Institute for Thomas Paine Studies Podcast

The New-York Historical Society's Center for Women's History is pleased to partner with the ITPS (Institute for Thomas Paine Studies) at Iona University for the third season of their podcast, Public History in a Virtual Age. In the first half of the season, co-hosts Dr. Kellen Heniford, historical consultant and formerly of the ITPS, and Jeanne Gutierrez, Curatorial Scholar in Women's History, will interview curators, educators, and scholars at the New-York Historical Society to explore the many ways in which New York's first museum presents women's history and gender history to the public. The second half of the season will focus specifically on how public historians in and around New York City address the history of women who are underrepresented in museum and archival collections, with a focus on enslaved women, Indigenous women, and immigrant women.This episodes guest, Deborah Hamer, is the Director of the The New Netherland Institute (NNI). For more about the NNI, please see: https://www.newnetherlandinstitute.org/.   

The New-York Historical Society's Center for Women's History is pleased to partner with the ITPS (Institute for Thomas Paine Studies) at Iona University for the third season of their podcast, Public History in a Virtual Age. In the first half of the season, co-hosts Dr. Kellen Heniford, historical consultant and formerly of the ITPS, and Jeanne Gutierrez, Curatorial Scholar in Women's History, will interview curators, educators, and scholars at the New-York Historical Society to explore the many ways in which New York's first museum presents women's history and gender history to the public. The second half of the season will focus specifically on how public historians in and around New York City address the history of women who are underrepresented in museum and archival collections, with a focus on enslaved women, Indigenous women, and immigrant women.This episodes guest, Meredith Horsford, is the Executive Director at Historic House Trust of NYC and Director of Historic Houses at the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation. For more about the Historic House Trust, please see: https://historichousetrust.org/.   

The New-York Historical Society's Center for Women's History is pleased to partner with the ITPS (Institute for Thomas Paine Studies) at Iona University for the third season of their podcast, Public History in a Virtual Age. In the first half of the season, co-hosts Dr. Kellen Heniford, historical consultant and formerly of the ITPS, and Jeanne Gutierrez, Curatorial Scholar in Women's History, will interview curators, educators, and scholars at the New-York Historical Society to explore the many ways in which New York's first museum presents women's history and gender history to the public. The second half of the season will focus specifically on how public historians in and around New York City address the history of women who are underrepresented in museum and archival collections, with a focus on enslaved women, Indigenous women, and immigrant women.Dr. Sarah Litvin serves as Executive Director of the Reher Center For Immigrant Culture and History, located in Kingston, New York. In Spring, 2022, the Kingston Library and the Reher Center for Immigrant Culture and History launched a collaborative project to gather, document, preserve, and share the oral histories of the immigrant experience in our community.Recorded oral histories and transcriptions of the interviews are now part of the Library's and Center's collections, ensuring that marginalized voices are included in the historical record and made accessible through public institutions.

The New-York Historical Society's Center for Women's History is pleased to partner with the ITPS (Institute for Thomas Paine Studies) at Iona University for the third season of their podcast, Public History in a Virtual Age. In the first half of the season, co-hosts Dr. Kellen Heniford, historical consultant and formerly of the ITPS, and Jeanne Gutierrez, Curatorial Scholar in Women's History, will interview curators, educators, and scholars at the New-York Historical Society to explore the many ways in which New York's first museum presents women's history and gender history to the public. The second half of the season will focus specifically on how public historians in and around New York City address the history of women who are underrepresented in museum and archival collections, with a focus on enslaved women, Indigenous women, and immigrant women. This episodes guest, Michael Galban, is the Historic Site Manager of Ganondagan State Historic Site and the curator of the Seneca Art & Culture Center. 

The New-York Historical Society's Center for Women's History is pleased to partner with the ITPS (Institute for Thomas Paine Studies) at Iona University for the third season of their podcast, Public History in a Virtual Age. In the first half of the season, co-hosts Dr. Kellen Heniford, historical consultant and formerly of the ITPS, and Jeanne Gutierrez, Curatorial Scholar in Women's History, will interview curators, educators, and scholars at the New-York Historical Society to explore the many ways in which New York's first museum presents women's history and gender history to the public. The second half of the season will focus specifically on how public historians in and around New York City address the history of women who are underrepresented in museum and archival collections, with a focus on enslaved women, Indigenous women, and immigrant women.This episodes guest, Madeline DeDe-Panken, is a former ​​Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Predoctoral Fellow in Women's History at the New-York Historical Society and the co-chair of the CUNY Public History Collective.  

The New-York Historical Society's Center for Women's History is pleased to partner with the Institute for Thomas Paine Studies at Iona University for the third season of their podcast, Public History in a Virtual Age. In the first half of the season, co-hosts Kellen Heniford, historical consultant and formerly of the ITPS, and Jeanne Gutierrez, Curatorial Scholar in Women's History, will interview curators, educators, and scholars at the New-York Historical Society to explore the many ways in which New York's first museum presents women's history and gender history to the public. The second half of the season will focus specifically on how public historians in and around New York City address the history of women who are underrepresented in museum and archival collections, with a focus on enslaved women, Indigenous women, and immigrant women. This episodes guest, Dr. Valerie Payley, is the Senior Vice President, Chief Historian, Founding Director of the Center for Women's History,  and the Sue Ann Weinberg Director of the Patricia D. Klingenstein Library at the New-York Historical Society. 

The New-York Historical Society's Center for Women's History is pleased to partner with the ITPS (Institute for Thomas Paine Studies) at Iona University for the third season of their podcast, Public History in a Virtual Age. In the first half of the season, co-hosts Dr. Kellen Heniford, historical consultant and formerly of the ITPS, and Jeanne Gutierrez, Curatorial Scholar in Women's History, will interview curators, educators, and scholars at the New-York Historical Society to explore the many ways in which New York's first museum presents women's history and gender history to the public. The second half of the season will focus specifically on how public historians in and around New York City address the history of women who are underrepresented in museum and archival collections, with a focus on enslaved women, Indigenous women, and immigrant women.This episodes guest, Leslie Hayes, is the Vice-President for Education at the New-York Historical Society.  

The New-York Historical Society's Center for Women's History is pleased to partner with the ITPS (Institute for Thomas Paine Studies) at Iona University for the third season of their podcast, Public History in a Virtual Age. In the first half of the season, co-hosts Dr. Kellen Heniford, historical consultant and formerly of the ITPS, and Jeanne Gutierrez, Curatorial Scholar in Women's History, will interview curators, educators, and scholars at the New-York Historical Society to explore the many ways in which New York's first museum presents women's history and gender history to the public. The second half of the season will focus specifically on how public historians in and around New York City address the history of women who are underrepresented in museum and archival collections, with a focus on enslaved women, Indigenous women, and immigrant women. This episodes guest, Dr. Anna Danziger Halperin, is the Associate Director of the Center for Women's History and the lead curator of Women March at the New-York Historical Society. 

In the sixth and final episode of Season Two of the ITPS Podcast on Indigenous Public History, I speak with Heather Bruegl. We talk about her dynamic career as a public historian from her current work at the National Indigenous Women's Resource Center, her dynamic career as a public historian working on issues of reconciliation and education, all the way to her perspectives on indigenous public history.Heather Bruegl is a citizen of the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin and first-line descendent Stockbridge Munsee. She is a graduate of Madonna University in Michigan and holds a Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts in U.S. History. Her research comprises numerous topics related to American history, legacies of colonization, and Indigeneity, including the Dakota War of 1862, the history of American Boarding Schools, and Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (#MMIW). Heather has presented her work at academic institutions including the University of Michigan, University of Wisconsin-Madison, and the College of the Menominee Nation, as well as at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh for Indigenous Peoples Day 2017. Heather consults for a variety of museums and universities and is a frequent lecturer at conferences on topics ranging from intergenerational racism and trauma to the fight for clean water in the Native community. She has been invited to share her research on Native American history, including policy and activism, equity in museums, and land back initiatives for such institutions as the Tate and the Brooklyn Public Library. Heather opened and spoke at the Women's March Anniversary in Lansing, Michigan, in January 2018, and at the first ever Indigenous Peoples March in Washington, DC, in January 2019. In 2019, 2020, and 2021, Heather spoke at the Crazy Horse Memorial and Museum in Custer, South Dakota, for its Talking Circle Series.Heather is the former Director of Education of Forge Project, a decolonial art and education initiative on the unceded homelands of the Muh-he-con-ne-ok in Upstate New York, where she organized public programming and events and led the Forge Project Fellowship program. Now, Heather is a public historian, activist, and independent consultant who works with institutions and organizations for Indigenous sovereignty and collective liberation.  You can find her on Twitter @heatherbruegl, Instagram @heathermbruegl, and on the website https://www.heatherbruegl.com/. The ITPS Podcast is hosted by Dr. John C. Winters. John is the ITPS Research Associate in New York History and Assistant Professor of History at the University of Southern Mississippi. As a public historian, John has nearly ten years of experience in historic homes and public history institutions. You can find him @wintersjohnc and on his webpage, johncwinters.com

This month, I interview Dr. Joe Stahlman. Joe is a scholar of Tuscarora descent whose research focuses on culture and history as well as on the ongoing socio-economic and health and wellness issues among Native communities. We talk about Joe's museum philosophy, the upcoming 250 Commemoration of the American Revolution, and he offers valuable perspective on indigenous studies and decolonization in museums, on museums as vital spaces of reconciliation, and of peace as an unsung and transformative historical subject. Dr. Joe Stahlman is the Director of Seneca Nation's Seneca-Iroquois National Museum-Onöhsagwë:de' Culture Center and Seneca Nation's Tribal Historic Preservation Office. Joe is a scholar and researcher of Tuscarora descent. He has over 20 years of research experience working with First Peoples. His research focuses on culture and history, as well as ongoing socio-economic and health & wellness related endeavors with Native communities. He takes an active role in addressing the space Native peoples occupy in North American archaeology and cultural resource management. He regularly talks on the need to promote equity, equality, and justice among all peoples in North American society through a number of reconciliatory processes which are inclusive for all and empowers people to express agency through creative and intellectual endeavors. The ITPS Podcast is hosted by Dr. John C. Winters. John is the ITPS Research Associate in New York History and Assistant Professor of History at the University of Southern Mississippi. As a public historian, John has nearly ten years of experience in historic homes and public history institutions. You can find him at johncwinters.com

This episode, I interview historian Michael Leroy Oberg.  We focus our attention on New York history, beginning with his work on the digital mapping project Chenussio: The Indigenous History of Livingston County, New York. Our conversation includes the power of local history to inform and inspire, the role of students in local history projects like Chenussio, the complex indigenous history and politics of his home campus of SUNY Geneseo, and the incredible potential for public history projects in the state due to New York's unique legal approach to local public history. Dr.  Michael Leroy Oberg is Distinguished Professor of History at SUNY Geneseo and founder of the Geneseo Center for Local and Municipal History which he directed from 2019 until 2022. The third edition of his textbook, Native America: A History, is forthcoming in late 2022, and he is the author of multiple books on indigenous and early American history including Professional Indian: Eleazer Williams's American Odyssey (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2015) and Peacemakers: The Iroquois, the United States, and the Treaty of Canandaigua, 1794 (New York: Oxford University Press, 2015). Michael runs a blog on his website, michaelleroyoberg.com, where he also posts historiography lists and resources for public historians and educators. On social media, you can find him @NativeAmText. The ITPS Podcast is hosted by Dr. John C. Winters. John is the ITPS Research Associate in New York History and Assistant Professor of History at the University of Southern Mississippi. As a public historian, John has nearly ten years of experience in historic homes and public history institutions. You can find him at johncwinters.com

This month, I interview Andrei Jacobs, the Senior Manager of Tribal Partnerships for America250,  the federal government's commemoration of the upcoming 250th anniversary of the American Revolution. We talk about his ongoing work reaching out to indigenous communities nationwide and he gives us important insights into what is at stake in these early stages of a truly massive, and long neglected, public history effort. Following this episode, Episode 3.5 features an important update that took place after Andrei and I spoke: the first formal meeting of the America250 Tribal Advisory Group. The recording is presented with the permission of Andrei and America250.Andrei Jacobs, MPA, is an enrolled tribal member of Orutsararmuit Native Council in Bethel, Alaska. He is the Senior Manager of Tribal Partnerships for America250. Andrei began his career fundraising to build remote health clinics in villages throughout the Yukon Kuskokwim delta of Alaska and has more than a decade working for Pacific Northwest and Alaska Native Tribes on regional, state, and federal projects. He is also a former t-shirt company co-owner of inga for real  which sold cultural Yup'ik Eskimo t-shirts including one emblazoned with the longest word in Yup'ik, “tengsuucecuaraliyukapigtellrunricugnarpenga-qaa” which translates as “maybe you really did not want to make me a small airplane.” Andrei earned a Masters of Public Administration from Baruch College, CUNY and a Bachelor of Arts in Communications from Canisius College. Additionally, Andrei completed the First Nations Futures Program at the Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment at Stanford University.The ITPS Podcast is hosted by Dr. John C. Winters. John is the ITPS Research Associate in New York History and Assistant Professor of History at the University of Southern Mississippi. As a public historian, John has nearly ten years of experience in historic homes and public history institutions. You can find him at johncwinters.com and @wintersjohnc

In this special episode, Andrei Jacobs of Episode 3 hosts the first ever meeting of the America250 Tribal Advisory Group. You can find the America250 content on their YouTube channel and on their website.

This month, I interview Chip Colwell. We talk about his wide-ranging work as an anthropologist, museologist, and a public-facing scholar. We talk about why it is so important and beneficial for public historians and scholars to reach out to their respective public, and then about his work at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science. There, he formed relationships with indigenous communities, directed the museum's operations concerning repatriation and the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, his work on the Museum's Native Science Initiative, and his ongoing work as Editor in Chief of the global public humanities project, SAPIENS. Dr. Chip Colwell is the editor-in-chief of Sapiens.org, an online magazine about anthropological thinking and discoveries. From 2007-2020, he was the Senior Curator of Anthropology at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science. He has published 12 books including Objects of Survivance: A Material History of American Indian Education (University Press of Colorado) and Plundered Skulls and Stolen Spirits: Inside the Fight to Reclaim Native America's Culture (University of Chicago Press). His work has been highlighted in such venues as the New York Times, The Guardian, Salon, and Slate. The ITPS Podcast is hosted by Dr. John C. Winters. John is the ITPS Research Associate in New York History and Assistant Professor of History at the University of Southern Mississippi. As a public historian, John has nearly ten years of experience in historic homes and public history institutions. You can find him at johncwinters.com and @wintersjohnc

Welcome back to the ITPS Podcast!In Season 2, we will look much more closely at a subject in the public humanities that is not often discussed: Indigenous Public History. My guests this season, one per month, include indigenous public history practitioners, academics, and cultural leaders, as well as non-indigenous public history practitioners. They will talk about their experience in Indigenous Public History, their successes and challenges in the field, and more broadly about the responsibilities and ethics of doing "activist" and decolonized public history. My first guest is Dr. Ora Marek-Martinez. Dr. Marek-Martinez (she/her/asdzáá/ayat) is a citizen of the Diné (Navajo) Nation, and is of the Mountain Cove clan; her father was Nez Perce from Northern Idaho. She worked for the Navajo Nation as an archaeologist for over 16 years, including serving as the Tribal Historic Preservation Officer, and currently is Assistant Professor of Anthropology and the Director of the Native American Cultural Center at Northern Arizona University. You can find her @docmarekThe ITPS Podcast is hosted by Dr. John C. Winters. John is the ITPS Research Associate in New York History and is Assistant Professor of History at the University of Southern Mississippi. As a public historian, John has nearly ten years of experience in historic homes and public history institutions. You can find more about him at johncwinters.com and @wintersjohnc

This month on Public History in a Virtual Age, we are looking at public history in the classroom. Though sometimes overlooked in the broader field, schools are centers of public history engagement. This episode explores how professors incorporate the outside world into the classroom and the classroom into the outside world.First, we spoke with Dr. Whitney Stewart, an Assistant Professor of History at the University of Texas at Dallas. As she reflects on her experience teaching public history at the graduate level, she will discuss her goals for her students, how public history informs her other classes, and the value of out of classroom visits. She also emphasizes the importance of approaching public history in an ethical and honest manner.We will then speak with Adam Rothman, a Professor of History at Georgetown University. As the principal curator of the Georgetown Slavery Archive, he will explore the ways that an academic institution's history can be brought to the public eye and note the impact of student involvement. He will also highlight the power of social media (especially Twitter) in the creation of public history and sharing of history resources.To learn more, visit theitps.org.

For this month's episode of Public History in a Virtual Age, we are diving into museum exhibits. When touring, or digitally browsing, a finished exhibit, you might not consider the years of development that go into its creation. From the initial concept, there are countless steps, and numerous individuals, involved in the process of translating history into an exhibit format; script writing, fundraising, spatial and graphic design, mount making, fabrication, installation, and more! Today's guests will shed some light on this exciting process and explore the benefits and challenges of interpreting history in a museum setting.First, we will speak with Alison Mann, a Public Historian at the National Museum of American Diplomacy. As the museum is currently in development, she will guide us through what it takes to create a museum, from determining an overarching theme and throughline to writing concise and accessible exhibit labels. She will also discuss the use of technology and experiential elements, as well as how museums can approach their topics in moments of partisan division.We will then speak with three members of the Smithsonian Exhibits team; Deputy Director Matthew O'Connor, Head of Exhibit Design Juanita Wichienkuer, and exhibit developer and writer John Powell. They will discuss the multiple year process of developing an exhibit for the Smithsonian, including the importance of considering your audience and the collaborative nature of the Smithsonian's in-house Exhibits team. They will also reflect on the pandemic's impact on museum exhibits and the transition to virtual experiences.For more information, visit theitps.org.

Note: This episode originally aired on January 30, 2020.In May 1796, Ona Judge, Martha Washington's enslaved maidservant, freed herself by walking out of the Washington's Philadelphia home. She had learned that Martha intended to give her away as a wedding present to Elizabeth Parke Custis, her eldest granddaughter. Judge quietly slipped out of the house one evening, boarded a ship, and fled to New Hampshire. She lived there for the rest of her life. Despite their best efforts, the Washingtons were never able to recapture her.On today's episode, Ona Judge tells her own story. Library Research Fellow Sheila Arnold joins Jim Ambuske in character as Ona Judge to give voice to her life. Arnold is a historic character interpreter who performs as many historical figures, including Ona Judge and Madame CJ Walker, an African American entrepreneur and businesswoman who was one of the wealthiest self-made women in early 20th century America.During the first half of today's show, Ambuske interviews Arnold as Ona Judge, as she might have been in the last years of her life.He then talks to Arnold herself about historic character interpretation and the powerful ways that performing as a formerly enslaved person can build bridges between communities.Sheila Arnold currently resides in Hampton, VA. She is a Professional Storyteller, Character Interpreter and Teaching Artist. Through her company, History's Alive!, Sheila has provided storytelling programs, historic character presentations, Christian monologues, dramatic/creative writing workshops, professional development for educators and inspirational/motivational speeches at schools, churches, libraries, professional organizations and museums, in 41 states since 2003.Jim Ambuske, Ph.D. leads the Center for Digital History at the Washington Library. A historian of the American Revolution, Scotland, and the British Atlantic World, Ambuske graduated from the University of Virginia in 2016. He is a former Farmer Postdoctoral Fellow in Digital Humanities at the University of Virginia Law Library. At UVA Law, Ambuske co-directed the 1828 Catalogue Project and the Scottish Court of Session Project.  He is currently at work on a book about emigration from Scotland in the era of the American Revolution as well as a chapter on Scottish loyalism during the American Revolution for a volume to be published by the University of Edinburgh Press.If you missed it, be sure to listen to part I of this episode! Learn more about Conversations at the Washington Library.

This month on Public History in a Virtual Age, we are exploring living embodiment storytelling, a medium that brings history to life through the portrayal of individuals from the past. A unique and theatrical method of sharing history, storytelling provides audiences with an immersive experience in which they can speak directly to historical figures, humanizing a past that can sometimes seem distant. For living embodiment storytellers, their work is an exciting challenge in maintaining authenticity and doing justice to historical individuals while approaching audiences with a 21st century perspective.Today, we will be speaking to Brian Hilton, founder of Hail to the Chief, which provides audiences with authentic performances of U.S. Presidents. Discussing his portrayal of George Washington, Hilton will tell us about his never-ending research process, the challenges that come with presenting such a well-known figure, the role of clothing and physicality in embodying a historical person, and how he uses Washington's life to expand the historical narrative.After listening to this episode, be sure to listen to part II of this episode!To learn more, visit theitps.org.

This month's episode of Public History in a Virtual Age explores the wide world of digital history. Though defined by the use of computers to explore history, digital history includes a broad range of mediums, from computational analysis to virtual exhibits to podcasting. The digital approach is best known for its impact on accessibility, allowing history to be shared by the click of a button. Today, we'll be speaking with two digital historians to learn about their unique approaches to the field, how digital work can be used to support and augment more traditional history, and the challenges and benefits of digital history. First, we spoke with Dr. Abby Mullen, a term assistant professor at George Mason University and member of the Roy Rosenzweig Center for Digital History and New Media, one of the nation's oldest digital history centers. We then spoke with Micki Kaufman, a Ph.D. candidate in digital history at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. For more information, visit www.theitps.org.

Welcome to Public History in a Virtual Age! This year, we are exploring public history together. On each episode we meet a couple of awesome practitioners—or people involved in the making of public history. We hear about their super cool projects, their audience, the information they want to share, and why they love their medium. This month we are exploring what I call “in-house” historians. Historians don't just work at museums and universities, but in government institutions and historical societies. Today we are speaking with two such historians to learn about the stories they share, their daily responsibilities, their audiences, and frankly how different these jobs can be from each other and the variety of history work available. Our guests this month are Dr. Sara Georgini, a series editor of The Papers of John Adams, a documentary editing project at the Massachusetts Historical Society, and Terrance Rucker, a Ph.D. candidate at the George Washington University and a Historical Publications specialist in the Office of the Historian at the U.S. House of Representatives. For more information, visit theitps.org!

This month we are exploring oral history. Oral histories are a collection of stories, memories, and first-hand accounts to create an inclusive archive about a place, event, or community. They are available to anyone, but also have their own set of skills, best practices, and ethical guidelines. First, we spoke with Dr. Anna F. Kaplan, an oral historian, project designer, historian, and educator interested in memory and how individuals and communities remember the past and tell stories to shape the future, particularly about race in the US. You will hear more about the practice of oral history, some of her favorite projects, and what oral history has to offer to the field of public history.  We then spoke with Anne Dobberteen and Allison LaCroix about the Home/Brewed oral history project at the Heurich House Museum in Washington, D.C. Allison is the Collections Manager at Heurich House and the supervisor of the oral history program. Anne was the point person on the project and conducted the interviews. They share the history of the Heurich House, the stories captured in the oral history project, and what they tell us about immigration and D.C. history.  To learn more, visit theitps.org!

Episode four of Public History in a Virtual Age explores historic sites and their role in public history. Historic sites are one of the oldest and most popular forms of public history—in fact, one of your first history memories is probably visiting a house or site near you. Rightly so! There is almost nothing more powerful than experiencing the physical environment and lived experience of people that came before us. Seeing the rooms, the items, the way people lived and worked help our imaginations come alive. Which is one of the reasons these sites are so valuable as teaching tools for students of all ages. On today's episode we'll speak with two public historians and education experts about their sites and the history they share. The first is Amanda Roper, the Manager of Interpretation at the Lee-Fendall House, historic house in Alexandria, Virginia. Then we will speak with Lauren Zalut, the Director of Education and Tour Programs at Eastern State Penitentiary—an abandoned prison in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and the first true penitentiary in the world.To learn more, visit theitps.org!

This month we are exploring an under-appreciated part of public history and culture—civic education and citizenship. History has the power to help up us understand who we are and how we got to our current moment, but that knowledge means nothing if we don't engage as citizens. So this month we will be focusing on voting and elections—the core of any democracy and the heart of citizenship.Today's episode is all about elections, past and present. Dr. Lindsay Chervinsky sat down with Dr. Mark Boonshoft, an assistant professor at Duquesne University. He is the author of Aristocratic Education and the Making of the American Republic, which was just published by the University of North Carolina Press, and an expert on early American history and politics. They discussed some of the early presidential elections, how citizens voted, how elections have changed over time, and how this election compares to past examples. We hope you'll find this conversation enjoyable and informative! 

This month we are exploring an under-appreciated part of public history and culture—civic education and citizenship. This episode, episode two of this season, is all about voting and the importance of registration. History has the power to help up us understand who we are and how we got to our current moment, but that knowledge means nothing if we don't engage as citizens. So this month we will be focusing on voting and elections—the core of any democracy and the heart of citizenship.On part one of elections month, we are speaking with Andy Bernstein, the executive director of HeadCount. Andy Bernstein helped found HeadCount in 2004 and became its executive director in the spring of 2008. Under his stewardship, HeadCount has registered nearly 500,000 and become a leader in harnessing the power of music to drive social change. HeadCount is a non-partisan, non-profit organization that works to register voters and turn out the vote, especially among young voters. They partner with musicians, festivals, and artists all over the world to raise awareness about voting and making voting fun.

Episode one introduces the goals of this series: For history buffs: share all of the incredible ways historical information can be shared and perhaps learn about a new podcast, museum, website, or exhibit. For those looking to work in the historical field: share just a few of the limitless possibilities. For those already working in history: share some of the digital innovations of your peers in the hopes it might inspire your own work while we are still at home.Then this episode will introduce you to two of the host's favorite history podcasts. First, we talk with Dr. Liz Covart, the host and creator of Ben Franklin's World, an award-winning, field-defining podcast on #VastEarlyAmerica. Next, we talk with Dr. Jim Ambuske, the host of Conversations at the Washington Library. Conversations originally started as an opportunity to interview the fellows and researchers that passed through the Washington Library and has expanded into a podcast sharing innovate and cutting-edge research.Drs. Covart and Ambuske share their philosophy about podcasting as public history, their intended audiences, how they learned to podcast, and what podcast they would create if they had unlimited time. 

2020 is an unprecedented year. The dual pandemics of COVID-19 and international racism, combined with economic depression and political unrest, are forcing new conversations and change to confront global public health and widespread systems of racial injustice. Places of history and education—whether they be schools from kindergarten to postgraduate levels, museums, history sites, or digital public history platforms—are at the center of these historic events and conversations.This miniseries will explore the role of public health as public history. Universities have been on the front lines in combating the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic by supporting research and scholarship that searches for a cure, as well as protecting the large populations that gather in a school environment. But universities are not the only spaces that communities gather to learn and reflect. The virus has forced museums and public history sites to close their doors and explore new methods of public engagement. Finally, the pandemic has revealed the physical side effects of institutionalized racism in the United States. Black communities are twice as likely to be hit by COVID-19 and twice as likely to die if infected. The recent protests in the wake of the murders of George Floyd, Brianna Taylor, Elijah McClain, Ahmaud Arbery, and so many more, have captured public attention in a way the nation has not seen since the Civil Rights movement. Perhaps the combination of the pandemic and racial injustice are simply too much to bear, or perhaps Americans are home and a captive audience without the daily distractions of work, sports, and social activities. The protests during the pandemic reveal that racism is a public health issue.Episode three ties together the themes covered in the previous two episodes—the dual pandemics of COVID-19 and structural racism and injustice, and the role of education spaces in this conversation going forward—and considers the role of public history sites in this current moment. How should public history sites address the pandemics? What do they have to teach us and offer as we consider how to move forward as a nation? Why are the stories they tell so important? These are just some of the questions covered in the final episode of Public Health – Public History.

2020 is an unprecedented year. The dual pandemics of COVID-19 and international racism, combined with economic depression and political unrest, are forcing new conversations and change to confront global public health and widespread systems of racial injustice. Places of history and education—whether they be schools from kindergarten to postgraduate levels, museums, history sites, or digital public history platforms—are at the center of these historic events and conversations. This miniseries will explore the role of public health as public history. Universities have been on the front lines in combating the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic by supporting research and scholarship that searches for a cure, as well as protecting the large populations that gather in a school environment. But universities are not the only spaces that communities gather to learn and reflect. The virus has forced museums and public history sites to close their doors and explore new methods of public engagement. Finally, the pandemic has revealed the physical side effects of institutionalized racism in the United States. Black communities are twice as likely to be hit by COVID-19 and twice as likely to die if infected. The recent protests in the wake of the murders of George Floyd, Brianna Taylor, Elijah McClain, Ahmaud Arbery, and so many more, have captured public attention in a way the nation has not seen since the Civil Rights movement. Perhaps the combination of the pandemic and racial injustice are simply too much to bear, or perhaps Americans are home and a captive audience without the daily distractions of work, sports, and social activities. The protests during the pandemic reveal that racism is a public health issue.Episode two continues the conversation by analyzing the second of the duel pandemics attacking our country—structural racism and racial injustice. The expert guests explain how racism produces structural inequalities that affect minority communities from birth to death, and how structural racism makes certain communities more vulnerable to the other pandemic, COVID-19. The experts will also consider how universities and education institutions exacerbate these conditions and how they might play a leading role in producing positive change going forward.

2020 is an unprecedented year. The dual pandemics of COVID-19 and international racism, combined with economic depression and political unrest, are forcing new conversations and change to confront global public health and widespread systems of racial injustice. Places of history and education—whether they be schools from kindergarten to postgraduate levels, museums, history sites, or digital public history platforms—are at the center of these historic events and conversations.This miniseries will explore the role of public health as public history. Universities have been on the front lines in combating the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic by supporting research and scholarship that searches for a cure, as well as protecting the large populations that gather in a school environment. But universities are not the only spaces that communities gather to learn and reflect. The virus has forced museums and public history sites to close their doors and explore new methods of public engagement. Finally, the pandemic has revealed the physical side effects of institutionalized racism in the United States. Black communities are twice as likely to be hit by COVID-19 and twice as likely to die if infected. The recent protests in the wake of the murders of George Floyd, Brianna Taylor, Elijah McClain, Ahmaud Arbery, and so many more, have captured public attention in a way the nation has not seen since the Civil Rights movement. Perhaps the combination of the pandemic and racial injustice are simply too much to bear, or perhaps Americans are home and a captive audience without the daily distractions of work, sports, and social activities. The protests during the pandemic reveal that racism is a public health issue.Episode one kicks off the miniseries by examining the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on college and education environments, how universities and professors are adapting to meet the demands of a virtual world, and opportunities that might come out of this difficult year.

Episode one coming August 24, 2020! 2020 is an unprecedented year. The dual pandemics of COVID-19 and international racism, combined with economic depression and political unrest, are forcing new conversations and change to confront global public health and widespread systems of racial injustice. Places of history and education—whether they be schools from kindergarten to postgraduate levels, museums, history sites, or digital public history platforms—are at the center of these historic events and conversations.This miniseries will explore the role of public health as public history. Universities have been on the front lines in combating the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic by supporting research and scholarship that searches for a cure, as well as protecting the large populations that gather in a school environment. But universities are not the only spaces that communities gather to learn and reflect. The virus has forced museums and public history sites to close their doors and explore new methods of public engagement. Finally, the pandemic has revealed the physical side effects of institutionalized racism in the United States. Black communities are twice as likely to be hit by COVID-19 and twice as likely to die if infected. The recent protests in the wake of the murders of George Floyd, Brianna Taylor, Elijah McClain, Ahmaud Arbery, and so many more, have captured public attention in a way the nation has not seen since the Civil Rights movement. Perhaps the combination of the pandemic and racial injustice are simply too much to bear, or perhaps Americans are home and a captive audience without the daily distractions of work, sports, and social activities. The protests during the pandemic reveal that racism is a public health issue.The last few months have demonstrated that public health, broadly defined, cannot be separated from public history. The host, Dr. Lindsay M. Chervinsky, will interview a series of experts on public health, disease, education, slavery, and race over the course of three episodes. They will discuss how education and cultural institutions can interpret the history of disease, medicine, and racism as interrelated issues that continue to challenge the nation today. Episode one launches August 24, 2020.