“So what are you doing with that History major?” Answer: “Everything.”

By Fred Johnson It makes sense, and I absolutely understand. In today’s twelve easy payment, no money down, reality [non-reality] TV, Facebook “Like,” “Friend,” “Poke,” OMG, #Whatever world, it seems that knowing, understanding, valuing, and majoring in History is an odd choice, maybe even foolish. Of course, historians have long insisted that the skills learned …

What Does a Professor Do During the Long Summer Months?

By Dr. Gloria Tseng, History Department “Are you on vacation now?” my friendly neighbors often ask during the summer months. True, the academic year ends when I send in the final grades for my classes in May. Then I enter my gardening phase, which is late spring and early summer, when I’m hopeful for the new …

Student Feature: Joshua Kam

By Josh Kam Every college freshman has a Dreaded Question. The sort of thing your roommate’s mom asks almost before you’ve shaken hands, that the Michigan-friendly cashiers on 8th Street will ask to start conversation. “What’s your major?” “But whatcha gonna do with a major like that?” “Are you dating?” “Like, I know you’re not …

Collaborative Research

By Lauren Janes This summer I had the joy of leading a team of students in collaborative research to help launch my next book project, The Modern History of Global Food.  The book will feature a series of case studies exploring how we can better understand important world historical themes by analyzing foods that moved …

Welcome, First-Year Students!

Today’s the day we’ve all been waiting for! Our 2016-2017 first-year students move in. We’re so excited for a brand new school year and lots of fun changes! This year we’re pleased to welcome a new Office Manager, Raquel Niles. She’ll be hitting the ground running, so please excuse an interruption or two to our regularly …