Pictured above is Robert C. Harman
The College of Liberal Arts greatly appreciates the generous gift from Dr. Robert C. Harman, Emeritus faculty member of the Department of Anthropology, who created the Robert C. Harman Visiting Scholar in Applied Anthropology. The creation of the Robert C. Harman Visiting Scholar in Applied Anthropology fund will support the salary of a temporary visiting scholar within the Department, who will instruct master’s level courses. This gift will bring leaders in the field of applied anthropology to the CSULB campus where they will teach, lecture and perform scholarly research for one semester of the academic year.
The goal of this visiting scholar program is to further stimulate interest in Applied Anthropology in the Department and on the campus. Such a scholar program should enhance the prestige of the Anthropology Department at CSULB, add to its national reputation, and facilitate the recruitment of future excellent Applied Anthropology students. Dr. Harman comments that, “Many, myself included, believe that the future of the discipline lies with the applied area, and I wanted to leave a contribution to Applied Anthropology and CSULB at the same time.”
After receiving his PhD from the University of Arizona, Dr. Harman came to the CSULB Anthropology Department and taught at this campus for 36 years. He officially retired from the Anthropology Department in 2005. He played a large role in developing the Applied Anthropology Master’s Program at CSULB and created and taught the Practicing Anthropology course as well as the Applied Anthropology course, often chairing the Applied Anthropology Faculty Committee. He is a member of the Society for Applied Anthropology and has served on numerous of its committees.
Although retired from CSULB, Dr. Harman continues to do research among Mayan immigrants in Los Angeles and the Karen Hilltribe in Northern Thailand. His special areas of interest include aging, refugees, intercultural communication, and Applied Anthropology. Dr. Harman continues to publish on these subjects with his most recent publication being a contribution, “Older Persons” in Loucky, Armstrong, and Adam’s 2006 publication, Immigration in America Today: An Encyclopedia.
For further information regarding funding opportunities within the College of Liberal Arts, please contact Kevin Crowe, Director of Development at (562) 985-1619 or at kcrowe2@csulb.edu.
