After 25 years of teaching and shaping lives, Dr. John Moser is preparing to say goodbye to Ashland University; but, not without leaving behind a proper legacy. 

Moser, Chair of History and Political Science Department and Professor of History at AU, has spent decades teaching courses such as Western Civilization in the 1500s, Modern East Asia and World War II. Overtime, his teaching style has evolved significantly, shaped not only by experience but by the students he’s encountered along the way. 

Moser’s journey to Ashland was not entirely straightforward. After college, he worked for a nonprofit organization for three years before moving into academia, where he taught at the University of Georgia for two years. His position there, however, was not on a tenure track. 

His opportunity at AU came unexpectedly. In what he described as a rapid hiring process, Moser received a call from a friend, Brent Thompson, who was the chair of the history department.  

A faculty member had left suddenly, and they needed someone to step in quickly for the fall semester. After a phone call interview and a follow-up call from the dean, Moser was offered a one-year position with potential to become permanent.  

Within just three weeks, he accepted the job and began preparations to teach in the fall. After the year was up, he applied for a tenure-track position; one that would become a 25-year career.  

Looking back, Moser believes that his teaching style is not what it is today. 

“When I first started, I mostly lectured” he said. “But I learned at Ashland that isn’t a viable way to teach.”  

Now, he puts emphasis on class discussions rather than lectures, encouraging students to engage with his material directly, which better aligns with the university’s core values that emphasize student’s personal growth. 

Furthermore, teaching was not just about exploring historical content but instead about sparking curiosity.  

“The amount of information I can pass along is limited,” Moser explained.  “But I want students to go more deeply into the topics they learn about.” 

He finds the most fulfillment in teaching students that want to truly understand the material, and that has led to many enlightening discussions.  

“Not everyone is going to have that natural curiosity for history,” Moser said. “But it’s rewarding to see the impact I’ve had on certain students.” 

Outside of academia, Moser has a wide variety of interests. Growing up, he originally dreamed of becoming a filmmaker. Filming on a Super eight movie camera, he would write scripts and direct his own short films that included his friends as actors.  

Despite picking history over filmmaking, his passion for performance never stopped. Moser is involved in community theatre, performing in productions such as “A Christmas Story” and “The 39 Steps”. For the past six years, he has also been the narrator for the local production of “The Nutcracker.” 

“Theatre gets you out of your own head,” Moser finds. “If you can act, you can speak publicly and be convincing to people – and that makes you a better person.” 

In addition to theatre, he sings in the choir at St. Edwards, reads at mass and enjoys board games and roleplaying games like Dungeons and Dragons.  

Looking ahead at the fall of 2026, Moser will begin a new role at the University of Tennessee as a professor of public affairs at the Institute of American Civics.  

“I’m looking forward to being part of the community down there,” he said. “But I’m also aware that I’m leaving a really good community here. The unrelenting niceness is not the norm in academia.”  

As he prepares to leave Ashland, Moser hopes students will carry one simple idea with them: “Remain curious. Never stop learning.”