During their senior year, students may elect to complete an advanced research project dedicated to an historical topic of their choosing. Working closely with a faculty adviser, students spend 6 credit hours in rigorous independent research, which culminates in a final public presentation, research thesis, and/or digital project.
Recent Senior Department projects have included:
Autumn Miller (Politics & History, 2022). "The Shadow of Culloden: The Political Legacy of the 1745 Jacobite Rebellion"
Chloe Kauffman (History, 2022). "Masculinity, Male Friendship, and Same-Sex Interactions in 18th Century America: The Relationship of Alexander Hamilton and John Laurens"
Molly Elspas (History, 2021). "Tracing the Lines of Racism: The Development of Housing Segregation in Harrisburg (1900-1968)"
Ben Baddorf (History, 2020). "Joining White America: How the Irish Achieved Racial Assimilation"
Emily La Bianca (History, 2017). “The ‘Old School Father’: Richard H. Pratt’s Costly Plan for American Indian Empowerment”
Cassandra Baddorf (History, 2016). “Queen Elizabeth I’s Rhetoric of Leadership”
Kathryn Kaslow (History, 2016). “Anti-Sabbatarianism in Antebellum America: The Christian Quarrel over the Sanctity of Sunday”
Rachel Carey (History, 2015). “Reuter Opus 1148 Organ: Pulling Out All the Stops”
Jonathan Fuller (History, 2015). “Going Home: A History of the American Pro-Israel Lobby”
Christina Thomas (History, 2014). "Roots of a Hidden Legacy: The Flowers Family History"
Elizabeth Motich (History, 2013). "The Lamplight of Chivalry: Literary Knighthood, Honor, and the Southern Cause in the American Civil War"
Amanda Mylin (History, 2012). "Reading the Leaves: Tea and American Colonial Identity, 1765-1775"
Katie Garland (History, 2012). "Providential Progress: The Post-Revolutionary World of Robert Crawford"
Natalie Burack (History, 2012). "The Can-Opener Gourmet: Poppy Cannon and American Culture in the 1950s"
Ben Baddorf presents his honors thesis via webinar in Spring 2020.
For more information about Departmental Honors, visit this page.