This semester, we welcomed 18 new students into the Graduate Program. These remarkable new scholars come from the US and five other countries (Canada, Indonesia, Nigeria, Scotland, and Turkey). This is the first year for our new field in African history.
Our students have been on the forefront of change in the department and on the campus. They continue to organize a series of events that focus on the variety of careers open to Ph.D. historians; this semester’s event hosted Robyn Shroeder of the Humanities for the Public Good. Our graduate students have also been among the leaders researching UNC’s past, educating others about the consequences of that history, and using that knowledge to actively promote a vision of justice consistent with the ideals of UNC’s mission. At the same time, they continue to pursue their research into a wide variety of other world regions. This fall, the Department Research Colloquium featured graduate students Till Knobloch on the role of personality and irrationality in Nazi diplomacy, and Donny Santacaterina examining the form and function of state media in early communist China. Our joint graduate research seminar exchange with King’s College in London continued as Robin Buller, Larissa Stiglich, and Aubrey Langsdorf and three students from London shared their dissertation research with local audiences.
Please check out the new Graduate web site, and send in your news so we can include it.