Cynthia Stokes Brown is an educator-historian. She earned her BA at Duke University

Duke University

Duke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...

 in history (summa cum laude) and her M.A.T. and Ph.D. from Johns Hopkins University

Johns Hopkins University

The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...

 in the history of education with fellowships from the American Association of University Women and the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation. After teaching tenth-grade world history for two years and living in northeast Brazil for two years with the Peace Corps

Peace Corps

The Peace Corps is an American volunteer program run by the United States Government, as well as a government agency of the same name. The mission of the Peace Corps includes three goals: providing technical assistance, helping people outside the United States to understand US culture, and helping...

, Brown directed the single-subject credential program at Dominican University of California

Dominican University of California

Dominican University of California is a four year, accredited, private, Catholic-heritage, and co-educational institution located in San Rafael, California. Founded in 1890 as Dominican College, Dominican is one of the oldest universities in California. The U.S. News and World Report ranks...

 at San Rafael

San Rafael

San Rafael is a common place-name in areas where that tongue is or was spoken:-Towns, cities, municipalities, etc.:*Argentina**San Rafael, Mendoza**San Rafael Department*Bolivia...

 from 1982-1992. She taught full-time in both the history and education departments until 2001, when she retired from full-time teaching to write Big History: From the Big Bang to the Present. Using the term big history

Big History

Big History is a field of historical study that examines history on large scales across long time frames through a multidisciplinary approach, focusing on both the history of the non-human world and on major adaptations and alterations in the human experience...

, coined by David Christian

David Christian

David A. Christian , is a highly decorated American Vietnam War veteran, best known for his veteran's advocacy efforts. He is a candidate for the Republican nomination for United States Senator from Pennsylvania in the 2012 election, challenging incumbent Bob Casey Jr..-Early life and...

 at Macquarie University

Macquarie University

Macquarie University is an Australian public teaching and research university located in Sydney, with its main campus situated in Macquarie Park. Founded in 1964 by the New South Wales Government, it was the third university to be established in the metropolitan area of Sydney...

 in Sydney, Australia, Brown told the whole story from the big bang

Big Bang

The Big Bang theory is the prevailing cosmological model that explains the early development of the Universe. According to the Big Bang theory, the Universe was once in an extremely hot and dense state which expanded rapidly. This rapid expansion caused the young Universe to cool and resulted in...

 to the present in simple, non-academic language to convey our common humanity and our connection to every other part of the natural world. Teaching part-time after 2001, Brown pioneered the teaching of big history

Big History

Big History is a field of historical study that examines history on large scales across long time frames through a multidisciplinary approach, focusing on both the history of the non-human world and on major adaptations and alterations in the human experience...

 at Dominican University of California

Dominican University of California

Dominican University of California is a four year, accredited, private, Catholic-heritage, and co-educational institution located in San Rafael, California. Founded in 1890 as Dominican College, Dominican is one of the oldest universities in California. The U.S. News and World Report ranks...

, where it is now a required course for every incoming freshman. She currently serves as a founding board member of the International Big History Association (IBHA).

Brown was an American Book Award

American Book Award

The American Book Award was established in 1978 by the Before Columbus Foundation. It seeks to recognize outstanding literary achievement by contemporary American authors, without restriction to race, sex, ethnic background, or genre...

 recipient in 1987 for Ready From Within: Septima Clark and the Civil Rights Movement.

Writings

• Refusing Racism: White Allies and the Struggle for Civil Rights. New York: Teachers College Press, 2001.
• Connecting With the Past: History Workshop in Middle and High Schools. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 1994.
• Like It Was: A Complete Guide to Writing Oral History. New York: Teachers and Writers Collaborative, 1988.
• Ready From Within: Septima Clark and the Civil Rights Movement. Navarro, CA: Wild Trees Press, 1986. (American Book Award
  American Book Award
  The American Book Award was established in 1978 by the Before Columbus Foundation. It seeks to recognize outstanding literary achievement by contemporary American authors, without restriction to race, sex, ethnic background, or genre...
  
  , 1987); re-issued by Africa World Press, 1990.
• Literacy in 30 Hours: Paulo Freire’s Process in Northeast Brazil. London: Writers and Readers Publishing Cooperative, 1975.
• Article: 'What Is a Civilization, Anyway?'
• Journey of the Universe