Sophomores Present Research at 2025 Student Historian Project Symposium

Eleven sophomores presented their work on Wednesday at the second annual Student Historian Project Symposium. The SHP initiative, created in 2022, sees sophomores conduct research on a subject of their choosing with the help of faculty guidance. After their final presentations, the sophomores have the opportunity to continue their research in their junior history term paper and potentially in senior electives. 

The students met with Ms. Kara Papp, Ms. Kaitlin Landrein, Ms. Gena Reisig, and other members of the History Department regularly as they conducted their research, which is done in addition to the regular curriculum. Ms. Clair Quaintance and Ms. Krista Martino-Hecht also assisted students with research in our library, using books in our collection as well as online databases.

During the SHP Symposium, each student presented his work and had an opportunity to discuss his research with attendees. All 11 students then gathered for a panel discussion moderated by upperclassmen who had taken part in SHP as sophomores.

“This amazing program gives an avenue for students that love history and want to take the time to explore a research topic that doesn’t fit a traditional course,” said Ms. Papp in her remarks. “To see the projects evolve over several months and to see the students get so lively has been one of the best parts of SHP.”

Please see below for the full list of this year's projects:

Charles Armstrong ’27: “Genghis Khan and the Quest for God”

Michael Bruno ’27: “Money Talks: The Silent Architects of the New York City Subway”

Alessandro Cupido Carlorosi ’27: “The Shuttles for Peace: Henry Kissinger During the 1970s Arab-Israeli Crisis”

Jack Denehy ’27: “Garibaldi the Guerilla: The Impact of Garibaldi’s South American Military Career on Italy’s Independence”

Hayden Faricelli ’27: “The Velvet Divorce: The Dissolution of Czechoslovakia”

Adam Faughnan ’27: “The Troubles: Sectarian Divisions as a Barrier to Peace”

Reese Hubbard ’27: “Polish Economics and Solidarity: A Free Trade Union”

J. Benjamin Louis ’27: “Against All Odds: How Ethiopia Fought Off Italian Colonial Ambitions”

Jack Solgan ’27: “Controlled Demolition of an Empire: The U.S. Occupation of Japan”

Gonzalo Tamayo Diaz ’27: “The Haitian Revolution: When Oppression Ignited a Rebellion”

Theo Vandeweerdt ’27: “The Wool of Fortune: Medieval Flanders and the Wool Trade”