He graduated from Harvard University with an AB (1955), MA (1959), and PhD in American colonial history (1961).
He taught at Harvard from 1961 to 1965, serving as Allston Burr Senior Tutor of Leverett House from 1963 to 1965.
In addition to serving as president of the Organization of American Historians (1987-1988), Katz served as president of the American Council of Learned Societies from 1986 to 1997, for which he was awarded a 2010 United States National Humanities Medal.
[2] Katz served as a board member of the New Jersey Council for the Humanities[3] for 37 years, including many as Chair.
Beginning in 2022, the award will be given annually to recognize an organization that has demonstrated significant engagement with and impact through community-focused public humanities work in New Jersey.