With appreciation for his outstanding teaching, leadership and contributions to Occidental College, the Board of Governors honors Eric Newhall '67 P'99 P'06 with the 2021 Alumni Seal Faculty Emeritus Award.
Professor Newhall taught courses in modern and contemporary American literature and culture. He published on subjects ranging from Benjamin Franklin and Ralph Ellison to living and learning communities, and his recent scholarly interests centered on the search for community in post-WWII American fiction. He taught the Survey of American Literature, the Novels of William Faulkner and Toni Morrison, Autonomy and Community in Contemporary American Fiction, and the Social Movements of the 1960s.
In the cultural studies program, he participated in an interdisciplinary course, Perspectives on Justice in American Culture, and offered a Core seminar, The American Dream: An Intercultural Perspective. Newhall was the original director of the Multicultural Summer Institute and has served as associate dean of the College, faculty council president, and director of the Core Program.
Oxy students supported me early in my career and helped me to become a tenured member of the faculty. Now at the end of my career, Oxy students are adding my name to the list of former awardees, people for whom I have tremendous respect. I feel honored and deeply grateful."
Professor Newhall received the Donald R. Loftsgordon Memorial Award for Outstanding Teaching, the Linda and Tod White Teaching Prize for Outstanding Teaching, and the Janosik-Sterling Award for Service to the College.