Provost’s Colloquium Series Presents “Two Early African-American Successes: John S. Rock and Robert Morris”

East Stroudsburg University's Provost's Colloquium Series, an intellectual experience that promotes dialogue among ESU faculty, staff, students, and community, continues the Fall 2024 semester with a presentation by Christopher Brooks, Ph.D., professor, history and geography. The presentation, "Two Early African-American Successes: John S. Rock and Robert Morris", will take place on Wednesday, October 23, at 12 p.m. in Stroud 404 (SITE). The presentation will also be live streamed on the ESU Live Events webpage.

This presentation by Dr. Brooks will enlighten the audience on the background of two, nineteenth-century African-Americans who traversed many hurdles and lived somewhat of an American Dream, despite the insidious institution of slavery that both men fought on a daily basis. Rock's life embodied a staunch and clear statement of self-sufficiency, despite the odds. He became a schoolteacher at 19, schoolmaster by 20, dentist at age 22, and a physician at 27. As if that was not enough, he went on to pass the Massachusetts Bar at age 36, after being informed by the French surgeons who worked on him in France for tuberculosis-related issues that he could no longer practice medicine. Robert Morris was the nation's second African-American attorney, the first, however, to make a living at it. This presentation will explain his complicated relationship with the Irish immigrant community, his primary clientele.

Dr. Brooks is in his eighteenth year at ESU and is the nationally recognized expert on John S. Rock. He has presented for the Supreme Court Historical Society, the Institute for Justice, and the New Jersey Supreme Court. His work on Robert Morris has received the attention of several scholars in the legal community.

For more information about the Provost's Colloquium Series, contact Lynne Ozgur, assistant director, office of sponsored projects and research, at (570) 422-7908 or [email protected].