Dr. David L. Wagner

Dr. Wagner received three degrees from the University of Michigan. He spent hisundergraduate career in the wartime naval officer training program and was initiatedinto the University of Michigan chapter of Phi Beta Kappa. With the university on awartime trimester system, he completed his degree within two years, receiving his A.B.in mathematics in 1946. Upon graduation, he was commissioned as an ensign in theU.s. Naval Reserve and served for a year on a patrol craft escort. As a graduate student, he was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship in 1953, allowing him to study in Italy for one year; he received his Ph.D. in European history in 1960. Before joining the faculty of Northern Illinois University, he taught at the Case Institute of Technology and Drake University, and studied philosophy at the University of Chicago for two years. Dr. Wagner taught at NIU for 42 years, retiring in 2003.During his time at NIU, he was instrumental in establishing the Medieval Studies Program within the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and served as its coordinator for 30 years. Dr. Wagner has also been an active member of the Phi Beta Kappa Association of Northern Illinois, continuing during his retirement. It is Dr. Wagner’s hope that this gift will promote continued interest in obtaining a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa at Northern Illinois University, as well as provide support for the Medieval Studies Program.