He received a B.A. in Journalism from the University of Missouri-Columbia, where he minored in Black Studies. He earned his M.A. in History from Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville (SIUE), and his Ph.D. in History from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. While completing his Doctorate, he was a Lecturer at SlUE, and a Research Associate at Wayne State University. Dr. Lang has been an intern and reporter at the Chicago Sun-Times, a Davis-Putter Scholar, and a Summer Research Fellow at the Missouri Historical Society Library and Research Center.