Prof Richard Follett
| Post: | Professor Of American History (History, Documenting Louisiana Sugar 1845-1917, American Studies) |
| Other posts: | Deputy Pro-Vice Chancellor, International (Vice-Chancellor's Office) |
| Location: | ARTS B B155 |
| Email: | R.Follett@sussex.ac.uk |
Telephone numbers | |
| Internal: | 7365 |
| UK: | 01273 877365 |
| International: | +44 1273 877365 |
Research expertise: | |
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Biography
Richard Follett is Deputy Pro Vice Chancellor and Associate Vice President at the University of Sussex. He oversees Sussex's international strategy, developing a global network of of education partnerships and research collaborations. He is also Professor of American History and a specialist on the history of slavery and emancipation in the United States and Caribbean, Follett enjoys a strong international reputation for his scholarship and public engagement work. An accomplished university administrator and educator, Follett has a wide range of HEI experience, particularly in the field of international education.
Brought up in Bangor, Wales and Bristol, England (with spells in the United States), Follett attended the University of Wales, Swansea and the University of Illinois for his BA degree. He obtained an MA from the University of London in 1991 before receiving a Fulbright scholarship to support his doctoral work on American slavery at Louisiana State University. Before moving to Sussex in 1999, he taught at the National University of Ireland, Galway. He has held visiting teaching and research appointments at the University of Lagos (Nigeria); Nanjing and Peking Universities (China) and at University College London. He speaks Spanish fluently and is attempting to learn Hindi and Mandarin.
Role
Follett has responsibility for developing an inclusive and integrated approach to delivering Sussex's international strategy through a global network of education partnerships and collaborations. As DPVC, Follett's title overseas is Associate Vice-President. www.sussex.ac.uk/international
Follett is a historian of slavery and emancipation and has published widely on U.S and Caribbean history. His publications and current book project on enslaved rebellion is detailed in the 'research' tab on this profile.
Community and Business
Business Engagement
As Deputy Pro-Vice Chancellor (International), Follett is charged with developing the University of Sussex's institutional vision for academic engagement worldwide and for promoting international student recruitment and mobility, be it at the Brighton campus or via Trans-National Education. To follow his international engagement work on behalf of Sussex, please consult his Linked-In and Twitter profiles.
Research Engagement
As Gilder Lehrman Fellow at the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History in New York City, Richard Follett was interviewed about the book project White Fright and the research he conducted as Gilder Lehrman Fellow on the 1741 New York Slave Insurrection Conspiracy.
Sky News: Should Slavery Be Made Essential Reading?
12 Years a Slave was among the most graphic films ever made about American slavery. Following the movie's release, director Steve McQueen and lead actor Chiwetel Ejiofor were quoted as saying that Solomon Northup's autobiography (first published in New York in 1853) should be on the National Curriculum for British school-children.
Sky News covered the story with a special report which is available here: Slavery 'Should Be Made Essential Reading', which they followed up by interviewing Richard Follett of Sussex University and then Miranda Kaufmann, historian and freelance journalist.
Cultural Heritage of Slavery
