Professor David Proctor is famous among Tufts undergraduates for his barbecues, three-piece suits and popular history courses. But, behind the name is a teacher and member of the Tufts community who was once a devoted student.
Proctor grew up in the towns of Chester and Russell, both of which are in western Massachusetts. Wanting to stay in the area for college, he looked at schools within the state.
“I explored Tufts, Amherst [College], Williams [College], [University of Massachusetts], a couple of others, got into a few, and then came and visited Tufts,” Proctor said. “That was what solidified it for me.”
Since then, Tufts has been a large part of Proctor’s life and career through both schooling and teaching.
“Teaching was always something I wanted to do,” he said. “My sister and I, when we were little, would play school all the time. We were very elaborate about it. We had assignments and we’d even take our fake students out to recess.”
Since teaching has always been his passion, Proctor began the teaching certification process during his senior year at Tufts.
“When I got my undergraduate [degree], it was the last year in Massachusetts where you could get your teaching certification without a master’s degree. So, I spent my last year at Tufts doing education courses, student teaching [and I] went out and got my certification to teach high school history,” he said. “[I then] got a job in western [Massachusetts], initially as a substitute and then as a permanent substitute in my old high school.”
However, Proctor soon realized that teaching at a high school wasn’t where his passion lied.
“Let us just say it was not exactly the most wondrous two years of my existence,” he said. “I discovered that I liked teaching, but I did not have a flair for discipline at all, actually, and in some cases, I was four years older than the students, so it just was not a good thing.”
So, Proctor decided to return to Tufts for his master’s degree with the intent to teach history classes.
“I knew the history department well. I talked to my old advisors as an undergraduate who said they’d be happy to have me back as a graduate student,” Proctor said. “[I] immediately was assigned a [teaching assistant] position for Professor Marcopoulos, ‘TA-ing’ what is now History 53 and 54 and doing recitations for those.”
While working as a teaching assistant for Marcopoulos, Proctor reaffirmed his love for teaching while working with a new demographic of students.
“Professor Marcopoulos gave us a lot of leeway in what we did, so that was really enjoyable, and made me realize I actually could teach, just maybe at a level where the discipline was not as consistent or consistently necessary,” Dr. Proctor said.
Proctor applied to secondary school teaching positions again, but he ultimately took a job as an administrative assistant in the Department of Classical Studies at Tufts and began his Ph.D.
“The job in classics gave me full tuition remission. … I could get a doctorate for not a huge amount, and so that seemed like it was worth it,” he said. “I applied to the Tufts interdisciplinary doctorate program, which was a combination of history, classical studies and art history, all woven together.”
Proctor completed his Ph.D. in 2010, making him a “triple Jumbo,” having received his bachelor’s, master’s and Ph.D. from Tufts. In Spring 2011, he then became a full-time lecturer in the Department of History.
Proctor is currently a distinguished senior lecturer in History and Classical Studies. He is also involved in the Departments of Archaeology, International Relations, Middle Eastern Studies and Medieval Studies. Collectively, his courses cover European history, Byzantium, classics and more.
However, history has always had a special place in his heart, and he finds that the subject is meaningful to many students, both history majors and non-history majors alike.
“The great thing about history is it is universally accessible. One of my first lectures is always saying, ‘There’s no one who can’t do history. Everyone can do history,’” Proctor said. “History is a story, and it’s a story that — one way or another — we’re all a part of.”
Proctor is also a pre-major and major advisor for many students. Advising has become one of his favorite aspects of his work.
“I think [advising] is one of the best parts of my job. As a pre-major advisor, you get two to three semesters to kind of help students get used to Tufts, to help them begin to find their passion, to find their interests and to find what direction they want to go in,” he said. “I have a good number of history and [international relations] advisees. I still have one or two classics advisees, and a couple of archeology advisees. That’s always exciting, too, because you get to see them do a deep dive into what is really their passion.”
Proctor especially appreciates when he is able to work with a student throughout all four years of their Tufts experience.
“I’ve got a few seniors who’ve been with me since they were first-year students. It’s really just fabulous to see how they’ve grown, how they’ve developed, how great they have made their time at Tufts, and all the different things that they’ve gotten involved in,” Proctor said.
One of Proctors’ advisees and teaching assistants, senior Kylie McNulty, spoke to his talents as both a professor and advisor.
“Since the beginning, Proctor stood out to me as not only a talented educator but also as an incredibly dedicated mentor and friend to anyone lucky enough to work with him,” McNulty wrote in a message to the Daily. “I was inspired by him as a professor and asked to shadow his first year seminar/advisee class ‘What is History’ to learn more about what makes his teaching so impactful.”
“While I would say it’s impossible to pin down exactly what makes Proctor so special, I think the way he takes every opportunity to connect with students is remarkable,” she wrote. “The Tufts community is so lucky to have him and I will always be grateful to have him as a mentor.”
In addition to his teaching and advising roles, Proctor also serves as a scholar in residence. He lives in Tilton Hall where he is able to further his connection with Tufts students and the community.
“Part of my job as scholar in residence is to host various events during the academic year,” he said. “There are smaller things — we did a Laidlaw information session in September. But then there are bigger things, like the trivia nights and the pumpkin carvings.”
He is also well-known for his winter celebration and barbecue to commemorate the end of each semester.
“I do a winter celebration that is for all of my students in my classes, the students that I’m a scholar in residence for, and then the same thing with the end of the year barbecue,” Proctor said. “Those have developed over time. This will be the 22nd [winter celebration] I’ve hosted, and the barbecue somewhere up there as well. … They’re just a lot of fun.”
Proctor adores his students as much as they adore him, and he finds that the exchange of learning is mutual between him and his students.
“It’s really a privilege to be able to be part of [students’] growth and evolution,” he said. “Every year, I learn something from my students, far more than they learn from me.”
