The History Department announces with sorrow the passing of Professor Emeritus David A. Chappell on May 14, 2026, following a long illness. A deeply thoughtful and generous colleague, scholar, and teacher, Prof. Chappell maintained his academic and creative endeavors right to the end, including publishing both a novel and a journal article in 2025 that explored his favored themes of collective action and resistance, albeit from very different angles.
Prof. Chappell reflected on his early development and outlook as a scholar in an essay titled "Confessions of a History Addict" for the Journal of Pacific Studies (1996) 20: 213-223.
Following a final trip to New Zealand earlier this year, Prof. Chappell embraced his next adventure, this time into the Great Unknown, with characteristic wit and grace.
Aloha, David. We miss you already.
