Wayne M. Riggs
Professional Profile
Dr. Wayne Riggs is Dean of Graduate and Education Programs at Flagler College. In this role, he oversees dynamic programs in Teacher Certification, Deaf Education, Classical Education, Global Education, Public Administration and Lifelong Learning. His passion for higher education stems from his background as a first-generation college graduate.
In addition to his role as Dean of Graduate and Education Programs, Dr. Riggs has served in several administrative and faculty leadership positions at the College, including Dean of Flagler-Tallahassee, inaugural Dean of the School of Humanities and Sciences, and Chair of the multi-disciplinary Humanities Department. Dr. Riggs also led efforts to design the College’s new Core Curriculum – grounding it in distinctive skills and the college’s Core Values. His emphasis on “leadership by consensus” has created an atmosphere of cooperation and trust amongst the offices, faculty, and staff with whom he has the privilege to work.
As a scholar and teacher, Dr. Riggs focuses on World War I and children’s history. His most recent article in the Journal for the History of Childhood and Youth, “Church Brigades and Battlefields” examines the profound impact of the brigade movement on the militarization of British youth prior to World War I. In the classroom, he emphasizes experiential learning through study abroad. In addition to leading short-term programs, he has developed partnerships with the University of the Highlands, the University of Wurzburg, and Ansbach University – creating opportunities for faculty and student exchanges.
Throughout his career, Dr. Riggs’ commitment to higher education and service to students have been foundational to his development as a faculty member and administrator. His leadership role as Dean allows him to continue serving students in their journey of transformative learning, and engage in the educational stewardship of our communities.
Teaching
Courses taught:
- Western Civilization II
- Modern Britain
- Tudor/Stuart England
- Modern Ireland
- Modern Germany
- 20th Century Europe
- 19th Century Europe
- Early Modern Europe
- British Empire
- World War I
- Religion and Nationalism in Modern Europe
- Redcoats and Rebels
- Churchill and Hitler
- Historical Methods
- History Senior Seminar
- Keystone Seminar
Previously taught at:
- Marquette University
- Cardinal Stritch University
Research
Select Presentations
Panel Chair and presenter
Brewers, Monks, and Pilgrims: The Intersection of Brewing and Monastic Life“The Pilgrimage of Beer Tourism: Changes in Beer Consumption in Monastic Breweries”
Midwest American Culture Association. October 2021
Panel Chair and presenter
“The Military and the Masculine: Creating a Boys’ Culture of Militarism in 20th Century Wars”
International Conference for the Society of the History of Children and Youth. June 2019
Australian Catholic University. Sydney, Australia
Panel Chair
“Adoption and Child Removal”
International Conference for the Society of the History of Children and Youth. June 2019
Australian Catholic University. Sydney, Australia
Session Moderator
Tibesar Lecture and Moderator on Culture & Religion in Florida
Flagler College. October 2018
Panel Chair and Presenter
“Sunday Schools and Battlefields: Anglican Religious Education during the First World War” International Conference for the Society of the History of Children and Youth. June 2017. Rutgers University
“A Wholesome Discipline: British Youth in the Established Churches during the Great War” International Conference for the Society of the History of Children and Youth. June 2013. Nottingham, UK.
Chair, Panel on Ancient History
Phi Alpha Theta Florida Regional Conference. April 2012. Rollins College
Organizer, Phi Alpha Theta Florida Regional Conference
Flagler College. April 2011
“Permission to Speak: British women in the national churches during the First World War” Modern British History Conference. June 2010. St. Andrews, Scotland
Select Publications
“Church Brigades and Battlefields: Militarizing British Boys Prior to World War I” (forthcoming, Journal of the History of Childhood and Youth)
“Permission to Speak: British Women in the Established Churches during the Great War, ” Women’s History Review (November 2018): 668-685.
Review of Costello, Ray. Black Tommies: British Soldiers of African Descent in the First World War. Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, 2015 (Journal of Military History)
Review of Olsen, Stephanie. Juvenile Nation: Youth, Emotions and the Making of the Modern British Citizen, 1880-1914. New York: Bloomsbury, 2014. Journal for the History of Children and Youth.
Review of Fletcher, Anthony. Life, Death and Growing Up on the Western Front. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2013. Journal of British Studies
Review of Wilson, Ross J. Landscapes of the Western Front: Materiality during the Great War. Routledge Studies in Modern War Series London: Routledge, 2012. Journal of British Studies
More Information
Dr. Riggs is an avid fan English football (Arsenal), American football (Steelers), college basketball (Marquette), and lacrosse.