Quarterly. Awards include the GVSU Alumni Association Educator of the Year (2021), Inclusion and Equity Faculty Fellow (2018–2020), Mel Miller Mentor of the Year from the Michigan Council for the Social Studies (2007), and Grand Valley State University Research Grant (2010). Stabler has presented at conferences such as the Western History Association and Organization of American Historians.