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Washington State University
History | Humanities

COVID-19 Update

Update regarding COVID-19

Note from the Chair:

 

The Department of History urges all members of its community—our students, faculty and staff—to be safe and stay safe during this unprecedented time. We are now under a State Executive Order to stay in our homes, but we are all still working toward our common goal of delivering a high-quality history education together. Our faculty worked extremely hard over the Spring Break to be ready for the process of distance learning. On March 24, 2020 they began with this new format.

Considering the difficulties that lie ahead, I would encourage everyone (students, faculty, and staff) to practice empathy and compassion toward each other. If you are a student experiencing financial difficulties, we encourage you to call the Office of the Dean of Students and inquire about its Student Emergency Fund (509) 335-5757 or deanofstudents@wsu.edu. There is also some need-based funding available from the provost’s office here: https://provost.wsu.edu/ccg/. We also encourage you to stay in touch with your classmates and your professors–make sure you communicate with your professors. This is of utmost importance.

And for everyone: let’s continue to use social media to stay in touch with each other and to tell our stories, as we develop new ways of working and new ways of learning. Academics are consecrated storytellers, and we need to tap into that particular skill set right now to document this new reality as it unfolds.

Stay safe and be well,

Matthew A. Sutton

 

Click here for WSU’s COVID-19 Response – Get the latest news and updates

Booth Conference Invite

We would like to congratulate ABD doctoral candidate, Ryan Booth, for the invite he received to present his abstract at the National University of Ireland in Dublin! Focusing on the history of 20th century war, the “Why Fight” conference will be on the 18th and 19th of May. Great work Ryan!

Learn more about the conference here!

 

Professor Sue Peabody’s sabbatical update

A French translation of Meyer Distinguished Professor in History Sue Peabody’s multi-prize-winning book, Madeleine’s Children: Family, Freedom, Secrets and Lies in France’s Indian Ocean Colonies (Oxford UP, 2017) has just been published as Les enfants de Madeleine: Famille, liberté, secrets et mensonges dans les colonies françaises de l’océan indien, translated and adapted by Pierre H. Boulle (Paris: Karthala, 2019). Professor Peabody is currently on sabbatical and will attend the opening of the exhibit she has co-curated at the Musée historique de Villèle, in Réunion island, a French state near Madagascar in the Indian Ocean. The exhibit, “L’histoire étrange de Furcy” (The Strange Story of Furcy), is based on her book, and will be open December 10, 2019-April 26, 2020.

Saltanat Mukatayeva returns home

Over the past two months, the WSU Department of History has enjoyed hosting Saltanat Mukatayeva, a doctoral student from the Department of Religious and Cultural Studies at al-Farabi Kazakh National University. Working with Dr. Charles Weller as her foreign advisor, along with support from Dr. Karen Phoenix and Dr. Brenna Miller, Saltanat conducted research and offered a public lecture on “The Heritage of (the Kazakh Reformer) Abai Kunanbaev (1845-1904) in Soviet & Post-Soviet Historiography.”

We wish her success& safe travels as she returns to Almaty to continue her studies!”