Edward Berenson

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Many students report that, before they studied with Edward Berenson, they thought of history as a “boring” subject. But Berenson revolutionized their perspective. He is a legend within his department for capturing the imagination of students from a variety of majors – everything from fine arts to engineering. Many students, in fact, have changed their major to history after taking an historical survey course from Berenson.

Berenson is equally renowned for upper division courses that deal with complex issues of political, social, economic and intellectual history. He draws students into the process of historical interpretation, weaning them gradually from preconceived notions of history as “truth about the past” to an understanding of history as “an argument about the past.” And he doesn’t fall into the trap of continually teaching the same material in the same way: he rethinks and reconstructs his courses on a year-to-year basis.

Berenson served as executive director of the California History and Social Science Project – vital to the education of the next generation of incoming college students – exhibiting his genuine concern for learning at various levels.

Students praise Berenson for his openness and enthusiasm. Colleagues are impressed by the cohesiveness of his lectures. He is not only eloquent, but charismatic. To call Ed Berenson a consummate teacher would be an understatement.