Whether a student is out exploring the numerous activities Baltimore has to offer or being confined to a desk to study for an upcoming exam, history is ever-present. There is history to every human being and object, as the past affects the present and the present affects the future. The Undergraduate History Association (UHA) is one such club that emphasizes the integral role of history in society to the Hopkins student body.
The UHA is one of the younger clubs at Hopkins, having only been formed in the past half-decade, but it has quickly risen to prominence as the University’s student organization for all things historical. While the club is run by students majoring or minoring in History, UHA aims to garner an appreciation of both history and disciplines under the greater humanities umbrella among Hopkins’ student body.
In an interview with The News-Letter, UHA President Elyjah Bassford, a senior majoring in history with a minor in German, stated that he hopes that UHA can promote interdisciplinary learning and knowledge for the benefit of all students.
Bassford explained, “When you think of humanities, you tend to think of individual parcels. You do not tend to think of it as a wider thing.”
History and the humanities, though, are not the only fields from which the UHA hopes students will take an interest in getting involved. In fact, the organization welcomes all undergraduate students to participate in its myriad events and activities regardless of their connection to Hopkins’ History department – or history as a whole. Bassford presented two reasons for this rationale: firstly, welcoming students from across the university’s many departments, whether STEM, humanities or arts, allows for greater approachability and openness of thought within the club. Secondly, Bassford believes that history is intertwined with every academic subject.
“You are still looking at the sum total of research work before you in terms of journal articles and others, and even in that capacity, you're still conducting comparison between past and present and how things got to be a certain way, which is the heart of the historical method,” Bassford stated. “So, there is still a kinship between history and STEM degrees.”
It is through this perspective that Bassford both hopes students of all backgrounds will take part in UHA and trusts that the club can provide a meaningful experience for undergraduates. A key factor in this experience is the variety of events hosted by UHA, such as trivia, and support from faculty members. Vice President of UHA, Piper Lamson shared her thoughts in an email to The News-Letter.
“I think we draw students in by having cool events like our trivia nights and with our connections to faculty,” Lamson said. “The faculty in the history department are our biggest supporters and are always looking to help us out or just show up to events.”
With the wide range of topics that questions can be drawn from, Bassford and Lamson state that trivia exemplifies how vast the field of history is. Moreover, they believe it is a thrilling way for students, faculty and other organizations to come together to not only test their overall knowledge, but also form connections with one another who may have similar or different interests. UHA Social Media Manager, Frances Leiter, shared her favorite features of trivia events in an email to The News-Letter.
“It is so fun to get together with like-minded people, across classes and areas of study, to compete in a fun environment. It is such a fun way to test your knowledge in a stress-free event! I also appreciate that we've invited other student organizations and clubs on campus, to broaden our connections within the Humanities at Hopkins,” Leiter wrote.
Although trivia nights may be a staple event for UHA, Bassford and the UHA board are looking for ways to expand their outreach.
“We are looking into ways to collaborate with other organizations,” Bassford said. “For instance, holding joint events potentially with other organizations like writer clubs, or the Ancient Civilizations Club as well. We have had joint events with them in the past or events in which UHA members were involved.”
Brassford believes that partnerships between clubs are beneficial to both ends and contribute to the ultimate mission of unifying the humanities as a whole at Hopkins, as described earlier. Aside from such events, Hopkins is known for its research, so the UHA incorporates this Hopkins component with the various conference-style events held throughout the year, allowing students to potentially showcase their personal research.
“Sept. 19 is the Baltimore Historic Unconference, called an unconference because it is a more free form sort of occasion [where] anyone who attends can present work…[whether it is] oral research or projects [they are conducting],” Bassford said.
The Baltimore Historic Unconference is one event UHA partakes in that allows members to integrate themselves into the Baltimore community, since the event is not only comprised of Hopkins students but also other history professionals residing in Baltimore. This is an annual event that takes place in the fall, but Lamson stated that UHA also hosts a seminar series in the spring that allow students to engage in research and share their findings.
“[Our seminar series] had students from the BA/MA program, senior honors thesis, and the sophomore history seminar present their research and receive feedback,” Lamson added. “This event was memorable for me because I was writing my sophomore thesis and it was helpful to collect my thoughts through presentation and strengthen my paper through peer feedback.”
It is typical for students to get involved in research at some point in time at Hopkins. Bassford highlighted UHA events as a way to promote humanities-centered research and attract other students to explore this realm of research beyond popular STEM options.
“UHA will hold events in the spring that will incorporate and spread awareness of these research projects,” Bassford said. “You can actively go to these presentations [where] our student researchers can freely and most exactly show all the good work that they have done over a semester or over the course of a year. So, look out for spring!”
