Students who major in history explore the people, institutions, and cultures of those who came before us. The study of the past is deeply connected to the present, and it gives students powerful tools for understanding and engaging a wide range of modern issues, debates, and questions. Moreover, studying history teaches valuable practical skills—critical thinking, argumentation, writing, and more—that lead to success in a variety of career fields.
Programs
The department of history offers a bachelor of arts (BA) degree and a minor in history, as well as departmental honors to those who qualify for this program.
- Major
- Minors
Faculty
Chair and Professor
- Rothman, Joshua
Director of Graduate Studies in History
- Riches, Daniel L.
Director, Undergraduate Studies in History
- Margaret Peacock
Director of the Frances S. Summersell Center for the Study of the South
- Giggie, John
Charles G. Summersell Chair in Southern History
- Gordon, Lesley
Professors
- Beeler, John F.
- Frederickson, Kari
- Gordon, Lesley
- Huebner, Andrew
- Lindquist-Dorr, Lisa
- Rothman, Joshua
Associate Professors
- Abruzzo, Margaret N.
- Bunker, Steven B.
- Cribelli, Teresa
- Giggie, John
- Green, Sharony
- Grout, Holly
- Kopelson, Heather
- Mixson, Jimmy
- Peacock, Margaret
- Peterson, Erik
- Riches, Daniel L.
- Selesky, Harold E.
- Shaw, Jenny
- Steinbock-Pratt, Sarah
- Wasserman, Ian Janek
Assistant professors
- Brock, Julia
- Cappello, Lawrence
- Kaufman, Lucy
- Lockwood, Matthew
- Luo, Di
- Ponce-Vazquez, Juan
Professors emeriti
- Kohl, Lawrence F.
- Rable, George
- Jones, Howard
- Clayton, Lawrence A.
- Mendle, Michael
- Freyer, Tony A.
- McClure, George W.
Courses
A history of Western civilization from its origins in Greece and Rome through the Middle Ages, the Renaissance and Reformation, and the age of discovery and expansion during the emergence of modern Europe. Usually offered in the summer session.
Covers the development of the Western world from the Thirty Years' War to the post-World War II era: the age of absolutism, the Enlightenment, the French Revolution, industrialization and the wars of the 20th century. Usually offered in the summer session.