Professor, English Department, College of Liberal Arts & Education
2009
Bio:
Professor Nicholas Rombes is an active scholar, a charismatic teacher and a leader in the University community. He has taught in the English Department since 1995 and has chaired the department for the past three years.
His department colleagues have repeatedly observed that his personal commitment to students and his enthusiasm about ideas enrich the lives of the students he teaches and advises. In the classroom, Dr. Rombes approaches a canonical body of works with an innovative spirit, and his syllabi reflect the diversity of American culture as well. It is a challenging intellectual environment that he fosters, but students come to know that he values their work. He gets good results from his students because he trusts that their critical faculties are usually more acute than they are given credit for being.
An array of scholarship shows Dr. Rombes’ expertise and originality. In the last year, he has had two books published, Cinema in the Digital Age and A Cultural Dictionary of Punk, 1974-1982. Dr. Rombes writes with authority and subtlety about complex aesthetic issues. Among the many places in which he demonstrates this skill is an essay called “Sincerity and Irony,” published in the volume he edited called Post-Punk Cinema. In it, he makes a topic of immense scope clear and manageable. His publications in Arizona Quarterly and Studies in American Fiction show his high standing in the field of American literature.
Dr. Rombes’ service is evident in his role as department chair and in his extensive record on college and university committees. In the English Department, Dr. Rombes has presided over three recent hires. He has urged administrators to grant higher pay for adjunct faculty. Outside the department, he has been elected to serve on curriculum committees and on the University Promotion and Tenure Committee. He is a leader. He strongly believes in the role of the liberal arts to generate a critique of the status quo and of conventional wisdom.
Dr. Rombes’ intellectual achievements have earned him distinction both inside and outside the university. The dedication that he brings to his work contributes to our mission.
Dr. Rombes was presented by Charles E. Marske, Dean, College of Liberal Arts & Education and the Distinguished Faculty Award was presented by Gerard L. Stockhausen, S.J., President of University of Detroit Mercy on November 13, 2009.