David Wishart, emeritus professor of geography in the School of Global Integrative Studies, has received the Louise Pound-George Howard Distinguished Career Award from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln's Faculty Senate.
Established in 1990, the award recognizes individuals who have made exceptional contributions to the university.
His nominator wrote:
"Emeritus Professor Wishart began his career at UNL as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Geography in 1974. During his 50 years at UNL he rose through the ranks to become a full professor and served as chair of the Department of Anthropology and Geography from 2002-2008; was a Foreign Expert, for the Guangzhou English Language Center, Zhongshan University, China, from 1986-1987; Visiting Lecturer, University of Waikato, New Zealand, September-October, 1996. Dr. Wishart made impactful contributions in scholarship, teaching, and administration.
"He co-authored more than thirty articles, five monographs, a textbook, and a major atlas. A number of these works have received critical praise. An Unspeakable Sadness: The Dispossession of the Nebraska Indians received a Best Book prize from a national society and was the basis for a Pulitzer nomination. The Great Plains: America’s Lingering Wild was placed on a “Best of the Best” list by the American Association of University Publishers. Dr. Wishart edited the Encyclopedia of the Great Plains, which has been recognized on several occasions. The nonprofit Nebraska Center for the Book recognized Dr. Wishart with their “Best Reference Book” award on two occasions, once for Atlas of the Great Plains and, separately for Great Plains Indians. As a researcher, Dr. Wishart's scholarship has placed a spotlight on Nebraska and the Great Plains; in fact, he is the spotlighted Great Plains regional scholar in Richard L. Nostrand's The Making of America's Culture Regions.
"Over his career, Dr. Wishart received five research grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities, three grants from the Nebraska Humanities Council, received a National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowship, and numerous other national and state grants and fellowships.
"Dr. Wishart has worked with the Nebraska State Historical Society in various capacities including, but not limited to, diligently researching the archives, assisting former students-now staff with professional development, and collaborating with various projects. For years, he served as a Society board member and as a consulting scholar in documentaries on Nebraska Educational Telecommunications' (NET) PBS station. For thousands of UNL undergraduate and graduate students, it has been both a great honor and pleasure to take historical geography of Nebraska classes with and be mentored to conduct such research by Dr. Wishart.
"Dr. Wishart has been an outstanding mentor to majors, minors, masters and doctoral students in the UNL Geography Program, not to mention undergraduate and graduate students and faculty in other disciplines. He delivered service, drive, perspective, professionalism, and integrity to any project. He was student-focused and had an incredible work ethic. He seemingly never tired of helping students, serving the program, creating opportunities for advisees, and maximizing learning. He regularly supported junior peers, even from other institutions to help them advance in their career, and he did this for his former students and others as well. Many of his former graduate students are teaching in institutions across the country and throughout the world. During his career, Dr. Wishart successfully established formal, informal, or quasi formal channels for providing support to students, advisees, and junior faculty. He received the University of Nebraska Distinguished Teaching Award and received six UNL Parent Association Awards for his teaching."
