HATH

V.W. Starr History Across the Humanities Conference (HATH)

V.W. Starr History Across the Humanities Conference is a two-day event sponsored by the Alpha Gamma Beta chapter of the Phi Alpha Theta National History Honor Society and the YSU History Program. It is organized and run by students at Youngstown State University. HATH was founded by Valerie Waksmunski-Starr, a master's student in History at YSU from 2013 to 2015. She served as the first chair of the conference before passing away from breast cancer on June 29, 2015. The conference was named in her memory. 

Students and faculty of all levels of study, disciplines, and academic institutions are welcomed to attend the conference. 

Tenth Annual Conference


February 22-23, 2024


2024 Theme:

Understanding the Past, Improving the Present, and Imagining the Future


SCHEDULE


FEBRUARY 22

YOUNGSTOWN HISTORICAL CENTER OF INDUSTRY & LABOR

151 W. WOOD ST.


9:00 AM

REEVALUATING DISASTERS 

A Look at the British Empire’s Political and Economic Factors that Contributed to the Irish Potato Famine
    Mitchell Ecklund, undergraduate, College of Wooster

East Palestine Train Derailment
     Christopher Gillett, undergraduate, Youngstown State University
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10:00 AM

CULTURE, GAMING, & LEISURE

Idora Park
    Steven Hiner, undergraduate, Youngstown State University

Five Nights at Freddy’s and Pop Culture that Evolves in Real Time
     Zachary Kelbach, undergraduate, Lake Erie College
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11:00 AM

FEATURED LECTURE 

The Vanishing Scientific Revolution?: A Case Study in How Historians Find (and Lose) Historical Events
    Dr. Brian Bonhomme, Professor, Youngstown State University 

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LUNCH BREAK

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1:00 PM

KEYNOTE

Have Pastport, Will Travel: Public and Personal Histories
  Dr. Tiffany L. Knoell

Tiffany L. Knoell, Ph.D., is an associate teaching professor with the department of Popular Culture at Bowling Green State University. She studies temporal tourism, silent cinema, popular music of 1900-1940, cultural history, animation before television, popular history, nostalgia, and science fiction. She teaches topics courses on Time Travel, Science Fiction, American Mythologies, Global Animation, and Popular Culture and Media in addition to Introduction to Popular Film. Dr. Knoell is the area chair for Popular History in American Culture for the Popular Culture Association National Conference and is also the co-host of Silent Film Fridays: Where the Films are Silent but the Hosts are Not weekly on Twitch. She can be found online at tlknoell.net.

This event is sponsored by the Robert W. Reeder I Memorial Endowment in History.
 

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2:00 PM

SHOWCASE

Building a National Science-Fiction Museum with the Trumbull County Historical Society
    Moderator: Laura Beadling, Grace Ruth Professor of English    
    Meghan Reed, Director
    Ryan MacLennan, Director of Operations & Outreach
    Beverly Nelson, Science Fiction Coordinator

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3:00 PM

POP CULTURE & IDENTITY

1970s Science Fiction: Feminism and Space
     India Gatts, undergraduate, Youngstown State University

Wakanda, Nichelle Nichols, and the Huts of America: A Conversation of Longstanding “Black Nerd-Hood”
    Airyana Washington, undergraduate, Youngstown State University

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4:00 PM

EXHIBIT OPENING

Pizza, Pierogis, and Hummus: Ethnic Foodways in the Mahoning Valley

Dr. Martha Pallante and the students of the Fall 2023 Practicum in Historic Preservation class are proud to present their exhibit: Pizza, Pierogis, and Hummus. This exhibit showcases the unique cultural history of the Mahoning Valley, c. 1890-1945, by illustrating how ethnic foodways belonging to various immigrant communities became part of daily life. The students based the exhibit on research collected from the archives of the Youngstown Historical Center of Industry and Labor, with the assistance of the Mahoning Valley Historical Society and members of the local business community. 

Refreshments provided. This event is sponsored by the Charles Darling Memorial Endowment in History.

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DEBARTOLO HALL 132

7:00 PM

AN EVENING WITH JOHN SCALZI

 

John Scalzi is a New York Times best seller in fiction with works translated into more than 30 languages. He is the winner of numerous awards, including the Hugo, the Locus, the Audie, the Robert A. Heinlein, the Seiun and the Kurd Lasswitz. Scalzi is also the former President of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. Beyond his work in print, Scalzi is the writer of several short stories adapted into episodes of the Netflix series Love, Death + Robots. He also served as a Creative Consultant for the Stargate: Universe television series.

This event is sponsored by the Grace Ruth Endowment in English and the YSU Poetry Center.

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FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 23

YOUNGSTOWN HISTORICAL CENTER OF INDUSTRY & LABOR

151 W. WOOD ST.

 

9:00 AM

RESHAPING CULTURAL ATTITUDES

The Abolitionist Ideas Surrounding George Washington
    Austin Maurer, undergraduate, Mount Union University

The Late Colonial Jazz Age in India
    Ronit Ghosh, graduate, University of Chicago

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10:00 AM

INTERDISCIPLINARY VIEWS ON HEALTH & MEDICINE

The History of the Interpretation of Human Anatomy
     Darcy McTigue, recent graduate, Youngstown State University

Transatlantic Serology, Syphilis, and Scientific Authority, 1906-1914
    Casey Olthaus, graduate, Miami University-Oxford

Am I Good Enough: Imposter Syndrome in NESTs
    Rima Hammo, graduate, Kent State University

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B241 CUSHWA HALL

11:00 AM

GUIDED TOUR- THE MELNICK MEDICAL MUSEUM


Cassie Nespor, Curator of the Melnick Medical Museum, welcomes HATH guests to the museum. The Melnick Medical Museum collects and preserves materials documenting the history of health sciences including medicine, dentistry, and nursing, especially as it relates to Youngstown and the Mahoning Valley. The newly-reopened museum features exhibits on the Iron Lung and polio, early radiology (including a wooden x-ray machine), and the evolution of doctors’ and dentists’ offices. Nearby, a YSU graduate thesis exhibit by Becky Jasinski examines correlations between class, housing, and health in Youngstown.

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LUNCH BREAK

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1:00 PM

SHOWCASE

Serving through Transcribing
    Julie Centofanti, undergraduate, Youngstown State University
    Crystal Lin, undergraduate, Youngstown State University
    Mollie Hartup, Director, Youngstown State University Honors College

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1:30 PM

CULTURAL IMPACTS OF WORLD WAR II

The Schoolyard Soldiers: ‘Hilf Mit!’ and Nazi Germany’s Cultivation of Militant Youth
    Zachary Cherry, graduate, Miami University


The Future War: World War Two’s Impact on the Genre of Science Fiction
    Lukas McCoy, graduate, Youngstown State University

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2:00 PM

FEATURED LECTURE

Denkmäler and Ehrenmäler: Creating VdH Sites of Memory
     Kyle Starkey, Senior Lecturer, Youngstown State University

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3:00 PM

REDEFINING WOMEN’S ROLES

Female Spies of the World Wars
    Katherine Kueter, undergraduate, University of Mount Union


Single in Community: A Vision for Non-Married Women in the Evangelical Church
    Mackenzie Bozman, undergraduate, Malone University

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4:00 PM

WORKSHOP

Preparing for the Ohio Assessment for Educators
     Dr. David Simonelli, Youngstown State University





For questions, contact:

alfluker@ysu.edu

Dr. Amy Fluker

Advisor of Phi Alpha Theta

Youngstown State University