Environmental Historian Dagomar Degroot Looks to the Past to Navigate the Future of Climate Change
May 1st, 2026
For Degroot, the value of history lies in its ability to inform what comes next. Environmental history, in that sense, is about the future that is still being shaped.…
The Power of History: Book Recommendations With History Professor Adam Rothman
May 1st, 2026
Rothman, who studies 19th-century U.S. history with a focus on the history of slavery and emancipation, shares the books that have shaped his understanding of the past and why they matter today.…
Seaweed, Colonialism and a Fulbright Grant Bring Ph.D. Student to Japan’s Cultural Capital
April 13th, 2026
Now a Ph.D. candidate in history at Georgetown, Barkalow is spending a year immersed in Japanese language, history and culture through the Fulbright U.S. Student Program.…
The Hoya: Prof. Mustafa Aksakal Argues New Reasons for Ottoman Decline in New Book
February 3rd, 2026
In “The War That Made the Middle East,” Mustafa Aksakal, a history and Turkish studies professor, argues the Ottoman Empire actually collapsed due to a mixture of external developments, including imperialist ambitions and the breakout of World War I. …
Global Irish Studies Professor Wins Research Prize for Book on Irish History
January 20th, 2026
“We are proud to see Professor Gannon’s work recognized with the NUI Irish Historical Research Prize,” said Fr. David J. Collins, S.J., a professor and chair in the Department of History. “This award is particularly meaningful because it validates the global approach to history that we champion here at Georgetown.…
Vatican-Affiliated Scholars Join Students in Dialogue About the Virgin Mary
December 16th, 2025
In Catholic teaching, the Virgin Mary is understood to bring people together under her “mantle,” guiding them toward Jesus. She is a bridge and a unifier. At the College of Arts & Sciences, Vanessa Corcoran, an advising dean and medieval historian, teaches the course, Mary Through the Ages, which examines the figure of Mary from interreligious and intercultural perspectives. …
The Hoya: GU History Seminar Collaborates on Clara Barton Research with Historic Site
December 16th, 2025
Ten Georgetown University students are researching the life of American Red Cross founder Clara Barton in collaboration with a National Park Service site to bolster the content of the site’s exhibits and website content.…
How Space Shapes Human History and Why the Future May Be in Asteroids
November 20th, 2025
GU’s Ask a Professor series digs into Prof. Dagomar Degroot’s new book to learn about the threats posed by cosmic events and discover Prof. Degroot’s vision of a human civilization settling in asteroid cities while preserving Earth’s climate.…
History Professor Maurice Jackson Explores the ‘Rhythms of Resistance and Resilience’ in DC
October 23rd, 2025
The athletes and musicians of Rhythms of Resistance and Resilience take complex ideas and apply them in ways that are understandable, and that’s “the most difficult thing to do,” said Jackson. Throughout the book and exhibit, Jackson hopes to do something similar. …
The Hoya: Citizen Historians Document Smithsonian Fearing Censorship Efforts
October 10th, 2025
Two Georgetown University history professors are leading a group of volunteers to archive exhibits across the Smithsonian Institution in anticipation of federal directives that could alter or remove museum content.…
History Prof. James Gustafson Joins the College as Davis Visiting Professor
October 6th, 2025
Gustafson is teaching two courses this semester: History of Iran and Environmental History of Iran. The first course covers Iran’s social and cultural history from the Persian Empires of antiquity to the modern Islamic Republic. The second is a seminar that explores how climate change and environmental hazards have shaped modern Iran’s history. …
GU History Alum Soma Arens (C’24) Gains Firsthand Experience in Germany’s Parliament
August 22nd, 2025
Arens said his Georgetown education and his time interning on Capitol Hill as an undergrad helped him prepare for the IPS program. “The global mindset and intercultural awareness I was able to cultivate through my Georgetown education contributed immensely to making my experience in the IPS valuable,” Arens said. …
Alumni Perspectives: Ella Castanier (History Major, COL’24)
May 6th, 2025
I believe the medical humanities are not solely an academic discipline, but a mechanism for achieving health justice. Pairing the medical humanities minor with a major in history allowed me to pursue education in medical history…learning from disciplines that are not traditionally included in historical training.…
Students Bridge Campuses, Cultures, and Communities with Hands-On Learning in India
April 29th, 2025
Ten Georgetown University students from campuses in the United States and Qatar recently came together in India for an immersive research experience as part of the interdisciplinary course Indian Ocean Research Colloquium.…
Prof. Newfield Awarded €10 Million to Solve Enduring Mystery of the Black Death
December 18th, 2024
It’s a riddle that Timothy Newfield, a historical epidemiologist and environmental historian in Georgetown’s College of Arts & Sciences, hopes to finally solve nearly 700 years later.…
One Student Historian’s Dedication to Preserving Memories of the Forgotten
November 7th, 2024
Patrick Grey (G’29) never saw the field of history as a potential career path until he discovered his passion for teaching and storytelling during an oral history project in college. “Once I gained experience from talking to people, getting to know their stories and how they view historical events, I knew history was a force for good,” said Grey.…
Rethinking Research: Latin America Through The Eyes of a Brazilian Specialist and Argentinian Historian
October 1st, 2024
During Hispanic Heritage Month, as we celebrate accomplishments by Latinx and Hispanic individuals, it is also important to recognize the ongoing research efforts on countries in Latin America. Meet two doctoral students conducting research on the history of local and international migration and regional agriculture and its wider effects in Latin America.…
Prof. Adam Rothman in The Hoya: Pursue Accountability and Justice
September 5th, 2024
This year, Georgetown University added a new element to the core curriculum called “Pathways to Social Justice” (PSJ). This curriculum introduces students to the idea of justice that runs through Georgetown’s values, from community in diversity to faith that does justice.…
In “Facing Georgetown’s History,” Student Artists Reflect on the GU272
April 8th, 2024
Starting April 8, Lauinger Library will host an exhibition on its Fourth Floor Community Gallery reflecting on Georgetown University’s role in the injustice of slavery and the legacies of enslavement and segregation in our nation. “Facing Georgetown’s History Through Art” will showcase multifaceted artwork from the capstone projects of students in Prof. Adam Rothman’s History 099: Facing Georgetown’s History course from 2021 to 2023. …
Interview with Robby Turner (CAS ’24): Kalorama Summer Research Fellowship Scholar
March 13th, 2024
Robby Turner (CAS ’24) discusses his paper, “Images of an Illusory Past: The Role of History in the Changing American Far-Right” By Lindsey Gradowski (CAS ’24) Historical research does not…
Interview with Pace Schwarz (CAS ’23): Kalorama Summer Research Fellowship Scholar
March 13th, 2024
Pace Schwarz (CAS ’23) discusses his paper, “Reviving Class Discourse in the Language of Occupy Wall Street” By Lindsey Gradowski (CAS ’24) Pace Schwarz did not plan on majoring in…
Interview with Angela Nguyen (CAS ’24): Kalorama Summer Research Fellowship Scholar
March 13th, 2024
Angela Nguyen (CAS ’24) discusses her paper, “Redefining War Crimes: The Bertrand Russell Tribunal’s Expansion of the Definition of War Crimes” By Lindsey Gradowski (CAS ’24) Angela…
History Alumnus wins Rhodes Scholarship
November 17th, 2023
Thomas Batterman (C’22), a researcher who investigates war crimes at the Department of Justice and who made new discoveries about a medieval plague while at Georgetown, has won the 2024 Rhodes Scholarship…
Cosmic Luck: NASA’s Apollo 11 Moon Quarantine Broke Down
June 9th, 2023
Low-likelihood and high-consequence risks really matter… mitigating them is one of the most important things that governments can do.…
Finding the Latinx City with Mike Amezcua and Pedro A. Regalado
June 7th, 2023
One of the questions that guided me early on concerned the role of Latinx people as custodians of that space. What innovations did they mobilize to survive?…
In Conversation with Prof. Mike Amezcua
May 4th, 2023
We look at urban space and ask “how did this come about?” The city and all that’s associated with it – from people, to buildings, to pigeons, to toxins, becomes the site of engagement for us…
Spotlight on Xin Zheng: Phillips Collection
January 19th, 2023
“Xin Zheng is the Makeba Clay Diversity Fellow, and will support The Phillip Collection’s Institutional History Project.”…
Prof. Dagomar Degroot Contributes to UN Human Development Report
September 8th, 2022
Today’s climate crisis has no precedent in Earth’s history, owing to the combination of its speed, eventual magnitude, global scale and human cause.…
The Frederick Douglass Anthology
August 30th, 2022
History Major Dami Kim (COL ’24) has assembled a collection of the abolitionist, writer, and orator’s most prominent works.…
Analyzing Ceramics Sheds Light on Xenophobia, 1300 Years Too Late
June 9th, 2022
“How do you know what people in the 7th century thought about outsiders? According to Xin Zheng (C’23), you should examine their pottery.”…
Which Witch: Two Professors Use Historical Research to Teach Class on Different Forms of Witchcraft from Around the World
November 3rd, 2021
“The ‘study of witchcraft is an entry point into everything that makes us human.'”…
Professor Marcia Chatelain Awarded Pulitzer Prize in History
June 11th, 2021
During the 105th Pulitzer Prize ceremony, Marcia Chatelain was chosen as this year’s winner in the category of history for her work, Franchise: The Golden Arches in Black America.…
Outstanding Undergraduate Work in the Midst of Pandemic
June 3rd, 2021
Academic year 2020-21 delivered a series of challenges, requiring faculty, staff and students to demonstrate resilience and to reimagine the life of the university in a remote setting. Our…
Professor Mireya Loza and the Making of “Girlhood (It’s Complicated)”
February 26th, 2021
“There is no better time to think about how girls shaped American History and how girls have always been on the frontline of change.”…
MA Student Tianna Mobley Examines Effects of Slavery in History of the White House
January 26th, 2021
The project aims to bring awareness to slavery’s role in the foundation of the United States through its involvement in the erection of one the most prominent symbols of freedom and democracy in the nation: the White House.…
Pandemic/Academic
September 25th, 2020
As the Fall Semester continues and October approaches, it is readily apparent that this school year – unsurprisingly – is progressing a bit differently than in years past. The COVID-19 pandemic…
