Kathryn W. Kemp, PhD

Professional background:

I have my PhD in history from Georgia State and my MA and Bachelor's from the University of New Orleans. My studies have centered on the U.S. South but I also enjoy teaching ancient history survey classes when the opportunity arises. I usually teach the US history surveys and courses on minorities in U.S. history; I also teach the History of US-Latin American Relations. the history of the US in the Gilded Age and Progressive Era, and the historical research and writing course for senior history majors. I also supervise history interns.

In addition to teaching, I have worked as an archivist, a researcher for an archaeology lab, and as a writer. My book, God's Capitalist: Asa Candler of Coca-Cola, was published by Mercer University Press in 2002; Historic Clayton County was published under the auspices of the Historic Jonesboro/Clayton County, Inc. in 2009., In 2007 I received tenure and the rank of Assistant Professor. I serve as the Executive Secretary-Treasurer of the Georgia Association of Historians.

A little personal history:

I'm a native of Erie, Pennsylvania, but grew up on the Texas Gulf coast, where I met my husband Jim, who retired from CNN after a long career in the television news business. We lived for many years in New Orleans before coming to Atlanta, and now live in Clayton County. We have a son and daughter and four grandchildren. My dog Lucky is a charming kleptomaniac with an unfortunate appetite for shoes who likes to play tug-of-war with his best friend Dobby, a small pug-like girl dog with the fierce soul of a pit bull.

I have always liked to read, so I'm happy to have a profession that allows me to spend an afternoon with a good book and call it "working." I also enjoy handicrafts, so I occasionally do some very bad knitting, needlepoint, or fold origami boxes. I also like to play with my digital camera. Writing and teaching are my greatest pleasures.

Read any good books lately?

From time to time, I will post something that I have found unusually interesting:

Lakoff, George. Moral Politics: How Liberals and Conservatives Think, analyzes modern politics using the tools of cognitive linguistics. This sounds more difficult than it is. Readers need no special technical training to understand this explanation of the liberal and conservative views of the world we live in, how these differing views were formed, and the implications of each. You will see examples of these ideas in every newscast you watch.

Bageant, Joe. Deer Hunting with Jesus--Don't let the title fool you--this book doesn't promote or condemn either hunting or Jesus. It is a close look at Americans who are largely ignored--the low-income whites, particularly those from the author's home town of Winchester, VA. The language is for adults and the ideas don't fit neatly into the simple-minded left/right analysis that is all too common in America today. If you are conservative, it may challenge your views on unions; if liberal, you may give gun ownership a second thought.

Weiner, Tim. Legacy of Ashes: the History of the CIA--The stories behind a great many post-WW II events in this book are very disturbing. The CIA says it ain't so.