Programs & Courses

Undergraduate Programs

Bachelor of Arts

BA Major in History
A Bachelor of Arts in History is great preparation for law school and graduate studies in a variety of disciplines, including public policy, business, development, and museum management. History majors are well-positioned to pursue careers in government, communications, and business.

Minor

HISTORY COURSES AT HOFSTRA (Spring 2025)

(WITH DESCRIPTIONS FOR Special Topics courses and seminars)

Core Distribution codes: (HP) History/Philosophy; (CC) Cross Cultural/ (WI) Writing Intensive

It is strongly recommended that students consult a professor in the Department of History prior to registration every semester.
Questions? Email: Stanislao.Pugliese@hofstra.edu

Hist 006C, sec 01 (CC/HP): Historians and the News 1sh, M 02:40p-4:05, Professor Sally Charnow. 1/27-3/24. Have you ever wondered what a historian takes from their reading of the newspaper? Why do your history teachers make such a big deal over keeping up with the news (after all they study the past, not the present, right?). We will discuss how we read and analyze the news, how to follow a news story, and how to discuss those stories. We will also discuss the relationship between news literacy and citizenship, considering the role of a free press and an educated readership in a democracy. We focus primarily on Europe and the European Union (EU).
Hist 009A sec 01: History and Sport 1 sh, W 2:40-4:05, Professor Brenda Elsey. 1/27-3/26. Do you want to use your historical research and writing skills to work in the sports field? This one credit course will explore the avenues to do just that! We will explore how to incorporate the historical context of teams, athletes, and media to better position you to analyze the sports landscape. Our goal will be for students to create original work- a magazine article, podcast, internship project. By bringing depth to your sports projects, you can offer the sports industry a unique skill set. The possibilities are more numerous than you might think!
Hist 009A sec 02: Ukraine in War and Peace 1 sh, Professor Johan Åhr. M 6:00-7:20 pm 2/24-5/1
For consideration is the history of Ukraine since 1991 and its independence from the Soviet Union—a sovereignty today (and since 2014) at battle, in jeopardy.
Hist 010, sec 01 (CC/HP): Intro to Global History, 3sh, TR 9:40-11:05, Professor Yuki Terazawa. This course is an introduction to major historical processes of global scope. Themes will vary but may include: diaspora and migration; the emergence of civilizations; worlds of slavery; gender and sexuality; empire and expansion; scientific revolutions; independence movements; and world wars.
Hist 010, sec 02 (CC/HP): Intro to Global History, 3sh, MW 2:40p-4:05, Professor Simon Doubleday. This course will focus on the Global Middle Ages, providing a new angle on the medieval period that takes into full account the emergence of long-distance interconnections and exchange between Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and—not least, but not central—Europe. Themes will include the Silk Road, the trans-Saharan trade routes, and the impact of global pandemics including the Black Death.
Hist 012 sec 01 (HP): Modern Worlds: The ‘West’ from Renaissance to present 3 sh, MW 11:20am-12:45p, Professor Stanislao Pugliese. The rise of the modern west and the crises of the twentieth century: the struggles and contradictions which have led to continuing change in western civilization. Topics include the formation of the state, development of a capitalist economy, impact of technology on social change, development of science and philosophy, rise of industry and the emergence of a mass-society, modern nationalism, imperialism and war. A recurrent theme will be the role of revolution and the attempts to reconstruct society according to various ideal models including socialism, fascism and communism.
Hist 012 sec 02 (HP): Modern Worlds: The ‘West’ from Renaissance to present, 3 sh, MW 2:40-4:05, Professor Stanislao Pugliese. The rise of the modern west and the crises of the twentieth century: the struggles and contradictions which have led to continuing change in western civilization. Topics include the formation of the state, development of a capitalist economy, impact of technology on social change, development of science and philosophy, rise of industry and the emergence of a mass-society, modern nationalism, imperialism and war. A recurrent theme will be the role of revolution and the attempts to reconstruct society according to various ideal models including socialism, fascism and communism.
Hist 014C sec 01 (HP): US History Reconstruction to present, 3sh, MW 4:20pm-5:45pm, Professor John Munz. Intensive study of controversial issues from the aftermath of the Civil War to the early 21st century. The course is not chronological, but rather organized around themes of the faculty member’s choosing. Conflicting points of view are addressed in lectures, readings, and discussions.
Hist 014S sec 01 (HP): First-Year Seminar, 1968 Youth Rebel & Response, 3sh, TR 2:40-4:05pm, Professor Carolyn Eisenberg. 1968 is recognized as a time when young people in the United States rebelled against political authority, as well as parental and societal norms. In this course we will look at some specific examples of the upheavals during that period. What were the causes of these uprisings? What forms did these rebellions take? Were they fun, dangerous, challenging, meaningful? Did they produce valuable changes or just bad will? To explore these questions, we will be reading memoirs, conducting interviews, and looking at films and media from that time.
Hist 020, sec 01 (HP): Why History Matters: Immigration, 3sh, MW, 9:40am- 11:05am, Professor Johan Åhr. Through the centuries, our world has been defined by many migrations of scale—around the globe, back and forth. And the present is also such a moment of movement. Greece and Turkey, not to mention Mexico, have recently become conduits to the West for peoples fleeing poverty, oppression, and violence—in search of change, opportunity, and safety. What are the experiences of these migrants, their fates and futures? Classes will combine lecture and discussion; and our texts are a combination of fiction and non-fiction, primary and secondary.
HIST 020 sec 02 (HP): Why History Matters: Immigration, 3sh, MW 11:20am-12:45pm Professor Johan Åhr. Through the centuries, our world has been defined by many migrations of scale—around the globe, back and forth. And the present is also such a moment of movement. Greece and Turkey, not to mention Mexico, have recently become conduits to the West for peoples fleeing poverty, oppression, and violence—in search of change, opportunity, and safety. What are the experiences of these migrants, their fates and futures? Classes will combine lecture and discussion; and our texts are a combination of fiction and non-fiction, primary and secondary.
Hist 030, sec 01 (HP): Contemporary American Lives, Teddy, Franklin, and Eleanor, 3 sh, MWF, 8:30am-9:25am, Professor Michael Galgano. This course covers the century-long saga of the Roosevelt family, perhaps America’s greatest political dynasty. Particular attention will be paid to Theodore Roosevelt’s presidency, especially regarding his various roles as “Trust Buster,” conservationist, consumer advocate, and wielder of the “Big Stick;” Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who led Americans out of the Great Depression though his implementation of the New Deal and fought fascism as Commander-in-Chief during the dark days of World War II; and Eleanor Roosevelt, who fought for the powerless and voiceless through her work as a truly revolutionary First Lady and as a tireless champion of human rights in the United Nations.
HIST 037 sec 01 (HP): Genocide, 3sh, TR, 11:20pm-12:45pm, Professor Mario Ruiz. Genocide has destroyed populations across the world. The course explores the history of organized mass murder. What explains such extremes of violence and the murder of whole groups of people? Examples will be drawn across time and geography to include discussion of genocidal policies and events in the Americas, Africa, Europe, Asia, and Australia.
Hist 102/WST 151P (WI) (HP): Investigating History: The Politics of Reproductive Health, 4sh TR 9:10-11:05pm, Professor Katrina Sims. This course interrogates the politics of reproductive health in the United States, from the formation of modern gynecology to the current Reproductive Justice Movement, to explore the historical and contemporary barriers that impede access to healthcare and examine how structures limit women’s ability to exercise freedom over their bodies.
Hist 103 (WI): Debating History 4sh, TR, 3:50-5:45 pm, Professor Mario Ruiz. This course examines current historical debates and the process of writing modern history. We will discuss how the discipline of history has responded to multiple challenges in society-e.g., digitalization, globalization and environmental changes-as well as what history writing will look like in the future, how we can write the history of non-humans, and the challenges of crafting histories of memory, knowledge, and emotions.
Hist 105 sec 01 (HP): Ancient Egypt and Middle East, 3sh, TR, 1:00pm-2:25pm, Professor Mario Ruiz. A historical examination of Ancient Egypt, Israel and the wider Middle East from the first cities to the Persian Empire. Using evidence ranging from pyramids to the Old Testament, the course will examine topics such as religion, politics, slavery and international relations.
Hist 106A sec 01 (HP): Ancient Greece and Rome I, 3sh, TR 1:00pm-2:25pm, Professor Sharon Keller. This course will trace the developments of both Greek and Roman society, and will also focus on common themes, such as power, gender, sexuality, warfare, the economy, law and the environment. A survey of Greek and Roman history down to the clash of these two overlapping but separate worlds (1000 B.C.E.-146 B.C.E.). How were Greece and Rome similar and different? What forces defined each? How did they meet their common challenges and how in the end did each contend with the other?
Hist 107 sec A (HP): Medieval Europe, 3sh, MW 4:20pm-5:45pm, Professor Simon Doubleday. Medieval Europe encompasses approximately 500-1400 CE. In European culture, it was a dynamic period of Germanic migrations and invasions; Vikings and Normans; crusades; cultural interaction with the Islamic world in Spain and the Mediterranean; chivalry and knighthood; popular uprisings; the Black Death; medieval science; heresy and inquisition; and Joan of Arc.
Hist 114 sec 01: Manufacturing Modernity, 3sh, MW 11:20am-12:45, Professor Sally Charnow. This course examines the Industrial Revolution and the urbanization of Europe. Topics include social classes and ethnic and gender identities.
Hist 116/WST 150U: African American History to 1865-Present: Black Health, Trauma, and Resistance, TR-1120am-12:45pm, Dr. Katrina Rochelle Sims. No longer enslaved people, Black Americans set about redefining their bodies, aspirations, and roles in American society. This course will explore how evolving ideas about Black health, trauma, resistance, and healing led by Black women informed Black freedom and liberation strategies throughout the twentieth and twenty-first centuries.
Hist 124 DL: American Way of War: United States Military Experience 1670- present, TBA, Professor James P. Levy. American military experience from the perspective of the “new” military history that is focused upon the complex interrelationship of warfare with political, economic and social institutions.
Hist 142 sec 01 (CC): Latin America 1810-Present, 3sh, MW 4:20-5:45pm, Professor Brenda Elsey. The transformation of Latin American society and culture in the crucible of revolution; the struggles of emerging nationhood; social, political, economic, and cultural trends in the context of governmental experimentation and the quest for stability. Special attention is given to regional problems of modernization, urbanization, political unrest, and revolution.
Hist 143 sec A: American Colonial History, 3sh, TR 4:20-5:45pm, Professor John Staudt. Interplay of European heritage and frontier environment in the shaping of American institutions. Focus on how English colonies became “American”; political developments examined in the changing social contexts of the times.
HIST 162C: Protest and Reform in the United States, 3sh, Tu/Th 2:40 – 4:05 p.m. Dr. Katrina Rochelle Sims. This course interrogates the history of protest and social reform measures from the late twentieth century to the present through the lens of intersectionality – a framework that allows for interconnections of race, class, and gender – to reveal the ways that patterns of discrimination and exclusion from aspects of American society impacted various minority communities in the United States. The course will examine the following topics: anti-racism, protection from violence, inclusive education, and equity.
Hist 166 sec 01: Vietnam Stories, 3 sh, TR, 9:40am – 11:05, Professor Carolyn Eisenberg. The Vietnam War was the most divisive foreign conflict in American history. This course will examine the roots, the character, and the consequences of that experience. We will focus especially on the stories of individual people -Americans, Vietnamese, soldiers, and protestors, whose lives were profoundly affected by the war. We will use film, diaries, oral histories, journalistic accounts, and historical monographs.
History 173 sec 01 (CC): Modern China, 3sh, TR, 2:40-4:05pm, Professor Yuki Terazawa. An examination of modern Chinese history from the Opium war to the era of Communist revolution with special focus on the interwoven imperatives of reform and revolution in China’s encounters with the West and the demands of modernity.
HIST 174 sec 01 (CC): Modern Japan, 3sh, TR, 1:00-2:25, Professor Yuki Terazawa. Political and social history since 1867, with emphasis on the selectivity of and contradictions within the Japanese response to the western challenge, culminating in the post-World War II synthesis. Independent research an option.
HIST 177A sec (01) US Policy and Israel and Palestinian Conflict, 1947-Present, 3 sh, TR, 11:20-12:45, Professor Carolyn Eisenberg. In this class, we will examine the evolution of US policy towards the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from the founding of the Israeli state, up until the present time. In exploring this sensitive subject, we will attempt to contextualize US decision-making within the broader framework of US-Middle East relations. Students will be reading diverse sources and encountering competing perspectives. An important goal for this course is to deepen our understanding of US policy and to enable a free, serious discussion about its purpose and impact.
Hist 177G sec 01: Special Topics in Global History: The Viking of Fact and Fiction: Merchant, Pagan, Raider, 3sh, MW 4:20pm-5:45pm, Professor Johan Åhr. This course concerns the seafaring Vikings of Scandinavia (and medieval history), who in their longships—as merchants, pagans, and raiders—explored worlds from Constantinople to Newfoundland.. According to myth, they are essentially noble savages, these people of the North, committed to adventure, lacking a system of belief. But, in fact, however occasionally simple and violent in their way, they were capitalist traders, and as such ambitious and organized—hence the reach of their dominion; and, while averse to Catholicism, faith was not anathema to them. Yet the myths about them are no less interesting and revealing than the facts: so both will be subject to investigation, in fiction and non-fiction.
Also to be studied is the impact of the Viking on our modern Western culture, as in the music of Richard Wagner. Symbolically, what has this “marauder” from Denmark, Norway, and Sweden come to represent, and why?
History 189 sec A (WI): Seminar Global History 4sh, MW 3:50pm-5:45pm, Professor Brenda Elsey. The seminar fosters original projects of history students. It hopes to encourage students to take their interest in history and run with it! Students can work in different time periods, methodologies, and geographies. The class will work together around a common theme focused on histories of gender and sexuality. Almost every historical topic pertains to gender! Research papers have covered, for example, the history of women artists in colonial Mexico and gay rights debates within the U.S. military during the 21st century. As a class, we will look to the past to see how different societies have understood the concepts of biological difference, masculinity and femininity, and sexual orientation. Using gender as an analytical framework means we will take a fresh look at “big events” and ask new types of questions, such as, what changes relationships between men and women? How do policies around sexuality contribute to state building? How do large and transnational processes manifest in everyday lives? This course seeks to improve students’ critical thinking, research, and writing skills.