Gladys Frantz-Murphy, PhD in Middle Eastern history, University of Michigan, teaches Middle Eastern and world history from an environmental perspective at Regis University in Denver. Since undergraduate days her interest in history grew out of investigating and trying to understand the origins and causes of the developmental gap between the “West” and the “Rest.” As a student of the Middle East she was impressed by the role played by environment and resources in history, a role neglected in historical narratives, but familiar to contemporaneous merchants, kings, and politicians.  Her current work on a trade book, The Middle East in World History: An Ecological Perspective, is the backdrop to teaching courses on “World History: An Environmental Perspective,” “Sustainability or Collapse,” “Oil and Water in the Middle East,” and “Sustainable Agriculture.” Her interest in Tuning arises from her department's overhaul of the History major as part of its ongoing five-year, academic unit review. She will be presenting at the 2013 Regis College Fall Faculty Conference that will focus on accountability in Higher Education in response to recent literature questioning the value of credentials as opposed to outcomes.

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