Dr. Johnson gets a DAAD

Dr. Molly Johnson has won a Faculty Research Visit Grant from the German Academic Exchange Service/DAAD. Germany’s “Fulbright Commission,” so to speak, will sponsor her travel to Germany for two months in Summer 2008 to continue research on her new project on “Collective Living, Social Experimentation, and Cultural Critique in Postwar West Berlin.” Funding from the UAH Humanities Center allowed Dr. Johnson to begin her research on this project last summer.

Dr. Johnson studies how counter-culture West Berliners in the late 1960s shared a critique of bourgeois society, mass consumption, and the nuclear family. They organized communes, squatters’ communities, automobile colonies, and collective apartment communities (Wohngemeinschaften). Examining the ideals of the communards, she situates their experiments within the history of utopian socialist movements of the early nineteenth century and communal practices that emerged internationally in the late Sixties.


Dr. Johnson stays busy. Over the next two months, she will complete final revisions to her book manuscript, Training Socialist Citizens: Sports and the State in East Germany, under contract with the Studies in Central European Histories Series with Brill Academic Publishers. Congratulations Dr. Johnson!

Student Leaders Reflect on First Semester of PASS

Veronica Ferreira and Sarah Fisher have completed the first semester as student leaders in UAH's new Peer-Assisted Study Sessions, or PASS, sponsored by the Academic Resource Center. They led study sessions to help students do better in class assignments, tests, and research in Dr. Waring's sections of Western Civilization. Although the results from the final exams have yet to be tabulated, Dr. Waring found that students who attended the sessions on average scored about a grade level higher than those who did not. Sarah enjoyed the sessions, remarking that the PASS program was "a great way for students to learn new material." Veronica said of PASS that "For me, it has been a great experience. It feels wonderful to have a student come to you who is so excited about grades. I've even learned a few new study strategies in my efforts to help others."

Based on this early success, the History Department, working with the Academic Resource Center, will expand its participation in the program in Spring 2008. In World History classes, Veronica will work with Dr. Molly Johnson, and Sarah will team with Dr. Christine Sears. Craig Noneman, a new session leader, will work with Dr. Waring in Western Civilization.

After 40 Years, Johanna Shields Teaches her Final Class

Professor Johanna Shields, who came to UAH in 1967, taught her last class this fall. She retired some years ago but helped the department by continuing to teach a couple classes on the Old South. She said she enjoyed teaching but missed seeing student development from their first year to their senior seminar and participating in the evolution of the department. Johanna reflected on the major changes she witnessed on campus over her career. She recalled that in 1967 a single room in Morton Hall housed the library. Now, Johanna expressed excitement at the incredible access to on-line resources and information. With all the data, students have so many more research opportunities, but have to learn "the illusory character of knowledge on-line" and investigate beyond the false completeness yielded by search engines. Looking back on her career, Johanna expressed satisfaction about several accomplishments. She was proud of her efforts to help found the Humanities Center, which provides funding for humanities research and programs. But most of all, Johanna expressed pride for "teaching good people" through all her years. The department will miss Dr. Shields as a colleague in learning and wishes her the best in a well-deserved retirement.

Research Experience for Undergraduates, Summer 2008

Calling Undergraduate History Majors!

Are you interested in the opportunity to do independent research under the direction of a history professor during Summer 2008?

In exchange for developing a research plan that would require 32 to 40 hours a week of active research, reading, and writing for 10 to 12 weeks, you could receive a $3000 stipend from the "Research Experience for Undergraduates" program funded by the UAH President’s Office, the Provost’s office, and other sources as they become available. 15-20 proposals will be accepted, pending availability of funds.

If you are interested, please contact a member of the UAH History Department by Friday November 9. Prelimininary proposals will be due to the department by November 16. The final deadline to submit proposals to the Faculty Senate Finance and Resources Committeee is December 1.

We encourage you to consider this exciting opportunity. Be sure to act quickly! You will be competing with students from across the campus and will need time to develop a strong proposal in cooperation with your faculty mentor.

Congratulations to New Phi Alpha Theta Initiates!

On Friday October 5, 2007, the History Department gathered at the home of Dr. John Severn and his wife Debbie to initiate new members into the Phi Alpha Theta history honorary.

We are pleased to announce the new initiates, pictured above: Dawn Suiter, Sarah Fisher, Gregory Hughes, Joseph Richardson, Elisabeth Spalding, and Charles Westbrook. Dillon Lee and Eddie Kimbrough are also new members, but they were unable to attend the initiation ceremony.

Many thanks to John and Debbie for letting Phi Alpha Theta use their home, and to Phi Alpha Theta president Diane Allaway, Vice President Veronica Ferreira, Secretary Whitney Snow, Treasurer Thomas Bockborn, and members Alex Methvin and Jennifer Coe for helping coordinate food and drink and organize a lovely evening for the new initiates and their families.

Nazi Course Set for Germany in 2008

In May 2008, Dr. Molly Johnson will take UAH students to Germany as part of a course entitled "Munich, Nuremberg, Berlin: Legacies of the Third Reich." Participating students can get 3 hours of either History 399 or Global Studies 199 credit. The course will explore three cities integral to the history of Nazi Germany: Munich (the “capital of the movement”), Nuremberg (site of the Nazi Party rallies), and Berlin (official capital of the Third Reich). The course will begin during the spring semester with instruction at UAH and will end with a two-week trip to Germany in May.

The course has three objectives. First, while in Huntsville, students will learn about the rise and fall of Nazism in Germany. Second, while in Germany, students will analyze the “aestheticization of politics” in Nazi Germany by viewing Nazi architecture and visiting the sites of Party rallies and parades. Third, also while in Germany, students will examine how the cities of Munich, Nuremberg, and Berlin reflect the history of the Nazi period today, with particular focus on memorials and monuments.

If you would like more information, please contact Dr. Molly Johnson at johnsomw@uah.edu or the Global Studies Program at globalstudies@uah.edu.
There will also be an informational session on Friday October 19 at 1:00 p.m. in Roberts Hall 423 featuring free German desserts!

PASS!

The History Department is participating in a new university program, sponsored by UAH's Academic Resource Center, to help first year students succeed. The initiative’s acronym is PASS for Peer-Assisted Study Sessions. Two history majors, Veronica Ferreira and Sarah Fisher will run voluntary study sessions for Dr. Waring’s sections of Western Civilization I. Veronica and Sarah will help students develop skills and become independent learners. They will each organize three one-hour sessions every week, and assist with such skills as reading, research, test-preparation, and essay writing. Studies have shown that such study sessions help students succeed in class, do well in other courses, and graduate. Veronica and Sarah’s PASS schedule