On April 30, the Department of History celebrated student accomplishments at an award ceremony held in the Glasscock Building. In total, seventy undergraduate students are graduating with the BA or BS in History this spring! Two students, Duane Kampa and Rachel Miller, are receiving their MA in History. And two, Mark Askew and Daniel Gipper, are receiving the PhD in History. In addition, those gathered at the ceremony recognized the fifteen students who have completed the Legal History certificate this spring, of whom nine are History majors.
The ceremony also celebrated students who received research prizes and other honors. Three students were recognized for their outstanding scholarship in the Melbern G. Glasscock Undergraduate History Research Paper prize competition. Diego Sepulveda-Allen won the upper-division award for his paper, “Equality as Divisive: Reverse Racist Rhetoric and the Delegitimization of Mexican American Civil Rights in South Texas, 1946-1968,” written for Dr. Walter Kamphoefner’s HIST481 course. Mason Krogh won the lower-division award for his paper, “The Redefining of Women’s Role in Parisian Society: 1914 to 1918,” written for Dr. Rebecca Schloss’s HIST280 course. And Olivia Sink earned an honorable mention for her paper, “Jesus Loves General Motors: American Cultural Hegemony at the 1964-1965 New York World’s Fair,” written for Dr. Jessica Ray’s HIST481 course.
Another highlight of the event was the induction of four new members to Phi Alpha Theta, the National History Honor Society. Chapter president, Hannah Kalinkewicz, presided over the formal initiation of fellow history majors Gabriel MacMurray, Sebastian Miranda, Noelyn Lafferty, and Ethan Rhame. Phi Alpha Theta is a professional society that promotes the study of history through encouraging research, good teaching, publishing, and the exchange of ideas. The local Sigma Rho chapter has nineteen members, including these newest inductees. In addition, seven HIST undergraduates are also new members of Phi Beta Kappa, America’s most prestigious academic honor society. The award ceremony was a chance to celebrate all of these accomplished students.
Finally, the Spring 2025 award ceremony provided an opportunity to recognize the hard work of History research interns. Dr. Adam Seipp presented certificates to twelve students and offered special appreciation for three students who have distinguished themselves for service to the POW/MIA research project under the direction of Dr. Erika Bravo.
The department was delighted to welcome faculty, staff, students, and their families to this special event. We want to extend our thanks to the Undergraduate Leadership team, Dr. Hoi-eun Kim (Director of Undergraduate Studies) and Dr. Verity McInnis (Associate Director of Undergraduate Studies), together with the members of the Events and Engagement Committee (Dr. Bravo, Dr. Damon Bach, and PhD candidate Leslie Torres) for their efforts to organize the ceremony!