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“North American Indian History Precontact to Present”

Native American on horsebackDr. Orlan Svingen’s course, History 308, will be taught online this summer.  It is among core courses for the online American Indian Studies minor/certificate program at WSU.  The Washington State K-12 curriculum – which covers treaties, sovereignty, court rulings and other topics that tribes and neighboring communities address every day – is available online for free to school districts. Dr. Svingen’s course provides further exploration of these central topics along with updated tools for both new and veteran teachers of history and social sciences.  For more information, see the link to WSU News.

Chris Allan, PhD 2010 – Gold, Steel & Ice

Gold Steel & Ice - 1Chris Allan received his PhD in Public History from WSU in 2010.  Dr. Allan is currently a Research Historian with the National Park Service in Alaska.  His book entitled  “Gold, Steel & Ice – A History of Mining Machines in Yukon-Charley Rivers National Preserve” was published in November 2015.  A copy is housed in the main office of the Department of History – WSU.  The book examines one of the three parks that was expanded in size when President Jimmy Carter signed the Antiquities Act in 1980 to preserve the land as a National Monument.  Chris specifically targets the mining machinery used in the Yukon-Charley Rivers area dating back to the 1890s.  More information about the book can be found here.  Photos and sketches included in the book are found  at this site.  Dr. Orlan Svingen was Chris’ mentor and advisor during his years spent at Washington State University.

Lecture & Colloquium: “Buffalo Bill’s Wild West” Mar 9, 2016

William Seefeldt - History

A lecture entitled “Studying Buffalo Bill in the Digital Age” will be held March 9 at 12:30 p.m. in the University of Idaho Whitewater Room, Idaho Commons.  Presenter, Dr. Douglas Seefeldt, is an Assistant Professor of History at Ball State University, Muncie, Indiana.

Dr. Seefeldt will also conduct a colloquium entitled “History After the Digital Turn: How Digital Humanities Has Redefined Scholarship”  to be held in WSU’s Center for Digital Scholarship and Curation, 4th floor Holland/Terrell Library at 3:00 p.m.

More information is available on the Studying Buffalo Bill in the Digital Age flyer.

Research Fellowships available

The Friends of the Air Force Academy Library is offering research fellowships from $1,000 to $15,000 annually.  Available on their web page, is information on How to Apply, About The Friends, Current Projects and Services, and Results of their Work.  The Friends established and fund the program.

Dr. Jesse Spohnholz to give lecture in Amsterdan Mar. 21

Jesse SpohnholzDr. Jesse Spohnholz will be giving the plenary lecture at a conference on “Religious Migration during Europe’s Confessional Age” in Amsterdam on March 21. The conference is sponsored by the European Union and will be held at a church used by French-speaking refugees in the city starting in 1586.  A photograph of the church can be seen here  Amsterdam Church.

Dr. Lawrence Hatter’s latest book receives award

Lawrence HatterLawrence Hatter’s book Citizens of Convenience: Empire, Nationhood, and the Northern Border of the American Republic, 1783-1820 is the recipient of the 2016 Walker Cowen Memorial Prize for “an outstanding work of scholarship in eighteenth-century studies” by the University of Virginia Press.  Citizens of Convenience will be published in early 2017.

Jen Corrinne Brown – PhD 2012, book noted in Spring ’16 Washington Magazine

Dr. Jen BrownA book by Dr. Jen Brown, PhD ’12, Trout Culture: How Fly Fishing Forever Changed the Rocky Mountain West, was highlighted in the spring 2016 issue of Washington State magazine. Brown grew up in Montana and learned to fly fish on the Beaverhead and Big Hole rivers while in college. She is now an assistant professor of History at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. While earning her PhD at Washington State University, she worked closely with her advisor, Dr. Jeff Sanders.

Interdisciplinary Innovation Challenge – Declining water resources on the Palouse

The College of Arts and Sciences Ambassadors’ IIC is inviting students to participate in a unique opportunity.  The application deadline is February 24.  Students from all majors/levels can engage in a team-based problem solution activity that will enhance academic and professional skills.  The winning team can receive up to $1,000 in scholarship money – for each team member!  For more information, see cas.wsu.edu/iic.  The flyer announcing this terrific opportunity can be seen here: Interdisciplinary Innovation Challenge.

Dr. Ken Faunce discusses “Just Mercy” in Washington State Magazine

Kenneth Faunce“I think this book has had a real impact on students,” says WSU history instructor Ken Faunce, who uses Just Mercy in his Roots of Contemporary Issues course. “We discuss a chapter every Friday.”  The book, required reading for first-year WSU students and incorporated into various course curricula as this year’s common reading program selection, has sparked numerous discussions among students, faculty, and staff about the troubling incongruities.  For the entire article, see the Spring 2016 edition of Washington State Magazine.