AASU History Faculty

History Department Faculty

Dr. June Hopkins, Department Head
Associate Professor of History
email: hopkinju@mail.armstrong.edu

professional webspace: June Hopkins's Homepage

Catherine Adams received her B.A. and M.A.s from Michigan State University and her Ph.D. from the University of Illinois, Urbana. She is interested in Colonial North America and Early US history to 1830 with an emphasis on African American women's history and literature. Especially enslaved African women in British North America and other Transatlantic slave society, particularly Northern Antebellum Black feminist thought.

He received his A.B. in Social Studies from Harvard University, his M.A. in History and Ph.D. in Modern East European History from Columbia University. He also earned a Certificate of Russian Institute from Columbia University. Dr Arens regularly leads groups of students abroad on study programs to the former Soviet Union, especially his home country Estonia.

Allison Scardino Belzer received her A.B. from Vassar College and her M.A. and Ph.D. from Emory University. She specializes in modern European cultural and intellectual history, with particular focus on Italy. Her research examines the intersection of war and culture, specifically how military action changes gender identity.

She obtained her B.A. at Georgia Southern College, her Masters and Ph.D. from the University of Georgia. Her dissertation, "First Men: Leadership Patterns on the Virginia and Georgia Frontiers, 1642-1814", studies two prominent families, Taliaferro and Matthews, in colonial Virginia and in Georgia. Her fields of study include the southern frontier, Ulster Scots immigration, Georgia history, colonial America, and the Early Republic. She also retains an interest in archival preservation as well as public history and frequently provides assistance to local historical organizations. Her current research expands the study of the Virginia and Georgia frontiers to include an analysis of self and community identity in those regions.

She received her B. S. from Skidmore College and her Ph.D. from George Washington University. She is also director of curatorial services at the Coastal Heritage Society in Savannah. Her study of Chesapeake Bay tobacco culture and vernacular architecture appeared in New Jersey Folklife, and she has collaborated on several oral history studies of community traditions. She is presently studying the African American landscapes of the low country.

He received his B.A. in History from Grinnell College and his M.A. and Ph.D. from Iowa State University's History of Science and Technology Program. He is working on a monograph tentatively entitled Thomas Edison and the Search for a Domestic Rubber Crop, and recently has completed two articles on the industrialization of American agriculture.

He received his B.A. in History from Gettysburg College in 1983, his M.A. in International Studies from Ohio University in 1989, and his Ph.D. in History from Ohio University in 1996. He specializes in US-Latin American Foreign Relations. Dr. Hall is the author of Sugar and Power in the Dominican Republic, published in 2000. He is a member of the Executive Council of the Association of Third World Studies. Dr. Hall is the AASU representative for the AASU-INTEC faculty/student exchange program in the Dominican Republic. Every summer, Dr. Hall leads a study abroad program in Latin America. Past programs include the Dominican Republic, Peru, Ecuador, and Brasil. For more information, contact Dr. Hall in the History Department.

He received his B.A. from Wake Forest University and his M.A. and Ph.D. in History from the College of William and Mary. He specializes in Colonial and Early National America, the Material Culture of Early America, and Historic Preservation. Dr. Hendricks also serves as the Graduate Coordinator in the History Department. You may contact Dr. Hendricks in the History Department at (912) 927-5283 for more information on graduate studies in History.

He received his B.A. and M.A. from the University of Chicago. He also received an M.A. and his Ph.D. in Geography from the University of California at Berkeley. His research interests include the historical geography of transportation in the United States. His book, Sierra Crossing: First Roads to California was published by the University of California Press in 1998.

He received his B.A. in History from Hertford College, Oxford University, his M.A. and his PhD in History from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. His dissertation examines African education and political change in Zimbabwe from 1945 to 1962. He specializes pedagogically in the histories of Africa, Britain, Southern Africa with an emphasis on contemporary affairs. Link to British Studies at AASU. Dr. Leaver is also departmental webbie.

Yuxin Ma received her Ph.D. from University of Minnesota. She is interested in women's/gender history, and the social history of modern China and Japan. Her research examines women's subjectivities in the construction of feminism, modernity, and the nation-state, examining various discursive constructions and cultural expressions of gender, sex and sexuality. Her dissertation studies Chinese women's media between1898 and 1937, arguing for gender's pivotal role in Chinese modernity and nation-building.

He received his B.A. in History from Kansas State University and his M.A. in History and Ed.D. in Social Science Education from the University of Georgia. His specialty is the history of the American South, with special emphasis on Georgia. He is also the project director of the Savannah Images Project. He is the author of Stories With a Moral: Literature and Society in Nineteenth-Century Georgia, published by the University of Georgia Press in February 2000.

Carey Olmstead Shellman received her BA and MA from Armstrong Atlantic State University and is pursuing a Ph.D from the University of Florida. Her dissertation "Nellie Peters Black and the Practical Application of the Social Gospel in the New South, 1890-1919" focuses on the role of organized women in the promotion of the social gospel in the South through progressive reform. Her primary field of study is the American South, with particular interest in the political and social development of post-Reconstruction Georgia. Minor fields of study include Modern Europe, Southern Literature, and Gender Studies.

He received his M.A. and P.H.D. degrees from the Florida State University. His dissertation "A Wider Field of Usefulness: The Life and Times of Jonathan Clarkson Gibbs, c. 1828 to 1878" examines the career of Florida's first black cabinet member and the role he played in the Reconstruction of the state after the Civil War. Currently, he is conducting research on 19th century Africa American politicians and slavery in Georgia and Florida

date last revised: 06/20/06

Dr. June Hopkins, Department Head Associate Professor of History email: hopkinju@mail.armstrong.edu professional webspace: June Hopkins's Homepage	Dr. Catherine Adams Assistant Professor of History email: adamscat@mail.armstrong.edu professional webspace: Cathy Adams's Homepage
She received her B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley, her M.P.A. from Pace University, her M.A. from California State University, Northridge, and her Ph.D. from Georgetown University. She specializes in U.S. social history with emphasis on welfare history, the Great Depression, and the New Deal. Her book, entitled Harry Hopkins: Sudden Hero, Brash Reformer, was published in February 1999. "Jewish first wife, divorced": The Correspondence of Ethel Gross and Harry Hopkins, a joint project with Allison Giffen, Assistant Professor of American Literature at New Mexico State University, was published in January 2003.	Catherine Adams received her B.A. and M.A.s from Michigan State University and her Ph.D. from the University of Illinois, Urbana. She is interested in Colonial North America and Early US history to 1830 with an emphasis on African American women's history and literature. Especially enslaved African women in British North America and other Transatlantic slave society, particularly Northern Antebellum Black feminist thought.
Dr. Olavi Arens Professor of History email: arensola@mail.armstrong.edu professional webspace: Olavi Arens Homepage	Dr. Allison Belzer Full-time Temporary Instructor email: belzeral@mail.armstrong.edu professional webspace: Allison Belzer's Homepage
He received his A.B. in Social Studies from Harvard University, his M.A. in History and Ph.D. in Modern East European History from Columbia University. He also earned a Certificate of Russian Institute from Columbia University. Dr Arens regularly leads groups of students abroad on study programs to the former Soviet Union, especially his home country Estonia.	Allison Scardino Belzer received her A.B. from Vassar College and her M.A. and Ph.D. from Emory University. She specializes in modern European cultural and intellectual history, with particular focus on Italy. Her research examines the intersection of war and culture, specifically how military action changes gender identity.
Dr. Carol Ebel Assistant Professor of History, Liberty Center email: ebelcaro@mail.armstrong.edu	Dr. Barbara Fertig Professor of History, Museum Studies, and Folklife email: fertigba@mail.armstrong.edu professional webspace: Barbara Fertig's Homepage
She obtained her B.A. at Georgia Southern College, her Masters and Ph.D. from the University of Georgia. Her dissertation, "First Men: Leadership Patterns on the Virginia and Georgia Frontiers, 1642-1814", studies two prominent families, Taliaferro and Matthews, in colonial Virginia and in Georgia. Her fields of study include the southern frontier, Ulster Scots immigration, Georgia history, colonial America, and the Early Republic. She also retains an interest in archival preservation as well as public history and frequently provides assistance to local historical organizations. Her current research expands the study of the Virginia and Georgia frontiers to include an analysis of self and community identity in those regions.	She received her B. S. from Skidmore College and her Ph.D. from George Washington University. She is also director of curatorial services at the Coastal Heritage Society in Savannah. Her study of Chesapeake Bay tobacco culture and vernacular architecture appeared in New Jersey Folklife, and she has collaborated on several oral history studies of community traditions. She is presently studying the African American landscapes of the low country.
Dr. Mark Finlay Professor of History/Assistant Dean formerly Honors Program email: finlayma@mail.armstrong.edu professional webspace: Mark Finlay's College of Arts and Science Homepage	Dr. Michael Hall Associate Professor of History email: hallmich@mail.armstrong.edu professional webspace: Michael Hall's Homepage
He received his B.A. in History from Grinnell College and his M.A. and Ph.D. from Iowa State University's History of Science and Technology Program. He is working on a monograph tentatively entitled Thomas Edison and the Search for a Domestic Rubber Crop, and recently has completed two articles on the industrialization of American agriculture.	He received his B.A. in History from Gettysburg College in 1983, his M.A. in International Studies from Ohio University in 1989, and his Ph.D. in History from Ohio University in 1996. He specializes in US-Latin American Foreign Relations. Dr. Hall is the author of Sugar and Power in the Dominican Republic, published in 2000. He is a member of the Executive Council of the Association of Third World Studies. Dr. Hall is the AASU representative for the AASU-INTEC faculty/student exchange program in the Dominican Republic. Every summer, Dr. Hall leads a study abroad program in Latin America. Past programs include the Dominican Republic, Peru, Ecuador, and Brasil. For more information, contact Dr. Hall in the History Department.
Dr. Chris Hendricks Graduate Coordinator Professor of History email: hendrich@mail.armstrong.edu professional webspace: Chris Hendricks's Homepage	Dr. Thomas Howard Associate Professor of Geography email: howardth@mail.armstrong.edu professional webspace: Tom Howard's Homepage
He received his B.A. from Wake Forest University and his M.A. and Ph.D. in History from the College of William and Mary. He specializes in Colonial and Early National America, the Material Culture of Early America, and Historic Preservation. Dr. Hendricks also serves as the Graduate Coordinator in the History Department. You may contact Dr. Hendricks in the History Department at (912) 927-5283 for more information on graduate studies in History.	He received his B.A. and M.A. from the University of Chicago. He also received an M.A. and his Ph.D. in Geography from the University of California at Berkeley. His research interests include the historical geography of transportation in the United States. His book, Sierra Crossing: First Roads to California was published by the University of California Press in 1998.
Dr. John David Leaver Assistant Professor of History email: leaverda@mail.armstrong.edu professional webspace: David Leaver's Homepage	Dr. Yuxin Ma Assistant Professor of History email: mayuxin@mail.armstrong.edu professional webspace: Yuxin Ma's Homepage
He received his B.A. in History from Hertford College, Oxford University, his M.A. and his PhD in History from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. His dissertation examines African education and political change in Zimbabwe from 1945 to 1962. He specializes pedagogically in the histories of Africa, Britain, Southern Africa with an emphasis on contemporary affairs. Link to British Studies at AASU. Dr. Leaver is also departmental webbie.	Yuxin Ma received her Ph.D. from University of Minnesota. She is interested in women's/gender history, and the social history of modern China and Japan. Her research examines women's subjectivities in the construction of feminism, modernity, and the nation-state, examining various discursive constructions and cultural expressions of gender, sex and sexuality. Her dissertation studies Chinese women's media between1898 and 1937, arguing for gender's pivotal role in Chinese modernity and nation-building.
Dr. Michael Price, Director Graduate School Professor of History/Social Science Education email: pricemic@mail.armstrong.edu	Carey Shellman Full-time Temporary Instructor email: shellmca@mail.armstrong.edu professional webspace: Carey Shellman's Homepage
He received his B.A. in History from Kansas State University and his M.A. in History and Ed.D. in Social Science Education from the University of Georgia. His specialty is the history of the American South, with special emphasis on Georgia. He is also the project director of the Savannah Images Project. He is the author of Stories With a Moral: Literature and Society in Nineteenth-Century Georgia, published by the University of Georgia Press in February 2000.	Carey Olmstead Shellman received her BA and MA from Armstrong Atlantic State University and is pursuing a Ph.D from the University of Florida. Her dissertation "Nellie Peters Black and the Practical Application of the Social Gospel in the New South, 1890-1919" focuses on the role of organized women in the promotion of the social gospel in the South through progressive reform. Her primary field of study is the American South, with particular interest in the political and social development of post-Reconstruction Georgia. Minor fields of study include Modern Europe, Southern Literature, and Gender Studies.
Dr. Janet Stone Associate Professor of History email: stonejan@mail.armstrong.edu professional webspace: Janet Stone's Homespace	Dr. James Todesca Associate Professor of History email: todescja@mail.armstrong.edu professional webspace: Jim Todesca's Homepage He received his B.A. from Georgetown University, M.A. from Catholic University and his Ph.D. from Fordham University. He specializes in Medieval Studies, particularly the economic development of the Christian kingdoms of Spain. Currently, he is conducting research on numismatics, which is the use of coins as historical evidence. He is also working on the publication of a thirteenth century horde find.
She received her A.B. in History from Randolf-Macon Women's College, her M.A. in European History from Purdue University and her Ph.D. in History from Emory University. Her specialties include history of France, European Historiography, and Nineteenth-Century Europe. At present, she is completing a history of Armstrong Atlantic State University.
Dr. Nancy White Professor of History email: whitenan@mail.armstrong.edu professional webspace: Nancy White's Homepage	Dr. Learotha Williams Assistant Professor History email: willilea@mail.armstrong.eduProfessional webspace: Dr. Williams's Homepage
She received her B.A. in Political Science from Mount Holyoke College and her M.A. and Ph.D. in History from American University. Her research and teaching specialties include Women's history and the American South. Currently, Dr. White is conducting research on the Southern Young Women's Christian Associations (YWCA). She received funds from AASU to complete her research for a chapter in an upcoming book on the women of Mississippi due in January.	He received his M.A. and P.H.D. degrees from the Florida State University. His dissertation "A Wider Field of Usefulness: The Life and Times of Jonathan Clarkson Gibbs, c. 1828 to 1878" examines the career of Florida's first black cabinet member and the role he played in the Reconstruction of the state after the Civil War. Currently, he is conducting research on 19th century Africa American politicians and slavery in Georgia and Florida