Dr. Travis Ricketts

Biography

What a blessing to sense that you’re doing exactly what God has called you to do vocationally! I do believe that teaching is what takes place in the lives of students, and to help them to locate themselves historically and understand that historical decisions, much like theirs, do have consequences, is a real privilege.

I used to spend part of my summers grading AP history exams. After a couple of summers of increasing frustration due to what I perceived to be loaded questions being asked of students, the Lord brought a different summer opportunity that enables me to travel and experience historical sites, bringing a better understanding of American history back to the classroom. I take a huge LED screen (www.tnvalleyled.com ) to major events ranging from Space Shuttle launches to Nation of Islam rallies.  Between events my family and I have been able to visit St. Augustine’s Castillo de San Marcos (1605), Colonial Williamsburg, Jamestown, Yorktown, Gettysburg, Valley Forge, Wright Patterson Air Force Base, and various museums in New York, Boston, Philadelphia, and Washington DC.

When not traveling or teaching, most of my time is spent admiring my wife, harvesting my fruits and vegetables, or enjoying my children (Stephen, Jonathan, and Madison), two of whom have now graduated from Bryan College.

Publications, Research, & Editing

• “African American Troops.” Article in Sandler, Stanley. ed., World War II in the Pacific: An Encyclopedia. New York: Garland Publishing 2001

Conference & Workshop Presentations

• Moderated Session at Bryan Center for Undergraduate Research (BCUR), 12 April 2019, at which three history majors presented papers.
• “How our View of Liberty Changed from the Founding Fathers to the Twentieth Century,” at the Col. Benjamin Cleveland Chapter Tennessee Society of Sons of the American Revolution, January 10, 2019.
• Moderated session Undergraduate Research History Conference at Southern Adventist, April 2015
• Free Market Forum, October 2014, Indianapolis, IN.
• Moderated session at Bryan Center for Undergraduate Research (BCUR), 28 March 2014.
• Purpose and Prosperity: Exploring the Confluence of Faith, Economics, and Public Policy, 2011, 2012, & 2013. American Enterprise Institute, Washington D.C. (Attended with students from Bryan.)
• Christian Student Leadership Conference, 2010 & 2012, National Association of Evangelicals, Washington D.C. (I took students for Federal Seminar course.)
• Free Market Forum, September 2007-2008, 2010-16, 2018-19.
• Free Market Forum, October 28-30, 2020 Charlotte NC
• Summit Ministries, October 2021, taught intensive course on God and Government in Colorado.
• Summit Ministries, October 2022, taught intensive course on God and Government in Colorado.
• American Enterprise Institute, Initiative on Faith & Public Life Retreat, January 2023.
• Chaired a panel at the SE TN Regional Student History Conference, April 11, 2023.