This profile is part of a series of interviews chronicling the experiences of researchers who use The New York Public Library's collections for the development of their work. The 'Working from Home' edition focuses on how researchers, through the challenges created by COVID-19, continue to use the Library’s resources remotely.

Richard Cheu is a Ph.D. student in World History at St. John’s University and a Public Historian focusing on Chinese American history. His careers—yes, plural—have included neuropathologist and economist. Cheu is a member of the New Jersey Governor's Commission for Ellis Island and an ordained Catholic deacon, most recently serving as a volunteer hospital chaplain at Bellevue Hospital.

What research are you working on?

Dissertation: Chinese American Public History

What resources are you using for your research?

Public History—a new history genre—evolved in the 1950s and 1960s from three movements: civil rights, anti-Vietnam protests, and counter-culture (e.g., Woodstock). Traditional history tends to focus on documenting the achievements of the elite, wealthy, and successful. Thus the adage, “Histories are written by the winners.” Public history presents and interprets the histories of people and communities not included in traditional historical accounts.

My dissertation topic, Chinese American Public History (CAPH), is a new category within public history. It is not a searchable term. Researching CAPH involves database research in various areas such as 19th and 20th century Chinese American history, documentation from CAPH venues, oral histories, and newspaper articles. I generally begin researching a topic by conducting a search of my favorite history databases, ProQuest and/or JSTOR. I favor ProQuest because it numbers the references.

Have you discovered a great online resource you've never used before? 

Newspapers.com. My dissertation advisor "suggested" a literature search of newspaper articles. I reviewed 3,737 articles online and downloaded about 25% of the articles.

What's your working-from-home setup?

The literature search was grueling. I had to do it between midnight and 7 am. The internet in my apartment building is shared by ~200 apartments. Residents were sheltering at home. As people woke up and logged onto the internet, the speed dropped by 2/3 during the daytime. It's harder to be motivated to do dissertation research at home because of available distractions. Being in the presence of other scholars in the NYPL's Wertheim Study is very motivating.

I continue to provide pastoral counseling from home by telephone, text, and email. I am also contributing to the war against the pandemic by writing and distributing healthcare tutorials such as: "Coping with Stress" and "How to Avoid or Mitigate a Hate Incident." I will be conducting a webinar about stress for the Stanford Alumni Association this summer.

What's your favorite distraction or snack when working from home?

Music is my favorite distraction. I belong to the St. Francis Xavier choir which has virtual rehearsals on Thursday evenings. My favorite snack is an apple, orange or other fruit to ward off my sweet tooth.

Are you using NYPL Library collections to research from home? We’d love to hear about your work! Not familiar with our online collections? Whether you'd like a quick introduction to our newspapers, journals, or e-books, or if you need help with something more specific, our online consultations take advantage of screen-sharing technology so we can show you exactly how and where to find things and recommend titles relevant to your work.

Just let us know what you need help with and we'll be in touch to schedule a time.