Daniel Rosenberg, Ph.D.: Three Decades of Engaging Students

by Erin Donohue

Daniel Rosenberg, Ph.D., never imagined himself as a teacher or working in the field of education, but he is celebrating nearly 30 years at Adelphi University. Dr. Rosenberg, who joined this Long Island college community in 1985, is the current director of Adelphi’s General Studies (GS) program—a unique program that supports emerging students so they can become successful in their new learning environment.

“It’s a three-legged stool,” he said to describe the program’s approach. The legs are teaching, tutoring and counseling, all working together to balance the student. The same teacher performs the teaching and tutoring components, and the counseling portion is done by a member of the University’s School of Social Work.

Then there are the students, who typically may not have tested great, but did well in high school and need that extra support to get them acclimated to college-level courses. With the GS approach, transition often happens quickly, with students migrating into their chosen majors having completed general education classes that will count toward their degrees.

Dr. Rosenberg’s early career was spent working with youth organizations where he gained a lot of experience in public speaking and engaging young people, which translated to his classroom. He teaches a variety of classes at Adelphi, working not only with General Studies students, but with the returning adult learners in University College as well.

“The adult students know why they are here in college, no matter what their age. They want to be here, they are ready to be here, ready to talk and debate,” Dr. Rosenberg said. “With freshmen it takes more time to get them to debate. Freshmen need time to reflect, to be young. They have fears, and they need time to process.

“With adult learners, a great deal of their process has been experienced already and they are prepared.”

Specializing in the humanities, Dr. Rosenberg teaches courses on Western civilization, the Civil War, the Great Depression, labor, race and religion. He also teaches a capstone class that ties together the student’s major and college experiences in the form of a senior thesis.

Outside the classroom, Dr. Rosenberg does a lot of writing and has been widely published on the subjects of American labor and social history. He is an avid athlete, often found exercising in the Center for Recreation and Sports, a huge Yankees fan, and likes to read books on history and listen to jazz music. He and his wife, Nora, have been married for 27 years and have two children, a daughter who attends college in Florida and a son who is a journalist in Manhattan.