The Many Faces of History

Innovative classroom techniques have been trademarks of Truitt’s style since 1969, when he was among the original faculty to open the college.

Crowd control was an important part of Terry Truitt’s early career as a police sergeant and administration of justice instructor at Miramar College. Today, Truitt controls crowds a bit differently than he did in his San Diego Police Department days: He mesmerizes his students with class presentations in full period costumes.

Ask him about the “old days” and you’re bound to be on the receiving end of a genuine 1920s medicine show pitch or face-to-face with Patrick Henry, Mark Twain, Wyatt Earp or General George Patton.

Innovative classroom techniques have been trademarks of Truitt’s style since 1969, when he was among the original faculty to open the college. Truitt is the only instructor from that original core 30 years ago still teaching at Miramar College today.

Truitt’s reputation for innovative teaching is international. In the February 1999 issue of the Japanese magazine “English Journal,” Miramar College student Hiroko Oda described Truitt’s unique style.

“I first met Professor Truitt while taking his American history class at Miramar College,” she wrote. “He is quite known among students here because he often gives lectures wearing a costume to match the period in history he would be talking about that day. Among his costumes that surprised me the most was when ProfessorTruitt showed us a Japanese sword that was given to his father by a Japanese soldier at the end of the World War II… Professor Truitt also teaches an Asian history class and is really interested in the Japanese army during World War II. In fact, he is much more knowledgeable than myself who grew up in Japan.”

Oda concludes her article by writing, “Truitt would call each one of us by our name. He is a wonderful teacher and I wish there were more professors like him in the colleges in Japan, too.”

Professor Truitt as Mark Twain