History
Justin Leroy was in the beginning of a graduate program at New York University in the summer of 2008 when it became clear that Barack Obama would become the Democratic nominee for president. Leroy recalls countless pundits talking about the move as a turning point in history. “As I walked from the subway to my apartment, I would pass by these newsstands, and every national magazine had a cover story about the end of race and a post racial society,” he says. “And I was skeptical.” “I think I am more pessimistic,” the new… read more about No Straight Line to Progress: Meet Historian Justin Leroy »
When Judah Goldin was named Duke’s first chair of Jewish Studies in 1943, the program was housed in the Graduate School. Twenty-nine years later, the Center for Jewish Studies was established—thanks to two visionaries, two universities and a host of generous donors. Today, as the Center for Jewish Studies celebrates its golden anniversary, it has become a world-renowned interdisciplinary program offering an undergraduate certificate in Jewish Studies and supporting master’s and doctoral candidates across Duke. Looking… read more about For 50 Years, the Center for Jewish Studies Has Delivered Interdisciplinary Insight »
The House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol begins its public meetings Thursday night. Nancy MacLean, a Duke professor of history and public policy, said she has never been so concerned for the nation’s future. “These hearings are the most important in our lifetimes,” MacLean said. “Why? Because they will help determine whether our country will continue the tradition of the peaceful transfer of power after elections that reaches all the way back to George Washington.… read more about Duke Scholars: January 6 Hearings Essential For American Democracy »
PhD Candidate Mohammed S. Ali has recently been awareded a summer 2022 Provost's Internship from Duke University. In this program, he and his cohort will undergo professional development training and intern with organizations external to Duke from May through August. Mohammed will intern with the American Historical Association to assist the publications and editorial department. read more about Mohammed Ali awarded Provost's Internship to work with the AHA »
read more about Eight Faculty Teams Awarded University-Wide Collaboration Grants on Climate Change »
One important academic lesson of the pandemic was that despite COVID restrictions, many Duke undergraduate students continued to conduct valuable research in collaboration with faculty members. This week, that research was showcased when three juniors were named Faculty Scholars, the university’s highest honor for students presented by faculty. The awards went to Patrick Duan, for research studying historical dynamics of racial and ethnic minorities; Jenny (Yijian) Huang, for developing new statistical methodology for… read more about Three Juniors Selected as Faculty Scholars for Excellence in Research »
There’s a common misconception about student voting that after four years of deep engagement on the topic senior Daisy Lane wants to clear up: Students aren’t politically apathetic. “College students vote at lower rates than most other age groups, and the general conception is they care less, but that’s not true,” said Lane, a public policy and history major who worked with the student voting group Duke Votes. “The thinking is they’re only on campus for four years, their home is elsewhere and there’s a lot of student… read more about Class of 2022: Daisy Lane, Helping Students to the Voting Booth »
On Saturday, April 2, Raia Lockerman, Kerry Rork and Anna Greenleaf all had the same two fears: presenting their undergraduate research at a big conference and being away for the Duke vs. UNC game. They were the three Trinity students selected to participate in the 2022 ACC Meeting of the Minds conference, hosted by the University of Virginia between April 1 and 3. The nomination and selection process are extremely competitive, and only five students represented Duke: Lockerman, Rork and Greenleaf from Trinity, as well as… read more about Trinity Students Go on the Road to the ACC Meeting of the Minds Conference »
Six members of Duke’s Class of 2023 have been named to the second class of Nakayama Scholars. The Nakayama Public Service Scholarship is part of the university’s efforts to encourage students to use their Duke experience to engage with the large challenges facing communities around the world. The students represent multiple disciplines across Duke’s academic departments as well as a variety of future careers. Juniors Alexandra Bennion, Bentley Choi, Garrett Goodman, Shreyas Hallur, Andrew Liu and Nellie Sun… read more about Duke Names Second Class of Nakayama Scholars »
Please join us from 4:30-6:00 on Monday 18 April for our first collective in-person event: a reception for the new John Hope Franklin Gallery exhibit “Black Lives Matter Brazil-USA). Food and drinks will be served with exhibit designers serving as guides. It is preceded with a panel discussion from 3-4:00PM led by Professor Silvio Almeida, a former Mellon Visiting at Duke who presented in last year’s department colloquium. Sponsored by… read more about New Black Lives Matter Exhibit at Franklin Gallery @ History »
Featured Courses for Fall 2022 HISTORY 105 - Old Worlds/New Histories, 500-1500 CE Vasant Kaiwar Mon/Wed 3:30-4:45 pm New approaches to history of the world from ca. 500 to 1500 CE. Examines the world before European hegemony. Topics may include nature of autonomous centers of production around the globe; characteristics of trade, empire, science, technology, and high culture across Asia, the Middle East, Africa and the Americas; diffusion of inventions… read more about Featured History Courses for Fall 2022 »
Historian Peter H. Wood recently took part in a podcast entitled "Fields," produced by a Brooklyn-based group exploring aspects of American agriculture, past and present. The one-hour episode, released on February 3 as part of Black History Month, can be found here: https://heritageradionetwork.org/episode/dr-peter-h-wood-rice-and-reshaping-south-carolina. The conversation focuses on the introduction of West African rice cultivation into early South Carolina, a topic covered in Wood's pioneering book, Black… read more about Peter H. Wood podcast for Black History Month »
