On Friday, April 4th and Saturday, April 5th, Hanover College in Hanover, Indiana hosted Indiana Association of Historians’ (IAH) 45th annual meeting.
This year’s theme was Revolutionary Eras: Long Past, Gone Astray, Still Underway. From text, to technology and from war to religion, panelists detailed what they argued were revolutionary or unprecedented features or aspects within their topics.
In attendance were historians from a variety of educational and academic institutions, as well as several history enthusiasts from the public. IU Indy had a large showing at the conference, with both current students and faculty representing our school. The attendees included Cale Erwin, Andrew Metrick, Jessica Baloun, Hannah Brennan, Emma Donaghy, Kayley Schacht, Daniella Kostroun (Chair, Department of History), and Rebecca Shrum (Director of Public History).
This year, the annual business meeting and awards luncheon was one of the highlights of the meeting. During the awards ceremony, Andrew Metrick, graduate student in our Public History graduate program, won the Walter K. Nugent Award for the best graduate student paper presented at the conference for his paper: A Historiography of Hate: Examining the Scholarship on Women, Gender, and Sexuality in the Ku Klux Klan.
Public History graduate student Andrew Metrick presents “A Historiography of Hate: Examining the Scholarship on Women, Gender, and Sexuality in the Ku Klux Klan. “
At that same luncheon, Andrew Miller – president of the IAH this year – presented attendees with stickers that said “Yeshi-Wild History” to encourage them. Miller, a specialist in Chinese history at Hanover College, explained that “wild history” is a term from Chinese history that is used to describe historic narratives that diverge from official understandings of history promoted by regimes. Daniella Kostroun, immediate past president and treasurer of the society, gave the treasurer’s report.
The keynote speaker of the conference was Doctor Michael Koncewicz , associate director at the Institute for Public Knowledge at New York University (NYU). He is the author of They Said “No” to Nixon: Republicans Who Stood Up to the President’s Abuses of Power, (University of California Press, 2018). In a fascinating lecture, Dr. Koncewicz explained why the conservative right today focuses on Richard Nixon as a past model rather than Ronald Reagan. When pressed with challenges like the Vietnam War, Nixon chose to concern himself and his administration with culture wars. For many who adhere to the culture warrior model, Nixon is seen as both martyr and example. His lecture also provided historical context for the conflicts today over university funding. In particular, he discussed how Nixon sought to defund MIT’s federal grants in retaliation against student protests against the war on campus.
The history department at Indiana University Indianapolis has a long history of involvement with IAH. Dr. Peter Sehlinger, one of the professors critical to the development of then IUPUI’s history department, was also a founding officer of IAH. Since then, several members of our department have served as president of the organization.
Membership to the IAH is free for students. The association offers a welcoming community for academic discussion and cooperation among anyone in Indiana who is working on any theme, era or geographical area related to history. Interested? Please visit the IAH’s website to join.
