On May 3, 2018, the MSU Texas History Department host a retirement reception for Everett W. Kindig. Kindig had been a professor at MSU Texas for 47 years and he will be retiring at the end of the 2018 Spring Semester.

Lisa D. Moore English graduate said that Kindig was a very approachable professor.

“If I can describe Dr. Kindig in one word, that will be friendly,” Moore said.

Moore said that Dr. Kindig was a very detailed professor that was willing to answer his students’ questions with exact answers. Moore also said one of the best qualities about Kingig is his experience as a professor.

“I had him for Fall of 2016 and that was Age of Washington and Jefferson,” Moore said. “I could go to him with questions and he would give me really good and exact answers. I knew I was dealing with someone who was very experienced. And who knew his stuff.”

Harry P. Hewitt, chair of the history department, said that the Kindig’s accomplishments gained him a lot of respect among many students and faculty members. Hewitt also said that Kindig assisted a lot of graduate students pursuit their master’s degrees.

“What I appreciated the most about him was his academic and professional accomplishments,” Hewitt said. “He wasn’t necessarily the most popular professor. Yet he always had a fair share of graduate students that worked with him. He helped them get their masters degrees.”

Hewitt also said that Kindig was a very calm and productive professor.

“He seemed to be this level headed professor who did his job,” Hewitt said. “And who got it done. That was what I appreciated the most.”

Hewitt said that Kindig’s most successful accomplishment was becoming a full-time professor at MSU. Hewitt also said that before Kindig became a full-tme professor, he was the only one at the history department.

“In many ways his most successful accomplishment was achieving the rank of full professor,” Hewitt said. “At one time, I was the only full professor and many of the others that time had retired.”

Hewitt also explained how Kindig helped a established a Phi Alpha Theta history honors society chapter at MSU Texas. Under Kindig, this chapter also won numerous of awards, including the award of best chapter.

“He also organized the Phi Alpha Theta chapter which he was the advisor of until a couple of years ago. The entire time of his tenure, 1974 to 2015, he headed this up and this chapter won various awards including that of best chapter. He encouraged the students to help put reports together.”

Hewitt said that Kindig is very modest given his academic success. This success includes graduating with a doctorate degree at Sanford University.

“His best quality is his cooperative and low-key approach of doing things,” Hewitt said. “He doesn’t let things bother him. He graduated from Stanford University which is a very prestigious university. I’m sure not everyone with a PhD is as mild mannered as Dr. Kindig.”

Hewitt said that there has been a large supply of professors that have been hired in recent years. The newest members of the history department include associate professor, Leland Turner, and assistant professors, Whitney Snow and Tiffany Amber Ziegler.

“I’ve been so impressed with the people out there looking for jobs,” Hewitt said. “And the competition is fierce. He had close to a hundred people applying for the job.”

Despite retiring himself next fall sememster, Hewitt said that he is sastified with the future of the history department.

“The history department is in good hands,” Hewitt said. “Even though I’m going to retire in December, there is still a nucleus of professors that will be able to chart their own course.”

Hewitt said that the reason for his retirement is that the MSU history department needs more professors that are able to accomendate modern education.

“The world is going in a different direction,” Hewitt said. “I don’t fit in with online classes. I prefer lectures so the current teaching environment doesn’t appeal to me.”

Everett W. Kindig, history professor, said that his most memorable moment as an MSU Texas professor was forming the Phi Alpha Theta chapter.

“I have organized the history honors society which is a group that belongs to a national history honors society,” Kindig said. “We have up to 40 to 50 members. I also enjoyed seeing many students graduate.”

Kindig said that his last year as an MSU Texas professor felt very rushed.

“One thing about teaching is that it doesn’t slow down until you stop,” Kindig said. “I’ve been wrapping up committee work and all sorts of other things. I also had two classes this semester so it has been really busy.”

Before becoming a professor, Kindig said that he anticipated that he would have spent most of his time researching and writing. However, he said that he spent most of his time with assisting the students.

“I didn’t expect to have spent most of my time with the students,” Kindig said. “However, I enjoyed teaching. I anticipated that I would have spent most of my time writing and researching. There is also a large amount a students to serve. However, it was a fun time being a professor.”

King explained the first and last class he had taught at MSU Texas.

“I was hired to teach most of the early U.S. history,” Kindig said. “When I first came here I was teaching American history during the Andrew Jackson Era and this is the class that I’m teaching now.”

Kindig said that his favorite classes to teach are Jacksonian history as well as the American Civil War. He said he enjoys military history as well as early American history.

“It would be hard to decide between Jackson and Civil War,” Kindig said. “I enjoy teaching both. Maybe because I like military history. However, under Jackson, a lot of changes were taking place at that time.”

Kindig explained his first year as an MSU Texs professor. He said that he taught a new course that he was unfamiliar with and he also explained how difficult it was preparing for it.

“It was hetic. First of all, I knew very few people,” Kindig said. “I have taught survey courses before in California but I have not taught courses on Jackson. Preparing for courses is a lot of work.”

Kindig said that retiring at MSU Texas is not the end of his academic career. He will primarily focus on writing about historical contexts.

“I’ve always like to write about history,” Kindig said. “I’m writing a biography now. I am also writing a couple of articles about the Jackson period.”

Kindig also said that he is planning on travelling to New England after he officially retires.

“I also plan on travelling more,” Kindig said. “Despite teaching early America history, I have never been to New England.”