Editor’s Note: This article’s headline was updated 10/20 to reflect that Parker was not a department head
Thomas Parker, longtime professor in the history department at NC State and a distinguished ancient history specialist, passed away unexpectedly on Sept. 12, 2021 from cardiac issues.
Professor David Zonderman, the head of the history department at NC State, was a colleague of Parker’s since 1993 and considered him a close friend and a great person to work with. According to Zonderman, Dr. Parker was a specialist in ancient Roman history, as well as an archaeologist.
“He did a lot of his research not just by looking at ancient texts but also by digging,” Zonderman said. “He did an archaeological excavation in an area called Aqaba, which was a port in Jordan. He was interested in the economy — how did the Roman empire do business with others?”
According to Zonderman, Parker was a very dedicated teacher whose classes were always very popular.
“To tell you the kind of guy he was, when he went into the hospital he immediately called me and said that he might be in a few days, and then talked to his TAs to arrange course coverage,” Zonderman said. “Over the weekend, he emailed me and said the doctors said, ‘I’ll be home by next week.’ I told him to take it easy and not worry about his classes.”
According to Ben Ellis, a third-year studying history in Parker’s Roman history class, Parker was a great professor who was very knowledgeable in his subjects.
“Something that my new Roman history professor said stuck out to me,” Ellis said. “‘There are some scholars or professors that may know the textbook, but in the case of Dr. Parker, he actually was the textbook.’”
According to Zonderman, Parker taught a very popular class, HI 207: Ancient Mediterranean World, as well as advanced courses in Roman history and archaeology. His current classes are now being taught by various professors from the College of Humanities and Social Sciences.
“Hard times bring out the good in people,” Zonderman said. “One of the professors here in the department, Tate Paulette, is taking a class, one professor in anthropology, Kate Grossman is taking a class, and then his advanced class is being taught by Dustin Heinen, who teaches Latin in the foreign language department. People stepped up, and I was very grateful for it.”
According to Ellis, the Roman history class is now being taught by Professor Heinen, and the switch to a new professor has gone fairly smoothly.
“We had about a week where we didn’t have classes, but [Heinen] came in, and I’d say it’s been a fairly smooth transition,” Ellis said.
Zonderman’s favorite memory of Dr. Parker is that every time Dr. Parker received a grant for an archeological dig, he would tell the same joke.
“Anytime he got a grant for his work, he would always say he was going to go to Las Vegas and double it at the roulette wheel, and then he’d burst out laughing,” Zonderman said. “He was a very important member of our department and leaves a hole that will not be easy to fill.”
Information about the fellowship in honor of Parker can be found here.
Editor’s Note: Ben Ellis is a senior sports writer at Technician.
