Gary Girod

Dr. Gary Girod is an Assistant Professor of History at Oklahoma Panhandle State University's College of Arts & Education. He specializes in European history, with a focus on state surveillance during World War I. Born in Salem, Oregon, he holds a BA from Chapman University and a PhD from the University of Houston (2021). His research examines how Western governments established foundational surveillance systems during wartime.

• Education:
• Bachelor of Arts in History and French, Chapman University
• PhD in European History, University of Houston (2021)

His research interests include digital history, public history, and the evolution of state control mechanisms. He founded The French History Podcast and leads Our Nowhere: Panhandle Histories, documenting regional history via podcasting. His book Domestic Surveillance and Social Control in Britain and France during World War I (Routledge, 2021) is a key contribution to surveillance studies.

Dr. Girod’s work has been featured in Newsweek, Reuters, and Forbes through collaborations with Joel Kotkin. Beyond academia, he is a fiction author with published novels and short stories.

He regularly engages the community through lectures like his October 2023 presentation "The Origins of the All-Seeing State", part of the Panhandle Teaching & Learning series.