In many ways modern history is the story of the relationships between profound social change and the redefinition of the state and the public sphere. In 20th century history, the study of politics has extended far beyond conventional topics to issues such as welfare and social policy; gender, family and sexuality; public health, crime and deviance; consumerism, leisure and mass culture; the environment; globalization and technological change; racial awareness and conflict; and decolonization, citizenship, and national identity. Undergraduates can take a wide variety of courses; some of the most popular are on modern America and Fascism and Nazism. At the graduate level, modern history at Penn State is organized around the Politics and Modern Society (PAMS) group. This group gathers faculty strength in the study of global 20th-century policy issues such as crime, welfare, environment, health, consumption, labor, decolonization, and national identity. We are especially strong in 20th century U.S., European, and Asian history. The group has an active program of workshops featuring PSU and visiting speakers, and it has established a regular graduate-seminar rotation of Proseminars and topical courses.
Faculty
- Lila Corwin Berman
- Jennifer A. Boittin (French Dept)
- Gary Cross
- Grace Delgado
- Solsiree Del Moral
- Sophie De Schaepdrijver
- Alan Derickson
- Greg A. Eghigian
- Philip Jenkins
- Daniel Letwin
- Jennifer L. Mittelstadt
- Adam Rome
- Anne Carver Rose
- Paul Lawrence Rose
- Mrinalini Sinha
- Gregory Smits
- Catherine Wanner
- Nan E. Woodruff
