History

Return to: Academic Departments

View Programs and Courses 

Faculty

Professor: Christopher Mauriello, Chairperson

Professors: Emerson Baker, Aviva Chomsky, Li Li, Paul Marsella, Dane A. Morrison, Donna Seger

Associate Professors: Bradley Austin, Andrew T. Darien, Gayle V. Fischer, Alexandros Kyrou, Kenneth Okeny

Assistant Professors: Annette Chapman-Adisho, Bethany Jay, Erik Jensen, Robert J. LaSota, Jamie Wilson

Faculty Emeriti

Professors: Charles F. Ames, Jr., James T. Doyle, Julius W. Dudley, John J. Fox, Jr., Elizabeth Malloy, Joan M. Maloney, Minor H. McLain, Mary-Emily Miller, Harold A. Pinkham, Jr., William Thomson

Associate Professors: John M. Donaldson, Vincent F. McGrath, Joseph Piemonte, Henry G. Stenberg

Assistant Professor: Edward D. McGlynn

Programs Offered

Bachelor of Arts – History

Concentrations

Applied History: Pre-Legal/Business  
Applied History: Public History  
Africa, Asia and Latin America   
European History   
United States History   

Minors

History 

Programs in History

The Department of History is distinguished by the breadth of its faculty’s expertise. The faculty includes distinguished scholars in United States, European, Latin American, African, and Asian history. These faculty resources enable the department to offer major fields of study in United States history, European history, and African, Asian and Latin American history.

Most history courses are open to any undergraduate. Few have specific prerequisites. History majors have priority in registering for classes, but the majority of students enrolled in most history courses are majoring in other departments and schools. The history faculty welcomes this diversity of students.

Major in History

The purpose of the major is to help students understand themselves as products and makers of history. History courses introduce them to historical patterns and problems in a variety of areas and periods, as well as to different historical materials and techniques of analysis. Our courses encourage students to learn to think critically and to search deeply in at least one area of concentration. Achievement of these goals depends heavily on effective use of faculty advice, and each student should see his or her advisor as soon as one is assigned. Thereafter, each student should confer with the advisor at least once each semester to ensure smooth progress through the program of study.

Through a series of introductory and advanced courses, history majors become familiar with past knowledge, the forces of change, and the varieties of historical scholarship that treat societies throughout the world. They also learn to collect, evaluate, organize, and interpret evidence, and to present it in oral and written forms. Students with grounding in historical knowledge possess the central core of an excellent liberal arts education that may be applied to a variety of uses, including active citizenship, graduate school, and various occupations. Department graduates work in such fields as law, business, librarianship, archival and museum management, teaching at all levels, government service, and journalism-in brief, wherever expertise in critical thinking and clear writing are recognized assets.

The program for majors consists of 36 credits hours in history Students majoring in history may select a concentration. The History Department encourages, but does NOT require students to select a concentration.

Departmental courses (36 credits hours)

All History Majors (regardless of concentration)

History – No Concentration:

Required courses outlined above
27 credits hours (8 courses) chosen from the history electives)

Concentration in Applied History; Pre-Legal/Business

Required courses outlined above
Choose three of the following

Concentration in Applied History; Public History

Required courses outlined above
Choose three of the following:

Concentration in United States History:

Required courses outlined above
Choose four elective courses in U.S. History

Concentration in European History:

Required courses outlined above

Concentration African, Asian, and Latin American History

Required courses outlined above
Choose four elective courses in African, Asian, and Latin American History

Major in History (B.A. degree) with Secondary Education Minor

The History Department offers a nationally accredited teacher preparation program for students interested in teaching history at the secondary level (grades 8-12). Students wishing to complete this program and achieve an initial licensure take an Education minor within the B.A. program in History (Refer to the School of Education  for more information on educational licensure). Candidates for teacher licensure in Massachusetts must also take and pass the Massachusetts Tests for Educator Licensure.  Please refer to the Secondary Education Minor  section of the catalog for information on specific minor requirements.

Interdisciplinary and Other Minors

The History Department participates in the following IDS Minors: African-American Studies , Latin American, Caribbean and Latino Studies , East European and Russian Studies , Information Technology in the Arts and Sciences , Marine Studies ,Urban Studies , and Women’s Studies . In addition, a wide range of academic minors in other disciplines are available. Please consult the Programs of Study  section of this catalog for further information.

Return to: Academic Departments