Department of History
Understand the Past. Shape the Future.
Analyze evidence and weigh competing perspectives to solve today’s and tomorrow’s challenges.
Learn Through Research and Discovery
History is an active process of investigation. Collaborate with faculty on original research, explore primary evidence, complete internships, and study abroad to develop the analytical and communication skills that set historians apart.
History is more than a record of what has been – it is a guide to what comes next.
Distinctive Programs & Projects
Roots of Contemporary Issues
Equipping students with evidence-based reasoning, writing, and critical thinking skills that connect past to present
Fallen Cougars WWII Commemoration Project
Honoring WSC alumni who gave their lives in World War II through research and digital storytelling
Hanford History Project
Preserving the complex history of the Hanford nuclear site in collaboration with regional partners
American West & Pacific Northwest
Recognized strengths in the history of the American West, Pacific Northwest, and global history
Past as Prologue
Bi-weekly radio stories that bring Northwest and global history to public audiences
Digging Up The Past Archives
A quarterly for Aspiring Historians
Hands-On Discovery
- First-year research opportunities
- Small class sizes with engaged and supportive faculty mentors
- Internship experience
- Project-based learning
- Community-engaged learning
- Public history
Our graduates pursue careers in…
- Law and public policy
- Intelligence and national security
- Libraries, museums, and archives
- Historic preservation and public history
- Education and nonprofit leadership
- Journalism, media, business
