Hello everyone! My name is Claudia, and I am a first-year Public History Masters student here at American University. I am originally from Alexandria, Virginia—which is only about a 15-minute drive to D.C. but tends to be more with traffic! I received my bachelor’s degrees in history and English at the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. While there, I was a part of the National Institute of American History and Democracy (or NIAHD) public history program. Growing up in the D.C. area, I have always loved history and appreciated the various museum institutions located around the city. This led me towards exploring more history classes during undergrad, eventually allowing me to discover public history as a field through NIAHD sponsored classes.
In NIAHD, I gained valuable experiences and strong connections to local museums, including at Colonial Williamsburg, where I interned during my junior year with the Collections Department. I have also interned with the National Women’s History Museum in Alexandria. My research interests include women’s history, especially questions of identity, as well as taking a deeper look at how this is reflected through material culture. In my senior year, I researched and created an online exhibit on gender and class identity through 18th-century fashion.
I have lots of experience with WordPress, which I used to build my online exhibit’s website in undergrad. However, I know there is so much more to creating engaging history digitally, and I am excited to learn more through this class!