History

701 Pray Harrold

Ypsilanti, Michigan 48197

Phone: 734.487.1018

History Students Present at Conference

Eight History students from Eastern Michigan University presented papers at the 2018 Phi Alpha Theta History Colloquium at the University of Toledo. Held on November 9, 2018, this one-day conference showcased exceptional undergraduate and graduate student scholarship.

A photo of Mia Colavito.
Mia Colavito
A photo of Mia Colavito.

Mia Colavito

The students’ papers derived from their research at EMU. Six of the presenters are enrolled in the MA in History program and are working on their masters’ theses. The two undergraduates are advanced students who have recently completed HIST 490W: Senior Seminar or independent studies.

The eight papers reflected the breadth and depth of the EMU History program. Topics ranged from Romania in World War I to rural schools in Michigan to African Americans during the Vietnam War. The papers were:

  • Scott Bullock, “Proxy Marriages, Sake Marriages, and Marriages for Immigration Purposes: US Law and the ‘Japanese Marriages’ Cases, 1950-1956”
  • Maha Casey, “African American Women’s Resistance in Family, Jobs, and Abuse before and after Slavery”
  • Mia Colavito, “Dodging the Bullet: The African American Struggle to Seek Refuge from American Conscription in Canada during the Vietnam War (1964-1975)”
  • Joyce Goik, “Smart Match: Did Novels of the Nineteenth Century Influence the Lives, Courtship, and Marriage of the Custers?”
  • Maxwell Harrison, “Choosing a Proper Rural School”
  • Alex Logan, “General Henri Mathias Berthelot, Savior of Romania and Founder of Greater Romania”
  • Lacey Opdycke, “‘The School of Hard Knock’: How Jacqueline Cochran Lobbied for Female Pilots in the Second World War”
  • Ann Remp, “Girolamo Savonarola (1452-1498): The Fashioning of a Prophet and a New Jerusalem in Late Fifteenth-Century Florence”
A photo of the History graduate students.
 History graduate students
A photo of the History graduate students.

 History graduate students

This was the second year that several EMU History students presented their original research at the Phi Alpha Theta History Colloquium at the University of Toledo. The colloquium is a regional event that attracts students from the Midwest and beyond. In addition to the eight EMU students, graduate and undergraduate students from the University of Chicago, Villanova University, the University of Akron, and other institutions presented at the conference.

Phi Alpha Theta is a national honor society that promotes the study of history through the encouragement of research, good teaching, publication, and the exchange of learning and ideas among historians. The Alpha Beta Mu chapter of Phi Alpha Theta at Eastern Michigan University admits several members each year. The chapter’s faculty sponsor is John McCurdy.

EMU Professors Ron Delph, John McCurdy, and Mary-Elizabeth Murphy also attended the Toledo conference. These professors worked closely with the presenters to ensure that their papers were of the highest quality.
The 2018 Phi Alpha Theta History Colloquium at the University of Toledo was a great success. It provided an excellent opportunity for EMU History students to gain experience presenting their research before a group of faculty and students from other institutions. The History program looks forward to sponsoring more presenters at next year’s conference.

Skip Section Navigation