David Hechler Email and Phone Number

I specialize in the history of political revolutions and intelligence. My other scholarly areas of interest are an eclectic mixture ranging from Medieval European history, and 19th and 20th-century political thought, the American founding and Constitution, Soviet Communism, and agitation and propaganda. My capstone paper examines the British Security Service’s (MI5) failure to detect Soviet penetration of the British government using archival sources and other primary sources. I have written on medieval espionage, Soviet ‘Active Measures’ in the interwar years, and on Francis Marion “The Swamp Fox” in the Revolutionary War. I have unique personal experience as Marine officer dealing with terrorism, intelligence collection; interacting, mentoring, and negotiating with various foreign governments and militaries; and advising Afghan paramilitary units. Indeed, I routinely spoke in public settings and had to communicate complex ideas in a variety of roles clearly across cultural and language barriers. I have a passion for teaching and powerful motivation to mentor the upcoming generations with a foundation of historical knowledge and the critical thinking/research skills so desperately required to succeed in the modern world. I firmly ascribe to the idea of teaching students to think independently, such as the critical thinking skills needed to interpret historical and current events using evidence-based research. Having mentored hundreds of young Marines, I can also attest to the importance of developing a professional teacher-student relationship and being approachable to the development of students. To this day, I have former Marines reach out to me for advice and references. Finally, I have strong interpersonal skills, passion, and charisma that together shows that history is more than just dates and names, it is a story that defines the infinitely interconnected experiences that we as humans share.