Sarah Coffman
Class Year:
2021
Job Title:
PhD Candidate in History, Rutgers University
Areas of Study:
History, African American Studies
Hometown:
Oak Lawn, IL
What made you decide to become a History major at 新澳门六合彩开奖结果?
Initially when I got to 新澳门六合彩开奖结果, I wanted to study psychology and biology. After my first semester, I realized I was dreading my spring science classes. I was always interested in history in high school; my two favorite classes were AP World History and AP US History. So, I ultimately decided to overhaul my schedule and give history a try at the college level. The class that swayed me was Dr. Rudi Batzell’s Modern America, now called “Inequity, Rights, Reaction: Modern US.” I really enjoyed the readings and discussions we had in the class and I wanted to be in more classes where we were doing that sort of work.
Share a specific story that sticks out to you from your time as a history student (perhaps a favorite event, class, trip, person, etc.):
There are so many stories that come to mind, so I will share two.
The first is from the summer after my freshman year. Dr. Batzell had asked me to collaborate on a research article on infanticide in late-nineteenth century Chicago, and we were making our first trip to the archive. In my mind, the archive was going to be this picturesque library with lots of old books and documents surrounding you as you read through cool, old, disintegrating print materials. The archive we arrived at was nothing like that! It was a dusty, cold basement with no windows, and we were looking through coroner’s ledgers of suspicious deaths–on microfilm. For the whole summer, I spent two to three days each week going to the stuffy basement archive, searching through these ledgers for infant deaths. Though it sounds grim, it was my first exposure to the process of historical research and I really enjoyed every second of it. We went on to turn this research into an article and conference presentation at the Social Science History Association Annual Meeting in November 2019.
My other story is from when I took the Historian’s Workshop class with Dr. Courtney Pierre Joseph in spring 2020. One of the major assignments for the class was conducting an oral history with an employee from the Chicago non-profit Heartland Alliance, and I had the opportunity to interview Cedric Frison, an anti-violence outreach specialist who works in city communities where interpersonal gun violence is most common. Though we had to conduct the interview over the phone due to COVID, hearing and documenting his story was such an incredible experience and showed me the power of the personal stories that make up history as a whole. After doing the interview for this class, Dr. Joseph advocated for myself and another student, Isaac Winter, to keep doing oral histories with Heartland Alliance staff the following summer. It was amazing to record history as it happened, as we asked individuals about their experiences with COVID and the Summer for Black Lives.
What鈥檚 something you think students considering majoring in History should know?
History is so much more than just memorizing dates! Being “good at dates” is not a requirement for enjoying the study of history. The events that took place on the dates are much more important than the dates themselves.
Also, if you are really enjoying your classes and want more history, do not be afraid to seek out extra interactions or opportunities with the professors in the department. They are so gracious and willing to share their knowledge and excitement about their own work–and they may be able to offer you the chance to see history in practice beyond the classroom, whether through research or public engagements.
Why is history important and/or relevant to the world today?
History is quite literally all around us. Everything we experience now is so intimately tied to the past. Present day movements (often extensions of struggles which began much earlier) to secure racial liberation, women’s and LGBTQIA+ rights, and recognition of immigrant groups as citizens or individuals seeking refuge remind us of the limitations of our past, and what our role is in securing a better future.
What are you up to now? In what ways did being a history major help you in your work experiences after graduation? (the more specifics you can add here about your jobs/internships/work experience, the better)
Because of my work with Dr. Batzell and Dr. Joseph, I realized I was very passionate about history research and I decided to apply for history PhD programs during my senior year. I am now a full-time PhD student in history at Rutgers University-New Brunswick in New Jersey. The training in research and critical reading I received at Lake Forest is still so valuable to me as I proceed through the PhD program. I currently research Black life in post-World War II Philadelphia, with a specific focus on Black organizing and activism to secure equitable and desired housing.
Also, I participated in a public humanities internship program in summer 2022 where I led an oral history project for the Regional Plan Association, an urban planning non-profit organization who wanted to commemorate their centennial founding anniversary. The interview experience I gained in Dr. Joseph’s class and beyond allowed me to successfully manage an institutional oral history project and conduct nearly thirty interviews with current and former staff of the organization.