About the Department
History: it’s all about the present. Learning about people and cultures, and the debates and controversies of the past, helps us understand our world today. Courses in history teach us to think critically about complex issues, to understand how history is constructed, and to make convincing arguments. The study of history enriches your private life, prepares you to make wise choices in public life, and trains you for careers in law, politics, teaching, journalism, and many other careers that require reasoning and writing abilities.
In Fall 2021 the department is delighted to welcome three new colleagues. Dr. Kelly Colvin specializes in modern European history, modern French history, women and gender, and race and empire. Dr. Kibibi Mack-Shelton specializes in African-American history, Southern history, Southern Black women and girlhood culture/family/childrearing history, Black Diaspora women, and comparative history. Dr. Bonnie Miller specializes in the history of visual culture (particularly photography, cartooning, and early cinema), American food culture, radio broadcasting 1930s-1950s, American imperialism, and the history of American print culture/journalism.
In our undergraduate program, we offer courses on a wide array of regions and eras, almost all of which are designed to be accessible to students majoring in other fields but also interested in history. For more information, see our Undergraduate Programs pages. In our graduate program, we offer a Master’s degree largely based on classes in U.S. and European history, and culminating in a thesis or capstone paper. We also have a track focusing on Public History and another focusing on Archives; for more information see our Graduate Programs pages.