Nazareth Professor Honored with Appointment to the Frederick Douglass Bicentennial Commission
U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer has named David Anderson, visiting professor at Nazareth College, to the Frederick Douglass Bicentennial Commission. The national commission was created in November to organize events and celebrations regarding the 200th anniversary of Frederick Douglass’ birth.
Anderson, a visiting community scholar from the College of Arts and Sciences and School of Education at Nazareth College, has spent much of his academic focus on Frederick Douglass and his family--a few of whom still reside in Rochester. "We are trying to make sure that we have a voice that is for Frederick Douglass, but also make sure that his family is better known and recognized. It is the family that helped to make him the man that he was and the important historical figure that he became," said Anderson. "Hopefully this appointment will give me the chance to advance that cause. Frederick Douglass, his wife, and his five children resided in Rochester, New York longer than any other place in their existence."
Anderson chairs the Rochester/Monroe County Freedom Trail Commission, which helped in organizing and convening the four day “Frederick Douglass International Underground Railroad Conference and Festival” in Rochester in 2007. Also, Anderson collaborated with Nazareth professors Timothy Kneeland, Marie Watkins, and Tim Wieder in guiding students in production of an Underground Railroad exhibit. The ten-panel mobile exhibit debuted at the 2007 conference.
“This commission will immortalize a Rochester civil rights hero who fought his entire life for the emancipation, equality, and dignity of every American at a time when our democracy was far from perfect,” said Senator Schumer, who also announced that the commission would host a meeting in Rochester this coming year.
Nazareth University is an inclusive community of inspired learners, educators, and changemakers who for nearly 100 years have been driven by a bold commitment to action, empathy, equity, and leading innovation for the common good. Impact experiences are at the heart of a Nazareth education, preparing each student to discover within themselves the potential to cultivate positive change in their life's work, in any career field, and in a world that is constantly evolving and infinitely interconnected.
Our broad academic offerings present a range of study options typical of larger universities, yet achieved in our supportive campus culture. Nearly 2,100 undergrad and 600 graduate students enroll in degree and certificate programs and engage in collaborative, transformative learning experiences, preparing for the professions and society of today and tomorrow. In a learning community that purposefully integrates liberal arts and professional programs, Nazareth University graduates are able to launch a lifetime of impactful leadership in communities and workplaces near and far.
Photo courtesy of Sen. Chuck Schumer's office.