History

Vassar History professors are not only dedicated teachers but also noted scholars whose training and interests span continents and centuries. They have won awards for articles, books, and websites; they serve on distinguished prize committees and editorial boards of major journals; they have been recognized with prestigious, coveted fellowships from many sources, including the John Simon Guggenheim Foundation, the American Council of Learned Societies, and the National Endowment for the Humanities. What brings them all to Vassar is a shared appreciation for and devotion to the liberal arts college environment of small classes, lively discussion, and one-on-one mentoring.

Faculty

Faculty

Professor of History
Headshot of Nancy Bisaha
BA, Rutgers University-New Brunswick; PhD, Cornell University
Professor of History on the Shirley Ecker Boskey Chair
Headshot of Robert Brigham
BA, SUNY College at Brockport; MA, University of Rhode Island; PhD, University of Kentucky
Professor and Chair of History on the Evalyn Clark Chair
BA, Haverford College; MA, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; PhD, Northwestern University
Professor of History on the Eloise Ellery Chair
Headshot of Rebecca Edwards
BA, College of William and Mary; MA, PhD, University of Virginia-Main Campus
Professor of History
BA, Vassar College; MA, PhD, Indiana University-Bloomington
Head of Special Collections and College Historian, Adjunct Associate Professor of History on the Frederick Weyerhaeuser Chair
MLS, Simmons College; BA, Boston College; MA, University of Connecticut; PhD, Boston College
Associate Professor of History
BA, The Evergreen State College; MA, PhD, Indiana University-Bloomington
Assistant Professor of History
Allison Puglisi Portrait
BA, Dartmouth College; PhD, Harvard University
Professor of History on the Marion Musser Lloyd '32 Chair
BA, University of Ghana; MA, Wilfrid Laurier University; PhD, McGill University
Professor of History
BA, University of Chicago; MA, PhD, New York University
Assistant Professor of History
Portrait of Ashanti Shih
BA, University of California-Berkeley; MA, MPhil, PhD, Yale University
Assistant Professor of History
BA, University of Iowa; MA, PhD, University of California-Santa Cruz

Emeriti

James H. Merrell , PhD
Professor Emeritus of History (1984–2023)

Header image: Elliott Erwitt (American, b. France 1928–), Soldier / New Jersey, 1951, Gelatin silver print, Gift of Mr. Charles Balis, Photo credit: The Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center