Jean A. Stuntz
Encyclopedia
Jean Allison Stuntz is a professor
at West Texas A&M University
in Canyon
, Texas
, where she specializes in women's studies
and the history
of Texas, the Spanish Borderlands
, and the American West. She holds the rank of associate professor. She has been teaching there since 2001.
, and the former Billie Jean Williams (born 1929). She was born and reared in Orange
in Orange County
near Beaumont
in southeast Texas. She has an older sister, Beverly Ann Stuntz Burgess, and a brother, Philip Williams Stuntz of College Station
, Texas.
In 1912, Stuntz's paternal great-grandfather, also named Homer Clyde Stuntz (1858–1924) of New York City
, was named as a bishop
of the Methodist Church. Homer Clyde Stuntz wrote at least two histories, stimulated by his missionary zeal, The Philippines and the Far East (1904) and
South American Neighbors (1916).
Dr. Margaret Stuntz Coon (1917–2005), a paternal aunt of Stuntz, graduated from Tulane University School of Medicine
in New Orleans
and thereafter worked as a medical pathologist for two hospitals in Monroe
, Louisiana
, from 1956 until her retirement in 1987.
She received her Bachelor of Arts
degree (1979) from Baylor University
in Waco
, Texas, and thereafter her Juris Doctor
ate from the Baylor Law School
. She subsequently procured the Master of Arts
(1996) and Ph.D.
(2000) from the University of North Texas
at Denton
. At North Texas, Stuntz said that she depended heavily on her major professor and mentor, Donald E. Chipman (born 1928), a specialist in the Spanish Borderlands.
Stuntz is a board member of the Presbyterian Children's Home orphanage
in Amarillo
.
of women in the Spanish borderlands and the American Southwest." In her research, Stuntz found that Hispanic
women in the northern portion of the Spanish Empire in North America
had "legal rights that would have astonished their British
counterparts half a continent to the east. Under Spanish law, even in the sparsely settled land that would one day become Texas, married women could own property in their own names. They could control and manage not only their own property but even that of their husbands. And if their property rights were infringed, they could seek redress in the courts." The book hence examines how the Castilian
legal system developed differently from other Europe
an models and survived in Texas beyond the 1830s, when Anglo
settlers began moving in large numbers into the region.
With Claudia Stuart, Stuntz is the co-author of African Americans in Amarillo.
Stuntz penned the chapter on Minta Holmsley, a pioneer woman from Comanche
, Texas,
in the award-winning book, Texas Women on the Cattle Trails (2006). Her articles include "Women of the Texas Revolution" (2007) and "Prairies to Progress: Women on the Texas Panhandle Frontier," (2009), both published in the Social Studies Texan. She is the book review editor of the West Texas Historical Association
Year Book and has frequently presented papers at the association's annual meetings.
Stuntz is the president of H-Net
, an Internet
site for scholars and teachers which seeks to promote the study of history. She utilizes the Internet in her teaching, taking the view that students "learn best when [the instructor] gets them started and then stays out of their way."
's name must be restored to a list of Enlightenment
thinkers. There must be emphasis on the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States in regard to property rights. Students must be taught that new documents, the Venona project
, verify U.S. Senator Joseph R. McCarthy's suspicions of communist infiltration of the U.S. government during the post-World War II
era. Stuntz told the Amarillo Globe-News
that the SBOE is "micromanaging. They don't know what they're doing."
Along with professorial colleagues, Stuntz signed a petition requesting that the SBOE delay consideration of the changes so that curriculum experts can intervene. The changes do not require memorization, only inclusion of previously omitted materials. Stuntz, however, predicted that the revisions will cause teachers to stress memorization of events, people, and dates, rather than guiding youngsters to think, analyze evidence, and communicate their thoughts. With memorization, Stuntz said that many students come to college with a dislike of history. Memorization, she said, "beats the imagination out of them. I have to teach them it isn't about memorizing. It's about why people did what they did. It's about analyzing evidence, what is true and what is not."
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
at West Texas A&M University
West Texas A&M University
West Texas A&M University , part of the Texas A&M University System, is a public university located in Canyon, Texas, a small city south of Amarillo. West Texas A&M opened on September 20, 1910...
in Canyon
Canyon, Texas
Canyon is a city in Randall County, Texas, United States. The population was 12,875 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Randall County. It is the home of West Texas A&M University and Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum. Palo Duro Canyon State Park is some twelve miles east of Canyon...
, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, where she specializes in women's studies
Women's studies
Women's studies, also known as feminist studies, is an interdisciplinary academic field which explores politics, society and history from an intersectional, multicultural women's perspective...
and the history
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
of Texas, the Spanish Borderlands
Spanish colonization of the Americas
Colonial expansion under the Spanish Empire was initiated by the Spanish conquistadores and developed by the Monarchy of Spain through its administrators and missionaries. The motivations for colonial expansion were trade and the spread of the Christian faith through indigenous conversions...
, and the American West. She holds the rank of associate professor. She has been teaching there since 2001.
Background
Stuntz is the middle child of Homer Clyde Stuntz (born 1923), a retired physicianPhysician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
, and the former Billie Jean Williams (born 1929). She was born and reared in Orange
Orange, Texas
Orange is a city in Orange County, Texas, United States. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 18,643. It is the county seat of Orange County, and is the easternmost city in Texas. Located on the Sabine River at the border with Louisiana, it is part of the Beaumont–Port Arthur...
in Orange County
Orange County, Texas
Orange County is one of 254 counties of the State of Texas and its county seat is the city of Orange, Texas. In the year 2000, the population of Orange County was about 85,000. Orange County is the county in the very southeastern corner of Texas, with a boundary with Louisiana and a seacoast on the...
near Beaumont
Beaumont, Texas
Beaumont is a city in and county seat of Jefferson County, Texas, United States, within the Beaumont–Port Arthur Metropolitan Statistical Area. The city's population was 118,296 at the 2010 census. With Port Arthur and Orange, it forms the Golden Triangle, a major industrial area on the...
in southeast Texas. She has an older sister, Beverly Ann Stuntz Burgess, and a brother, Philip Williams Stuntz of College Station
College Station, Texas
College Station is a city in Brazos County, Texas, situated in East Central Texas in the heart of the Brazos Valley. The city is located within the most populated region of Texas, near three of the 10 largest cities in the United States - Houston, Dallas, and San Antonio...
, Texas.
In 1912, Stuntz's paternal great-grandfather, also named Homer Clyde Stuntz (1858–1924) of New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, was named as a bishop
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
of the Methodist Church. Homer Clyde Stuntz wrote at least two histories, stimulated by his missionary zeal, The Philippines and the Far East (1904) and
South American Neighbors (1916).
Dr. Margaret Stuntz Coon (1917–2005), a paternal aunt of Stuntz, graduated from Tulane University School of Medicine
Tulane University School of Medicine
The Tulane University School of Medicine is located in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA and is a part of Tulane University. The school is located in the Medical District of the New Orleans Central Business District.-History:...
in New Orleans
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
and thereafter worked as a medical pathologist for two hospitals in Monroe
Monroe, Louisiana
Monroe is a city in and the parish seat of Ouachita Parish, Louisiana, United States. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 53,107, making it the eighth largest city in Louisiana. A July 1, 2007, United States Census Bureau estimate placed the population at 51,208, but 51,636...
, Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
, from 1956 until her retirement in 1987.
She received her Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
degree (1979) from Baylor University
Baylor University
Baylor University is a private, Christian university located in Waco, Texas. Founded in 1845, Baylor is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.-History:...
in Waco
Waco, Texas
Waco is a city in and the county seat of McLennan County, Texas. Situated along the Brazos River and on the I-35 corridor, halfway between Dallas and Austin, it is the economic, cultural, and academic center of the 'Heart of Texas' region....
, Texas, and thereafter her Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...
ate from the Baylor Law School
Baylor Law School
Founded in 1857, Baylor Law School is the oldest law school in Texas and has been accredited by the American Bar Association since 1931 and a member of the Association of American Law Schools since 1938. Baylor Law School is affiliated with Baylor University and located in Waco, Texas...
. She subsequently procured the Master of Arts
Master of Arts (postgraduate)
A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
(1996) and Ph.D.
Ph.D.
A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
(2000) from the University of North Texas
University of North Texas
The University of North Texas is a public institution of higher education and research in Denton. Founded in 1890, UNT is part of the University of North Texas System. As of the fall of 2010, the University of North Texas, Denton campus, had a certified enrollment of 36,067...
at Denton
Denton, Texas
The city of Denton is the county seat of Denton County, Texas in the United States. Its population was 119,454 according to the 2010 U.S. Census, making it the eleventh largest city in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex...
. At North Texas, Stuntz said that she depended heavily on her major professor and mentor, Donald E. Chipman (born 1928), a specialist in the Spanish Borderlands.
Stuntz is a board member of the Presbyterian Children's Home orphanage
Orphanage
An orphanage is a residential institution devoted to the care of orphans – children whose parents are deceased or otherwise unable or unwilling to care for them...
in Amarillo
Amarillo, Texas
Amarillo is the 14th-largest city, by population, in the state of Texas, the largest in the Texas Panhandle, and the seat of Potter County. A portion of the city extends into Randall County. The population was 190,695 at the 2010 census...
.
Scholarly pursuits
Stuntz is best known for her award-winning book Hers, His, and Theirs: Community Property Laws in Spain and Early Texas, with foreword by Caroline Castillo Crimm and preface by Gordon Morris Bakken. The book is an outgrowth from Stuntz's doctoral dissertation entitled His, Hers, and Theirs: Domestic Relations and Marital Property Law in Texas to 1850. According to a reviewer in the Journal of Southern History, Hers, His, and Theirs "fills a major void in the historiographyHistoriography
Historiography refers either to the study of the history and methodology of history as a discipline, or to a body of historical work on a specialized topic...
of women in the Spanish borderlands and the American Southwest." In her research, Stuntz found that Hispanic
Hispanic
Hispanic is a term that originally denoted a relationship to Hispania, which is to say the Iberian Peninsula: Andorra, Gibraltar, Portugal and Spain. During the Modern Era, Hispanic sometimes takes on a more limited meaning, particularly in the United States, where the term means a person of ...
women in the northern portion of the Spanish Empire in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
had "legal rights that would have astonished their British
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
counterparts half a continent to the east. Under Spanish law, even in the sparsely settled land that would one day become Texas, married women could own property in their own names. They could control and manage not only their own property but even that of their husbands. And if their property rights were infringed, they could seek redress in the courts." The book hence examines how the Castilian
Crown of Castile
The Crown of Castile was a medieval and modern state in the Iberian Peninsula that formed in 1230 as a result of the third and definitive union of the crowns and parliaments of the kingdoms of Castile and León upon the accession of the then King Ferdinand III of Castile to the vacant Leonese throne...
legal system developed differently from other Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an models and survived in Texas beyond the 1830s, when Anglo
Anglo
Anglo is a prefix indicating a relation to the Angles, England or the English people, as in the terms Anglo-Saxon, Anglo-American, Anglo-Celtic, Anglo-African and Anglo-Indian. It is often used alone, somewhat loosely, to refer to people of British Isles descent in The Americas, Australia and...
settlers began moving in large numbers into the region.
With Claudia Stuart, Stuntz is the co-author of African Americans in Amarillo.
Stuntz penned the chapter on Minta Holmsley, a pioneer woman from Comanche
Comanche, Texas
Comanche is a city located in Comanche County in the U.S. state of Texas. The population was 4,482 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Comanche County. The town square has been renovated and is becoming a popular tourist attraction. With "Star Beaus" and "karens" on the square and their...
, Texas,
in the award-winning book, Texas Women on the Cattle Trails (2006). Her articles include "Women of the Texas Revolution" (2007) and "Prairies to Progress: Women on the Texas Panhandle Frontier," (2009), both published in the Social Studies Texan. She is the book review editor of the West Texas Historical Association
West Texas Historical Association
The West Texas Historical Association is an organization of both academics and laypersons dedicated to the preservation and dissemination of the total history of West Texas, defined geographically as all Texas counties and portions of counties located west of Interstate 35.-Formation of the...
Year Book and has frequently presented papers at the association's annual meetings.
Stuntz is the president of H-Net
H-Net
H-Net is an interdisciplinary online discussion forum for scholars in the humanities and social sciences that consists of over 180 topic- or discipline-specific listservs. Many of the lists deal with various areas of historical study...
, an Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
site for scholars and teachers which seeks to promote the study of history. She utilizes the Internet in her teaching, taking the view that students "learn best when [the instructor] gets them started and then stays out of their way."
Curriculum revision controversy
In 2010, Stuntz spoke out against revisions in the social studies curricula approved by the Texas State Board of Education, changes which require the inclusion of conservative topics in public school instruction. For instance, Thomas JeffersonThomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...
's name must be restored to a list of Enlightenment
Age of Enlightenment
The Age of Enlightenment was an elite cultural movement of intellectuals in 18th century Europe that sought to mobilize the power of reason in order to reform society and advance knowledge. It promoted intellectual interchange and opposed intolerance and abuses in church and state...
thinkers. There must be emphasis on the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States in regard to property rights. Students must be taught that new documents, the Venona project
Venona project
The VENONA project was a long-running secret collaboration of the United States and United Kingdom intelligence agencies involving cryptanalysis of messages sent by intelligence agencies of the Soviet Union, the majority during World War II...
, verify U.S. Senator Joseph R. McCarthy's suspicions of communist infiltration of the U.S. government during the post-World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
era. Stuntz told the Amarillo Globe-News
Amarillo Globe-News
Amarillo Globe-News is a newspaper in Amarillo, Texas, owned by the Morris Communications Company.The current-day Globe-News is a combination of several newspapers published in Amarillo. One began on November 4, 1909, as a prohibition publication by the Baptist deacon Dr. Joseph Elbert Nunn...
that the SBOE is "micromanaging. They don't know what they're doing."
Along with professorial colleagues, Stuntz signed a petition requesting that the SBOE delay consideration of the changes so that curriculum experts can intervene. The changes do not require memorization, only inclusion of previously omitted materials. Stuntz, however, predicted that the revisions will cause teachers to stress memorization of events, people, and dates, rather than guiding youngsters to think, analyze evidence, and communicate their thoughts. With memorization, Stuntz said that many students come to college with a dislike of history. Memorization, she said, "beats the imagination out of them. I have to teach them it isn't about memorizing. It's about why people did what they did. It's about analyzing evidence, what is true and what is not."