Faculty

Department of History Faculty

Click on the tabs below for a list of the Department of History's faculty members alphabetically and by discipline. Unless otherwise noted, all faculty offices are located on the fourth floor of Major Williams Hall.

Carmen Gitre is an associate professor of History.

A-Z Full List

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Danna Agmon
Associate Professor | Specialties: France; Europe; South Asia & Indian Ocean; Colonial & Imperial; Legal | dagmon@vt.edu
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Roxana Aras
Visiting Assistant Professor | Specialties: Christian theology, Christian communities in the Middle East, ethnographies | aroxana@vt.edu
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Mark V. Barrow, Jr.
Professor | Specialties: US; Environmental; Science; Wildlife | barrow@vt.edu
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Laura Belmonte
Professor and Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences | 200 Stanger St., Blacksburg, VA 24061 | Specialties: U.S. foreign relations; Modern U.S.; Human Rights; LGBTQI | 540-231-6779 | belmonte@vt.edu
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Glenn Richard Bugh
Associate Professor | Specialties: Greece and Rome; Ancient Greek Military Institutions & Cavalry; Venetian studies; Classical studies; Byzantine & Modern Greek | gbugh@vt.edu
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Sam Cook
Associate Professor | Specialties: Indigenous Political Economies and Ecologies; American Indian Law and Policy; Indigenous Knowledge Systems; Appalachian Cultures; Human Ecology and Sustainability | sacook2@vt.edu
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Nicholas Copeland
Associate Professor | Specialties: Political Anthropology; Development; Indigenous and Peasant Politics; Water; Guatemala | ncopel@vt.edu
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Amanda C. Demmer
Associate Professor | Specialties: US Foreign Relations, War & Society, Migration Studies, Human Rights; US | demmer@vt.edu
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Monique Dufour
Collegiate Associate Professor | Specialties: Historians as Writers; Medicine & the Body; History of Reading | msdufour@vt.edu
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A. Roger Ekirch
University Distinguished Professor | Specialties: Early US; Atlantic; History of Sleep | arekirch@vt.edu
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E. Thomas Ewing
Professor and Associate Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences | 200 Stanger St., Blacksburg, VA 24061 | Specialties: Eurasia; Medicine; Public; Russian/Soviet; Empires | 540-231-3212 | etewing@vt.edu
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Debra Freas
Collegiate Assistant Professor | Specialties: gender and race in Greek and Latin literature; the ancient Mediterranean | dfreas@vt.edu
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Carmen Gitre
Associate Professor and Associate Chair | Specialties: Egypt; Theater and Performance; Imperialism | cgitre@vt.edu
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Edward J. K. Gitre
Associate Professor | Specialties: War and Society; Digital; Modern Intellectual and Cultural; US/Transnational | egitre@vt.edu
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Heather L. Gumbert
Associate Professor | Specialties: Modern Germany; Television Studies; Cold War; Cultural; Media | hgumbert@vt.edu
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Dennis Halpin
Associate Professor | Specialties: Post 1865 US; African American; Labor; Social Movements | dphalpin@vt.edu
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Jennifer Hart
Professor and Chair of the History Department | Specialties: Africa; Urban; Technology; Digital and Public | jenniferhart@vt.edu
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Matthew Heaton
Professor | Specialties: Africa; Global/Transnational; Colonialism/Decolonization; Health, Illness, & Medicine | mheaton@vt.edu
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Richard F. Hirsh
Professor | Specialties: Technology; Science; Research Methods | richards@vt.edu
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Melanie Kiechle
Associate Professor and Director of Graduate Studies | Specialties: US; Environment; Health & Medicine; Senses | mkiechle@vt.edu
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Rachel Midura
Assistant Professor | Specialties: Early Modern Europe; Italy; Habsburg Empire; Digital History; History of Information/Communication | rmidura@vt.edu
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Marian Mollin
Associate Professor | Specialties: US Women & Gender; Social Movements; Religion & Politics | mmollin@vt.edu
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Anndal Narayanan
Instructor | Specialties: Modern Europe; Decolonization; Counterinsurgency; Veterans; Extremism & Political Violence | anarayanan@vt.edu
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Edward Anthony Polanco
Assistant Professor | Specialties: Latin America; Indigenous Studies; Mesoamerica; Settler Colonialism | polanco@vt.edu
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Paul Quigley
Associate Professor and Director of Virginia Center for Civil War Studies | Specialties: US Civil War Era; US South | pquigley@vt.edu
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Helen Schneider
Associate Professor | Specialties: Modern China; Women; War & Society in Modern East Asia | hms@vt.edu
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Brett L. Shadle
Professor | Specialties: East Africa and the Horn; Refugees; Colonialism | shadle@vt.edu
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Robert P. Stephens
Associate Professor | Specialties: Drugs & Alcohol; Cultural; Media | rosteph2@vt.edu
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Jessica Taylor
Associate Professor | Specialties: Public; Oral; Native History; Early US | jessicataylor@vt.edu
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Daniel B. Thorp
Associate Professor | Specialties: Early US; Slavery & Emancipation | wachau@vt.edu
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Peter Wallenstein
Professor | Specialties: From Civil War to Civil Rights; US South; Virginia; US Higher Education; Legal & Constitutional | pwallens@vt.edu
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LaDale Winling
Associate Professor | Specialties: U.S. Urban; U.S. Political; Higher Education; Architectural and Planning; Digital | lwinling@vt.edu
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Anna Zeide
Associate Professor and Director of the Food Studies Program | Specialties: Food; Environment; US | zeide@vt.edu

Faculty Affiliates

Name	Position	Office	Specialties	Email
Kira A. Dietz	Assistant Director, Special Collections and University Archives	University Libraries	Archives/Special Collections; Food/Drink History	kadietz@vt.edu
Matthew Gabriele	Professor and Department Chair	115A Major Williams	Medieval Studies; Religion; Violence	gabriele@vt.edu
Kurt Luther	Associate Professor	5-012 VTRC-Arlington	Digital; Public; Military; US Civil War	kluther@vt.edu
Aaron Purcell	Professor and Director of Special Collections & University Archives	University Libraries	Archives; 20th Century US History; Publishing & Editing	adp@vt.edu
Peter L. Schmitthenner	Associate Professor	103 Major Williams	Modern India & South Asia; Culture, Religion, & Technology; British Colonialism	pschmitt@vt.edu
Matthew Wisnioski	Associate Professor - Blacksburg Campus	331 Lane Hall	Science; Technology; Innovation; Education	mwisnios@vt.edu

Emeritus Faculty

Name	Email
Linda Arnold	redtape@vt.edu
William C. “Jack” Davis	widavis6@vt.edu
Thomas Howard	tchoward@vt.edu
Kathy Jones	kjwj@vt.edu
William L. Ochsenwald	ochsen@vt.edu
J. Dean O’Donnell	odonnell@vt.edu
Amy Nelson	anelson@vt.edu
Crandall Shifflett	shifflet@vt.edu

In Memoriam

Name	Position
James I. Robertson, Jr. (1930-2019)	Alumni Distinguished Professor Emeritus of History
Neil Larry Shumsky (1944-2020)	Associate Professor Emeritus
Trudy Harrington Becker (1961-2022)	Senior Instructor of History

Faculty By Specialization

Faculty Experts in Science, Technology, Medicine, and the Environment

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Mark V. Barrow, Jr.
Professor | Specialties: US; Environmental; Science; Wildlife | barrow@vt.edu
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Monique Dufour
Collegiate Associate Professor | Specialties: Historians as Writers; Medicine & the Body; History of Reading | msdufour@vt.edu
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A. Roger Ekirch
University Distinguished Professor | Specialties: Early US; Atlantic; History of Sleep | arekirch@vt.edu
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E. Thomas Ewing
Professor and Associate Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences | 200 Stanger St., Blacksburg, VA 24061 | Specialties: Eurasia; Medicine; Public; Russian/Soviet; Empires | 540-231-3212 | etewing@vt.edu
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Heather L. Gumbert
Associate Professor | Specialties: Modern Germany; Television Studies; Cold War; Cultural; Media | hgumbert@vt.edu
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Jennifer Hart
Professor and Chair of the History Department | Specialties: Africa; Urban; Technology; Digital and Public | jenniferhart@vt.edu
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Matthew Heaton
Professor | Specialties: Africa; Global/Transnational; Colonialism/Decolonization; Health, Illness, & Medicine | mheaton@vt.edu
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Richard F. Hirsh
Professor | Specialties: Technology; Science; Research Methods | richards@vt.edu
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Melanie Kiechle
Associate Professor and Director of Graduate Studies | Specialties: US; Environment; Health & Medicine; Senses | mkiechle@vt.edu
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Edward Anthony Polanco
Assistant Professor | Specialties: Latin America; Indigenous Studies; Mesoamerica; Settler Colonialism | polanco@vt.edu
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Robert P. Stephens
Associate Professor | Specialties: Drugs & Alcohol; Cultural; Media | rosteph2@vt.edu

Faculty Experts in Public, Digital, and Oral History

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E. Thomas Ewing
Professor and Associate Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences | 200 Stanger St., Blacksburg, VA 24061 | Specialties: Eurasia; Medicine; Public; Russian/Soviet; Empires | 540-231-3212 | etewing@vt.edu
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Jennifer Hart
Professor and Chair of the History Department | Specialties: Africa; Urban; Technology; Digital and Public | jenniferhart@vt.edu
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Rachel Midura
Assistant Professor | Specialties: Early Modern Europe; Italy; Habsburg Empire; Digital History; History of Information/Communication | rmidura@vt.edu
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Marian Mollin
Associate Professor | Specialties: US Women & Gender; Social Movements; Religion & Politics | mmollin@vt.edu
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Paul Quigley
Associate Professor and Director of Virginia Center for Civil War Studies | Specialties: US Civil War Era; US South | pquigley@vt.edu
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Jessica Taylor
Associate Professor | Specialties: Public; Oral; Native History; Early US | jessicataylor@vt.edu
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LaDale Winling
Associate Professor | Specialties: U.S. Urban; U.S. Political; Higher Education; Architectural and Planning; Digital | lwinling@vt.edu

Faculty Experts in Colonialism and Imperialism

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Danna Agmon
Associate Professor | Specialties: France; Europe; South Asia & Indian Ocean; Colonial & Imperial; Legal | dagmon@vt.edu
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Carmen Gitre
Associate Professor and Associate Chair | Specialties: Egypt; Theater and Performance; Imperialism | cgitre@vt.edu
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Jennifer Hart
Professor and Chair of the History Department | Specialties: Africa; Urban; Technology; Digital and Public | jenniferhart@vt.edu
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Matthew Heaton
Professor | Specialties: Africa; Global/Transnational; Colonialism/Decolonization; Health, Illness, & Medicine | mheaton@vt.edu
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Edward Anthony Polanco
Assistant Professor | Specialties: Latin America; Indigenous Studies; Mesoamerica; Settler Colonialism | polanco@vt.edu
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Helen Schneider
Associate Professor | Specialties: Modern China; Women; War & Society in Modern East Asia | hms@vt.edu
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Brett L. Shadle
Professor | Specialties: East Africa and the Horn; Refugees; Colonialism | shadle@vt.edu
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Daniel B. Thorp
Associate Professor | Specialties: Early US; Slavery & Emancipation | wachau@vt.edu

Faculty Experts in Cultural History

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Mark V. Barrow, Jr.
Professor | Specialties: US; Environmental; Science; Wildlife | barrow@vt.edu
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Monique Dufour
Collegiate Associate Professor | Specialties: Historians as Writers; Medicine & the Body; History of Reading | msdufour@vt.edu
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Carmen Gitre
Associate Professor and Associate Chair | Specialties: Egypt; Theater and Performance; Imperialism | cgitre@vt.edu
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Edward J. K. Gitre
Associate Professor | Specialties: War and Society; Digital; Modern Intellectual and Cultural; US/Transnational | egitre@vt.edu
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Heather L. Gumbert
Associate Professor | Specialties: Modern Germany; Television Studies; Cold War; Cultural; Media | hgumbert@vt.edu
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Jennifer Hart
Professor and Chair of the History Department | Specialties: Africa; Urban; Technology; Digital and Public | jenniferhart@vt.edu
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Melanie Kiechle
Associate Professor and Director of Graduate Studies | Specialties: US; Environment; Health & Medicine; Senses | mkiechle@vt.edu
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Robert P. Stephens
Associate Professor | Specialties: Drugs & Alcohol; Cultural; Media | rosteph2@vt.edu

Faculty Experts in Race and Ethnicity

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Dennis Halpin
Associate Professor | Specialties: Post 1865 US; African American; Labor; Social Movements | dphalpin@vt.edu
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Matthew Heaton
Professor | Specialties: Africa; Global/Transnational; Colonialism/Decolonization; Health, Illness, & Medicine | mheaton@vt.edu
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Marian Mollin
Associate Professor | Specialties: US Women & Gender; Social Movements; Religion & Politics | mmollin@vt.edu
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Edward Anthony Polanco
Assistant Professor | Specialties: Latin America; Indigenous Studies; Mesoamerica; Settler Colonialism | polanco@vt.edu
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Paul Quigley
Associate Professor and Director of Virginia Center for Civil War Studies | Specialties: US Civil War Era; US South | pquigley@vt.edu
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Brett L. Shadle
Professor | Specialties: East Africa and the Horn; Refugees; Colonialism | shadle@vt.edu
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Daniel B. Thorp
Associate Professor | Specialties: Early US; Slavery & Emancipation | wachau@vt.edu
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Peter Wallenstein
Professor | Specialties: From Civil War to Civil Rights; US South; Virginia; US Higher Education; Legal & Constitutional | pwallens@vt.edu
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LaDale Winling
Associate Professor | Specialties: U.S. Urban; U.S. Political; Higher Education; Architectural and Planning; Digital | lwinling@vt.edu

Faculty Experts in War and Peace

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Mark V. Barrow, Jr.
Professor | Specialties: US; Environmental; Science; Wildlife | barrow@vt.edu
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Glenn Richard Bugh
Associate Professor | Specialties: Greece and Rome; Ancient Greek Military Institutions & Cavalry; Venetian studies; Classical studies; Byzantine & Modern Greek | gbugh@vt.edu
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Amanda C. Demmer
Associate Professor | Specialties: US Foreign Relations, War & Society, Migration Studies, Human Rights; US | demmer@vt.edu
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Monique Dufour
Collegiate Associate Professor | Specialties: Historians as Writers; Medicine & the Body; History of Reading | msdufour@vt.edu
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Edward J. K. Gitre
Associate Professor | Specialties: War and Society; Digital; Modern Intellectual and Cultural; US/Transnational | egitre@vt.edu
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Heather L. Gumbert
Associate Professor | Specialties: Modern Germany; Television Studies; Cold War; Cultural; Media | hgumbert@vt.edu
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Marian Mollin
Associate Professor | Specialties: US Women & Gender; Social Movements; Religion & Politics | mmollin@vt.edu
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Paul Quigley
Associate Professor and Director of Virginia Center for Civil War Studies | Specialties: US Civil War Era; US South | pquigley@vt.edu
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Helen Schneider
Associate Professor | Specialties: Modern China; Women; War & Society in Modern East Asia | hms@vt.edu
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Brett L. Shadle
Professor | Specialties: East Africa and the Horn; Refugees; Colonialism | shadle@vt.edu

Faculty Experts in Gender and Sexuality

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Danna Agmon
Associate Professor | Specialties: France; Europe; South Asia & Indian Ocean; Colonial & Imperial; Legal | dagmon@vt.edu
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E. Thomas Ewing
Professor and Associate Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences | 200 Stanger St., Blacksburg, VA 24061 | Specialties: Eurasia; Medicine; Public; Russian/Soviet; Empires | 540-231-3212 | etewing@vt.edu
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Marian Mollin
Associate Professor | Specialties: US Women & Gender; Social Movements; Religion & Politics | mmollin@vt.edu
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Edward Anthony Polanco
Assistant Professor | Specialties: Latin America; Indigenous Studies; Mesoamerica; Settler Colonialism | polanco@vt.edu
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Helen Schneider
Associate Professor | Specialties: Modern China; Women; War & Society in Modern East Asia | hms@vt.edu
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Brett L. Shadle
Professor | Specialties: East Africa and the Horn; Refugees; Colonialism | shadle@vt.edu

Faculty Experts in Indigenous Studies

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Sam Cook
Associate Professor | Specialties: Indigenous Political Economies and Ecologies; American Indian Law and Policy; Indigenous Knowledge Systems; Appalachian Cultures; Human Ecology and Sustainability | sacook2@vt.edu
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Nicholas Copeland
Associate Professor | Specialties: Political Anthropology; Development; Indigenous and Peasant Politics; Water; Guatemala | ncopel@vt.edu
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Edward Anthony Polanco
Assistant Professor | Specialties: Latin America; Indigenous Studies; Mesoamerica; Settler Colonialism | polanco@vt.edu
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Jessica Taylor
Associate Professor | Specialties: Public; Oral; Native History; Early US | jessicataylor@vt.edu

Faculty By Geographic Region

Faculty Experts in Africa

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Carmen Gitre
Associate Professor and Associate Chair | Specialties: Egypt; Theater and Performance; Imperialism | cgitre@vt.edu
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Jennifer Hart
Professor and Chair of the History Department | Specialties: Africa; Urban; Technology; Digital and Public | jenniferhart@vt.edu
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Matthew Heaton
Professor | Specialties: Africa; Global/Transnational; Colonialism/Decolonization; Health, Illness, & Medicine | mheaton@vt.edu
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Brett L. Shadle
Professor | Specialties: East Africa and the Horn; Refugees; Colonialism | shadle@vt.edu

Faculty Experts in Asia

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Helen Schneider
Associate Professor | Specialties: Modern China; Women; War & Society in Modern East Asia | hms@vt.edu

Faculty Experts in Europe

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Danna Agmon
Associate Professor | Specialties: France; Europe; South Asia & Indian Ocean; Colonial & Imperial; Legal | dagmon@vt.edu
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Glenn Richard Bugh
Associate Professor | Specialties: Greece and Rome; Ancient Greek Military Institutions & Cavalry; Venetian studies; Classical studies; Byzantine & Modern Greek | gbugh@vt.edu
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A. Roger Ekirch
University Distinguished Professor | Specialties: Early US; Atlantic; History of Sleep | arekirch@vt.edu
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E. Thomas Ewing
Professor and Associate Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences | 200 Stanger St., Blacksburg, VA 24061 | Specialties: Eurasia; Medicine; Public; Russian/Soviet; Empires | 540-231-3212 | etewing@vt.edu
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Heather L. Gumbert
Associate Professor | Specialties: Modern Germany; Television Studies; Cold War; Cultural; Media | hgumbert@vt.edu
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Rachel Midura
Assistant Professor | Specialties: Early Modern Europe; Italy; Habsburg Empire; Digital History; History of Information/Communication | rmidura@vt.edu
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Anndal Narayanan
Instructor | Specialties: Modern Europe; Decolonization; Counterinsurgency; Veterans; Extremism & Political Violence | anarayanan@vt.edu
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Robert P. Stephens
Associate Professor | Specialties: Drugs & Alcohol; Cultural; Media | rosteph2@vt.edu

Faculty Experts in North America

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Mark V. Barrow, Jr.
Professor | Specialties: US; Environmental; Science; Wildlife | barrow@vt.edu
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Sam Cook
Associate Professor | Specialties: Indigenous Political Economies and Ecologies; American Indian Law and Policy; Indigenous Knowledge Systems; Appalachian Cultures; Human Ecology and Sustainability | sacook2@vt.edu
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Amanda C. Demmer
Associate Professor | Specialties: US Foreign Relations, War & Society, Migration Studies, Human Rights; US | demmer@vt.edu
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Monique Dufour
Collegiate Associate Professor | Specialties: Historians as Writers; Medicine & the Body; History of Reading | msdufour@vt.edu
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A. Roger Ekirch
University Distinguished Professor | Specialties: Early US; Atlantic; History of Sleep | arekirch@vt.edu
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Edward J. K. Gitre
Associate Professor | Specialties: War and Society; Digital; Modern Intellectual and Cultural; US/Transnational | egitre@vt.edu
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Richard F. Hirsh
Professor | Specialties: Technology; Science; Research Methods | richards@vt.edu
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Melanie Kiechle
Associate Professor and Director of Graduate Studies | Specialties: US; Environment; Health & Medicine; Senses | mkiechle@vt.edu
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Marian Mollin
Associate Professor | Specialties: US Women & Gender; Social Movements; Religion & Politics | mmollin@vt.edu
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Edward Anthony Polanco
Assistant Professor | Specialties: Latin America; Indigenous Studies; Mesoamerica; Settler Colonialism | polanco@vt.edu
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Paul Quigley
Associate Professor and Director of Virginia Center for Civil War Studies | Specialties: US Civil War Era; US South | pquigley@vt.edu
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Jessica Taylor
Associate Professor | Specialties: Public; Oral; Native History; Early US | jessicataylor@vt.edu
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Daniel B. Thorp
Associate Professor | Specialties: Early US; Slavery & Emancipation | wachau@vt.edu
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Peter Wallenstein
Professor | Specialties: From Civil War to Civil Rights; US South; Virginia; US Higher Education; Legal & Constitutional | pwallens@vt.edu
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LaDale Winling
Associate Professor | Specialties: U.S. Urban; U.S. Political; Higher Education; Architectural and Planning; Digital | lwinling@vt.edu

Faculty Experts in Latin America

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Nicholas Copeland
Associate Professor | Specialties: Political Anthropology; Development; Indigenous and Peasant Politics; Water; Guatemala | ncopel@vt.edu
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Edward Anthony Polanco
Assistant Professor | Specialties: Latin America; Indigenous Studies; Mesoamerica; Settler Colonialism | polanco@vt.edu