 
Donald Kagan |
Donald Kagan, the newly named Sterling Professor of Classics and History, is an authority on ancient Greek history and culture, as well as a scholar of diplomatic history.
A member of the Yale faculty since 1969, he has held major administrative posts throughout his Yale tenure, serving as dean of Yale College 1989-1992, acting director of athletics 1987-1988 and master of Timothy Dwight College 1976-1978. In addition, he has twice served as chair of the Department of Classics.
In his most recent book, "While America Sleeps: Self-Delusion, Military Weakness and the Threat to Peace Today" (co-authored with his son, Frederick), Kagan draws parallels between the United States today and Britain between the two world wars, and argues that America lacks the necessary military resources to meet, defend and support its extensive global commitments and foreign policies.
The teacher for more than 25 years of a popular Yale course called "The Origins of War," Kagan is the author of a four-volume history of the Peloponnesian War, which includes "The Outbreak of the Peloponnesian War," "The Archidamian War," "The Peace of Nicias and the Sicilian Expedition" and "The Fall of the Athenian Empire." His other books are "Pericles of Athens and the Birth of Democracy," "The Great Dialogue: A History of Greek Political Thought from Homer to Polybius" and "On the Origins of War and the Preservation of Peace." He co-authored "The Heritage of World Civilizations" and "The Western Heritage" and was editor of "Readings in Greek Political Thought," the two-volume "Problems in Ancient History" and "The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire in the West" (renamed "The End of the Roman Empire, Decline or Transformation?" in its third edition). Kagan also is co-editor of the two-volume "Great Issues in Western Civilization," now in its fourth edition.
The Yale classicist and historian earned his B.A. at Brooklyn College, an M.A. at Brown University and a Ph.D. at Ohio State University. He taught at Ohio State, Pennsylvania State and Cornell universities before coming to Yale. At Cornell, he won two prestigious teaching awards. He was similarly honored at Yale with the DeVane Medal, which is presented by the Yale chapter of Phi Beta Kappa for outstanding scholarship and teaching, and the Harwood Byrnes '08/Richard B. Sewall Teaching Prize, given annually to faculty members on the recommendations of undergraduates.
At Yale, Kagan was named the Richard M. Colgate Professor of History and Classics in 1979 and became the Bass Professor of History and Classics and Western Civilization in 1991. In 1995 he was named the Hillhouse Professor of History and Classics. The Sterling Professorship is the University's highest tribute to faculty members.
Kagan's other honors include a Distinguished Alumnus Award from Brooklyn College and the Sidney Hook Memorial Award for Distinguished Contributions to the Freedom and Integrity of the Academy, which is given by the National Association of Scholars. He has received fellowships from the Center for Hellenic Studies, the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences. In 1996 he was a guest scholar at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. He is a frequent commentator on national news programs and in national publications.
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