Behavioral and Historical Studies
Centenary College Admissions Department
Phone: 1-800-236-8679
Email: admissions@centenarycollege.edu
We invite you to call one of our Admissions Counselors to schedule a personal appointment.
Dept Head: James Patterson, Chair & Associate Professor of History
Dept Phone: +1 (908) 852-1400 x.2324
Dept Email: behavioralstudies@centenarycollege.edu
Hours of Operation: Mon-Fri 9:30am-4:30pm
The Behavioral and Historical Studies Department specializes in two important areas of study, History and Psychology. Each program is designed to provide students with a thorough knowledge of their intended study and to help them develop the skills needed to a succeed in a diversity of possible career.
History
History majors at Centenary College learn to balance broad vision and narrow focus by studying all facets of historical discipline.
Students develop skills in theoretical and chronological analysis, identification of historical methods and techniques, critical thinking about civilizations and their impact on the future, and developing an experiential base for a life plan.
The History major prepares students for careers in diplomacy, politics, teaching and analysis.
Psychology
The Centenary College Bachelor's Degree in Psychology lets you design a program personally suited for you, your style of learning, and your career interests. Your degree will enable you to meet the growing demands of the 21st-century workplace.
The Psychology major is designed to build on the benefits of a Centenary experience. It is a major where students:
- Help each other learn better through healthy teamwork and intellectual stimulations.
- Build collaborative relationships needed as you enter the world of graduate studies or future careers.
- Find the faculty ready to work with you applying what you learn to what you will be doing in the future.
- Discover a major that is based on a solid foundation in the liberal arts, coupled with hands-on experience.
Learn more about our Psychology program.
Our Faculty
Dr. James G. Patterson, Department Chair
Dr. Patterson received a Bachelor of Arts degree in History from the SUNY Oswego and a Masters in History from Long Island University. At Fordham University, he earned a Masters of Philosophy and a Ph.D. in European History. He spent a year in Ireland conducting his dissertation research under the auspices of a Fulbright Fellowship.
At Centenary, Dr. Patterson teaches a variety of courses. His course offerings include the History of Warfare, Modern England, Ireland 1688-1923, Modern Russia, Tudor-Stuart England, Colonialism and Twentieth Century Europe. In 2004, Dr. Patterson was honored as Centenary’s Distinguished Teacher of the Year. He also serves as the Faculty Advisor for the National History Honor Society, Phi Alpha Theta, and the History Club.
Visits to the Gettysburg National Battlefield have been incorporated into Dr. Patterson’s Freshman Experience class, and members of the history club have joined him on a two-day tour of the Anteitem and Gettysburg battlefields.
Dr. Patterson has presented papers at over a dozen seminars and conferences in Ireland, England, and the US, including Harvard University and the Folger Institute. He has offered public lectures on aspects of Irish history at Centenary and the American Irish Historical Society in NYC. Dr. Patterson has published a number of articles in Irish and American historical journals. His book, In the wake of the great rebellion, is under contract for publication by Manchester University Press in 2008.
- Dr. Charles Frederickson, Professor of Psychology.
Dr. Charles G. Frederickson, Professor of Psychology
Dr. Frederickson received his undergraduate degree from Lafayette College, a Masters Degree in Educational Psychology from Montclair State College, and a Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology from New York University. He is a New Jersey certified School Psychologist, has a background of experience in a variety of clinical settings, and over 30 years of collegiate teaching experience.
Dr. Frederickson joined the Centenary Faculty in 1981. He is a tenured Professor of Psychology, founder of the Centenary Undergraduate and Graduate Psychology degree programs, and recipient of the Lindback Distinguished Teaching Award and the Sears Roebuck Foundation Teaching Excellence and Campus Leadership Award
His areas of professional interest and publications include counseling and psychotherapy, research methods, tests and measurements, and personality theory. He is member of the American Psychological Association, a former member of the New Jersey Psychological Association, and former member of the Association for Psychological Type where he served for 10 years as a member of the Research Review Board.
- Dr.Raymond Frey, Professor of History.
Dr. Raymond Frey, Professor of History
Dr. Raymond Frey is a Professor of History at Centenary College in Hackettstown, where he has taught since 1990. Dr. Frey holds graduate degrees in history and philosophy from Fordham University and Drew University.
Professor Frey is the recipient of three major awards for teaching excellence—the Evening Division Teaching Award from Pace University, the Lindback Foundation Award for Distinguished Teaching from Centenary, and the Award for Teaching New Jersey History from the New Jersey Studies Academic Alliance. In 2006, he was the Gates-Ferry Foundation Distinguished Lecturer at Centenary.
In 2000 and again in 2004, Dr. Frey prepared a White House briefing document on Bess Truman for First Lady Laura Bush. He also contributed chapters on the Trumans in The Presidential Companion, a book of readings on the first ladies, as well as Life in the White House: A Social History of the First Family and the President’s House, and American First Ladies, a new encyclopedia on American first ladies. He recently contributed to a new book on Truman’s civil rights record, to be published by Truman University Press. He is also a member of the editorial board of White House Studies, a scholarly journal devoted to the study of the American presidency.
Professor Frey is also one of the leading scholars of New Jersey history. He has written two textbooks on the state—New Jersey, A Journey of Discovery, and New Jersey, Our Home. He has contributed to the New Jersey Encyclopedia, and regularly lectures on New Jersey history around the state.
Printer-friendly page