Maria D Mitchell Professor of History
Biography
After graduating from The Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, MD with a bachelor's degree in Political Science, I received a PhD from Boston University in Modern European History with a minor field in European Imperialism. My research fields include sexuality, religion, and gender in modern German history with a focus on women in politics in the post-World War II years. I am also interested in the history of Franco-German relations, particularly how soccer reflected the successes and failures of postwar reconciliation. My monograph on early German Christian Democracy appeared with the University of Michigan Press.
My teaching interests span eighteenth- to twenty-first-century Europe. I offer survey courses on Europe between the French Revolution and the present: Race, Revolution, and Reform: Europe in a Globalized Nineteenth Century begins in the late eighteenth century and ends with the outbreak of World War I; Revolution, Dictatorship, and Death: Europe in the Twentieth-Century World covers World War I until the 1990s. Dictatorship, Division, and Democracy in Modern German History, cross-listed with the Department of German, focuses on the most dramatic history of Europe's modern era, that of the German states from the late eighteenth century until present. European Sexualities, cross-listed with the Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies program, explores the multivalent meanings of sexuality across the modern European era. My seminars include The Politics of Memory in Modern European History and Race in Modern Europe, the latter of which is cross-listed with Africana Studies. My Connections 1 course, titled World Cup Connections: The Global Game in Context, uses soccer to explore dynamics of empire, fandom, gender and sexuality, globalization, international finance and relations, nationalism, popular culture, race, religion, and violence. In Spring 2021 and 2022, in order to contextualize historically experiences with COVID-19, I facilitated a team-taught course on Pandemics in History. In 2014, I directed the F&M in Paris study abroad program focused on French history, politics, and culture. A March 2016 story in the F&M Magazine offers a spotlight on Revolution, Dictatorship, and Death: Europe in the Twentieth-Century World. This F&M video spotlights my pedagogical philosophy: Portrait of a Feminist.
TEACHING EXPERIENCE
Franklin & Marshall College, 1994-2002: Assistant Professor of History; 2002-2013: Associate Professor of History; 2013-present: Professor of History. Courses taught: Race, Revolution, and Reform: Europe in a Globalized Nineteenth Century (Modern Europe I, Nineteenth-Century European History); Revolution, Dictatorship, and Death: Europe in the Twentieth-Century World (Modern Europe II, Twentieth-Century European History); Nationalism in Modern European History; Women and Gender in Modern European History; War and Gender in Modern European History; The Politics of Memory in Modern European History; Dictatorship, Division, and Democracy in Modern German History (Modern German History); Violence, Sex, and Power in Post-World War II Europe; Race in Modern Europe; European Sexualities; Europe-America: (Mis)Perceptions; World Cup Connections: The Global Game in Context; Pandemics in History: Pandemics Past and Present.
Franklin & Marshall College, 2005, 2018: Participating Faculty, Introduction to International Studies.
F&M in Paris Study Abroad Program, 2014: Director. Courses taught: European-American Perceptions and Misperceptions; French History and Politics.
Boston University Summer School, Summer 1994: Instructor for World History I.
University of Massachusetts, Boston, Fall 1991: Instructor for Modern World History.
Boston University Summer School, Summer 1990: Instructor for Europe in the Twentieth Century.
Boston University Metropolitan College, Spring 1990: Instructor for Western Civilizations 102.
Boston University, Department of History, Fall 1988-Spring 1990: Teaching Fellow for Western Civilizations 101 (two semesters), Western Civilizations 102, and Europe Since 1900.
Boston University, Department of History, Fall 1987-Spring 1988: Teaching Assistant for The History of International Relations in the Twentieth Century.
HONORS THESIS COMMITTEES
Africana Studies, American Studies, Anthropology, Art & Art History, Biological Foundations of Behavior (Animal Behavior), Earth & Environment, Economics, Sociology, History, Italian & Hebrew, German, French, Government, Religious Studies, Sociology
PROFESSIONAL SERVICE
Manuscript reviewer: Bloomsbury Publishing, Central European History, German Studies Review, Harvard University Press, Holocaust and Genocide Studies, Journal of Contemporary History, Modern Intellectual History, University of Toronto Press, Yale University Press.
Editorial Board, Kirchliche Zeitgeschichte, 2001-present.
The German Academic Exchange Service / German Studies Association Book Prize for the Best Book in History / Social Sciences Prize Committee, 2022.
IFSA Butler Study Abroad Syllabus Development, June 2018: The History of the Mafia.
External Review Team, Principia College, Elsah, IL, April 2018: Member.
German Studies Association Program Committee, 2016-2019: Member.
German Historical Institute Fritz Stern Dissertation Prize Selection Committee, 2012: Chair; 2011: Member.
Editorial Board, German Studies Review, 2001-2011.
Introduction for Daniel Jonah Goldhagen, keynote speaker at the Twentieth Annual Conference on the Holocaust, Millersville University, Millersville, PA, April 2, 2000.
Panel Organizer, "Christian Democracy and European Reconstruction, 1945-1960," 113th Annual Meeting of the American Historical Association, Washington, DC, January 9, 1999.
Panel Organizer, "Gott, Frauen und Konsum: Rechristianizing German Women after World War II," 20th Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, Seattle, WA, October 13, 1996.
Symposium Co-Organizer, "Gender, Women, and German Party Politics," sponsored by the American Institute for Contemporary German Politics and the Friedrich Ebert Foundation, Washington, DC, June 14, 1996: Secured institutional support and funding, contacted speakers, coordinated logistics.
Panel Co-Organizer, "Instrumentalizing 'Innocence': Victim Identities in Early West German Social Policies and Party Politics," 19th Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, Chicago, IL, September 22, 1995.
COLLEGE SERVICE
Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies Committee, 2008-2010, 2011-2014, 2015-2018, 2019-2022, 2023-2024: Member; 2016-2018: Chair.
American History Student Search Committee, 2023: Chair.
Committee on the Faculty Handbook, 2017-2018, 2023-2024: Chair; 2016-2017: Co-Chair.
Cooperman College Scholars, 2019-2023: Faculty Mentor; Cooperman Review Committee, 2023.
DisFPS, Founding and Executive Board Member, 2021-2022, 2023-2024.
Faculty Council Working Group on Financial Exigency and Program Discontinuance, 2021-2022.
History Department Landis Paper Prize Committee, 1997, 2004, 2017, 2022.
Faculty Evaluation Task Force, 2019-2022: Elected Member and Chair.
F&M Votes, Advisory Board, 2004-present; In-Class Voter Registration, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2012, 2015: Chair.
Phi Beta Kappa, 2008-2009: Vice President; 2009-2010: President; 2011-2012, 2021-2022: Credentials Committee Member; 2012-2013: Credentials Committee Special Assistant; 2014 and 2017: Historian; 2018: President Pro Tempore.
Stein Fellowship in Public Health Committee, 2021.
Perspectives on Pandemics Past and Present: A Symposium of Student Research, Humanities Initiative, March 25, 2021: Organizer.
Pi Gamma Mu, Social Science Honor Society, Co-Advisor, 2015-present.
Accelerated DEI Curricular Working Group Subcommittee on DEI, 2020: Co-Chair.
Faculty Reading Group on Sex and Secularism, 2016-2017: Co-Convener.
Faculty Curriculum Symposium Summer Planning Group, 2019: Chair.
Teaching Evaluation Task Force Committee on Peer Observations, 2017-2018.
All-Campus Forum on LGBTQ+ Life at F&M, Mayser Gymnasium, Franklin & Marshall College, April 3, 2018: Organizer.
Visible and Invisible Faculty Service Discussion: (How) Is it Valued?, April 2, 2018: Co-organizer.
Disability Studies Symposium, Franklin & Marshall College, March 24, 2018: Organizer.
Modern European History Search Committee, 1995, 1998, 2002, 2005, 2010, 2015, 2018.
Vagina Monologues, 2018: “I Was There in the Room” Monologue.
Feminist Flash Fiction Contest, 2017: Organizer.
Queer Studies Faculty Caucus, 2017-2018: Convener.
Central Pennsylvania Consortium Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies Conference, 2017: Co-organizer; 2018: Co-planner.
Gettysburg Consortium for Faculty Diversity Search Committee in Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies, 2017: Chair.
Connections Whitesell Prize Contest Committee, 2016.
Faculty Reading Group on Gender, Sex, and Science, 2016-2017: Convener.
Alice Drum Women’s Center Executive Board Selection Committee, 2016.
Faculty Council Ad Hoc Committee on the Faculty Handbook, 2015-2016: Co-Chair.
American Association of University Professors, 1994-present: Member; AAUP Outreach Committee, 2011-2013.
Africana Studies Committee, 2015-2016: Chair.
Academic Integrity Working Group, 2015-2016: Chair.
History Department Alumni Profiles Project, 2015-2016: Director.
Commencement, 2014: Student Marshall.
Phillips Museum of Art Exhibit Consultant, 2013-2014.
Board of Trustees Committee on Academic Affairs, 2013-2014.
Faculty Council, 2011-2014: Elected Member; 2013-2014: Chair.
Judaic Studies Committee, 1996-1998, 1999-2002, 2003-2010, 2011-2014: Member;
2004-2007, 2013-2014: Chair.
World War I Commemoration Steering Committee, 2012-2014: Curricular Chair; 2012-2013: Convener.
Women's and Gender Studies/Alice Drum Women's Center Search Committee, 2013.
Alice Drum Summer Research Award Committee, 2013.
Students for Autism Awareness, 2011-2013: Advisor.
Summer Working Group on Governance/Handbook Reform, 2012.
History of the Islamic World Search, 2011-2012: Chair.
Idea Group on Academic Distinction, Fall 2011.
Curriculum Review Working Group on Information Literacy, 2011: Convener.
Women’s and Gender Studies Personnel Committee, 2011-2012: Co-Chair.
Department of History Web Site Content Manager and Implementer, 2011-2013.
Ware College House Fellow, First Year Orientation, 2011.
The Phillips Museum of Art Exhibit, “The Civil Rights Struggle, African American GIs, and Germany,” and Common Hour, “America in Black and White: Lancaster Veterans and the Struggle for Racial Equality,” 2011: Campus Coordinator.
Department of History, 2007-2010: Chair.
Center for Liberal Arts and Society Board, 2008-2010.
Sexual Assault Prevention Program, 2004-2009, 2011-2013.
Fair Practices Committee on Gender Climate, 2007.
International and Off-Campus Study Committee, 2006-2007.
Judicial Committee, Elected Member, 2006-2007.
Presidential Task Force on Quality of Campus Life, Subcommittee on Drug and Alcohol Abuse Prevention, Assessment, and Treatment, 2006.
Hebrew Instructor Search Committee, 2006: Chair.
Presidential Task Force on Quality of Campus Life, 2005.
First-Year Seminar Whitesell Prize Committee, 2005.
F&M Votes, Voter Registration Project, 2004: Co-Chair.
F&M Votes, Election Day GOTV, 2004: Co-Chair.
F&M Votes Election Film Series, 2004: Organizer.
Advanced Studies in England, Advisory Board, 2004-2015.
Teacher Education Advisory Committee, 2004-2005.
LINK Mentorship Program, 2003-2004, 2004-2006.
Science, Technology, Society Committee, 2001-2002, 2004-2005.
Williamson Award Faculty Selection Committee, 2001.
Science, Technology, Society Search Committee, 2002.
Early Modern European History Search Committee, 2002.
Septima Clark Society, 2001-2002.
Residential Programs Selection Staff, 2001, 2002.
Faculty Writing Workshop, 2001-2002.
Health and Wellness Committee, 2000-2002.
Multicultural Graduate Intern Search Faculty Committee, 2001.
History Club Adviser, 1999-2001.
Fulbright Fellowship Selection Committee, 2001, 2007, 2008.
Beginnings, 2000, 2001, 2004.
Career Advising Search, Faculty Committee, 2000.
History Department Careers Forum, February 2000, February 2008: Organizer.
History Department Program Development Committee, Summer 1999.
Women's Center Coordinator Search Committee, 1998.
SAVE (Sexual Assault and Violence Education) Poster Subcommittee, 1997-1998: Chair.
Committee on Off-Campus Study, 1997-1998.
bell hooks Reading Group, January 1997: Co-organizer.
Women's Center Executive Board, 1996-1998: Faculty Representative.
Department Liaison to Admissions Office, 1996-1997.
Mayaud Summer Study/Travel Grant Committee, 1995: Chair.
Middle Eastern History Search Committee, 1994.
COLLEGE PROFESSIONAL SERVICE
Grant Author, Office of the Provost Convergence Grant, Sex and Secularism Reading Group, 2019.
“Portrait of a Feminist,” Franklin & Marshall Promotional Video, Office of Communications, 2018.
Proposal Author, Mueller Fellow Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, Fall 2018.
Grant Author and Co-Organizer, Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Idea Initiative on Diversity and Inclusion, All-Campus Forum on Queer Life at Franklin & Marshall College, April 3, 2018.
Grant Author and Co-Organizer, Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Disability Studies Symposium, Franklin & Marshall College, March 24, 2018.
Grant Author, Gettysburg Consortium for Faculty Diversity Postdoctoral Fellowship in Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies, 2017-2018.
Grant Author and Organizer, Office of the Provost Convergence Grant, Gender, Sex, and Science Reading Group, 2016-2017.
Grant Author, Arthur Vining Davis Foundation, Curricular Revision Grant, Academic Integrity Working Group, 2016.
Grant Author, The Pennsylvania Humanities Council, in support of Common Hour, “America in Black and White: Lancaster Veterans and the Struggle for Racial Equality,” and Exhibit at the Phillips Museum of Art, “The Civil Rights Struggle, African American GIs, and Germany,” 2011.
Founder and Director, University of Chichester-Franklin & Marshall Departments of History Exchange Program, 2011-2014: Organized and oversaw all aspects of the program, including housing, curriculum, activities, and assessment.
Fulbright Visiting Specialists Program: Direct Access to the Muslim World, 2009: Coordinated and oversaw all aspects of Professor Abdul Karim Majed Mustafa al-Barghouthi’s visit, including all campus and community presentations and events.
Department of History External Review, 2008-2009: Researched, coordinated, and edited departmental self-study; organized and oversaw all aspects of the External Review team’s visit; authored departmental responses to external review and Educational Policy Committee.
COMMON HOUR PROPOSALS AND PROGRAMS
Common Hour NOW Hour, “Living with COVID: Lessons from the Past, Looking to the Future,” November 2021.
Margaret Price, “Everyday Survival and Collective Action: What We Can Learn from Disabled Workers in Higher Education,” February 2021.
Emily Wilson, “Translating the Odyssey: Why and How?,” December 2018.
Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, “Stories that Matter: People, Place and Encounters,” October 2018.
Kathryn Bond Stockton, “I Was a Queer Child and So Were You,” February 2018.
Peggy Orenstein, “Girls & Sex,” February 2017.
Donald F. Tibbs, “Hip Hop and the American Constitution: Race and Policing in the Post-Civil Rights Era,” February 2016.
Scott Salmon ’12, F&M Orchestra, “Remembering World War I After 100 Years,” November 2014.
Jay M. Winter, “Making Sense of our Violent Times: The First World War in Transnational Perspective,” October 2014.
Bruce Sussman ’71, “First There Was Harmony: From F&M to a Career in the Arts,” September 2014.
Nelson Polite, Sydney Bridgett, Lewis Alston, and Maria Höhn, “America in Black and White: Lancaster Veterans and the Struggle for Racial Equality,” November 2011.
Education
Boston University, Boston, MA
Ph.D. in Modern European History with minor field in European Colonialism, 1995
M.A. in Modern European History, September 1989
The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD
B.A. with Honors in Political Science, 1987
Phi Beta Kappa, May 1987
The Johns Hopkins University, The Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies, The Bologna Center, Bologna, Italy Diploma in International Relations, May 1986
University of Regensburg, Regensburg, Federal Republic of Germany Deutschlandkundlicher Sommerkurs, Summer School of German History, Language, and Culture, Summer 1989
Goethe-Institut, Schwäbisch-Hall, Federal Republic of Germany Certificate in German Language Studies, Summer 1988
Jagiellonian University, Krakow, Poland Summer School of Polish Language and Culture, July 1986
Humboldt University, (East) Berlin, German Democratic Republic Summer Program for Foreigners, June 1986
Grants & Awards
FELLOWSHIPS AND SCHOLARLY APPOINTMENTS
Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster, PA: Research Grant, July 2023; Office of College Grants Resource Fund (OCGRF) Research Grant, February 2023; Research Grant, May 2019; Office of College Grants Resource Fund (OCGRF) International Conference Grant, September-October 2018; Hackman Fellowship Program, Summer 2023, Summer 2020, Summer 2000, Summer 1995; Reprint Grant, Fall 1997; Research Grant, September 1996-August 1998; Summer Travel Grant, Summer 1995; Research Grant, September 1994-December 1995.
Karl Ferdinand Werner Fellowship of the German Historical Institute, Paris, France: Visiting Scholar, Fall 2018.
German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), Bonn, Germany: Faculty Research Visit Grant, February 2015; Research Grant for Recent PhDs, Summer 1996; Dissertation Research Grant, July-October 1992; Scholarship for the Summer School of German History, Language and Culture, University of Regensburg, Summer 1989; Scholarship for the Goethe-Institut, Schwäbisch-Hall, 1988.
The Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, Geneva, Switzerland: Visiting Scholar, 2010-2011.
Institute for European History, Mainz, Germany: Visiting Scholar, Summer 1996, 2002-2003; Postdoctoral Fellowship, July 1995; Dissertation Fellowships, February-April 1994, January-December 1993.
Gerda Henkel Foundation, Düsseldorf, Germany: Twelve-Month Postdoctoral Research Fellowship for "Protestants and Catholics in Germany: The Transformation of Confessional Culture, 1900-1970," awarded 1998, accepted Summer 2000 and 2002-2003.
The Mary Ingraham Bunting Institute Radcliffe Research and Study Center, Radcliffe College, Cambridge, MA: Affiliate, 1998-1999 (declined).
Abigail Quigley McCarthy Center for Women's Research, Resources and Scholarship, St Paul, MN: Abigail Associates Award, 1998.
Max Planck Institute for History, Göttingen, Germany: Research Fellowship, Summer 1998.
American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS), New York, NY: Grant for Travel to International Meetings Abroad for the Fifth Conference of the International Society for the Study of European Ideas (ISSEI) on Memory, History and Critique: European Identity at the Millennium, University for Humanist Studies, Utrecht, The Netherlands, August 19-24, 1996.
German Historical Institute/American Institute for Contemporary German Studies, Washington, DC: Volkswagen-Stiftung Postdoctoral Junior Fellowship in Postwar German History, September 1995-May 1996.
German Historical Institute, Washington, DC: Dissertation Fellowship, June-December 1992 (declined).
Institute for Human Sciences (IWM), Vienna, Austria: Junior Fellowship, January-June 1992
J. William Fulbright Award/Quadrille Ball Committee of the Germanistic Society of America, Bonn, Germany: Dissertation Fellowship, September 1990-July 1991.
Friedrich Ebert Foundation, Bonn, Germany: Dissertation Research Grant, September 1990-July 1991 (declined).
Boston University Graduate Scholarships, Fall 1990-Spring 1991, Spring 1992-Fall 1993.
Boston University Teaching Fellowships, 1988-1990.
Boston University Graduate Scholarship, 1987-1988.
The Johns Hopkins University Scholarships, 1983-1987.
HONORS AND AWARDS
The Franklin & Marshall Faculty Distinguished Service Award, Inaugural Recipient, 2020.
Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Course Development and Innovation Award, 2019.
Black Student Union, Faculty Award Nominee, 2016.
Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Course Development and Innovation Award, 2015.
Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Central Pennsylvania Consortium Provosts, Supporting the Faculty Career Cycle Award, 2010.
American Institute for Contemporary German Studies, The Johns Hopkins University, Senior Non-Resident Fellow, 2008-present.
Most Influential Professor Award in the Social Sciences (Co-Winner), Franklin & Marshall College, 2007, 2008.
Christian R. and Mary F. Lindback Foundation Award for Distinguished Teaching, Franklin & Marshall College, 2007.
Dean of the College Award, Franklin & Marshall College, for Outstanding Service to Students, 2005.
Voices for Women Annual Award, Franklin & Marshall Women's Center Award for having "reached the highest standing in leadership, character, and service as they relate to women's issues," 1998.
Boston University Graduate School's Award for Outstanding Teaching, May 1989.
Phi Beta Kappa, The Johns Hopkins University, Spring 1987.
Pi Sigma Alpha, The Johns Hopkins Political Science Honor Society, Spring 1985.
Publications
MONOGRAPH
The Origins of Christian Democracy: Politics and Confession in Modern Germany (Ann Arbor, MI: The University of Michigan Press, 2012).
ARTICLES AND CHAPTERS IN EDITED VOLUMES
“The Tragedy of Seville: Sport, Popular Culture, and Franco-German Postwar Reconciliation," in Daniel Noemi Voionmaa, ed. World Cup! History, Politics, and Art of the Beautiful Game (Vernon Press, in preparation).
“Maria Meyer-Sevenich and the Politics of Emotions, Gender, and Religion in Postwar Germany,” in Martina Cucchiara and Lisa Fetheringill Zwicker, eds. Women, Religion, and the Emotions in Germany and Beyond (Rochester, NY: Camden House, under contract).
“Gender and the Imperfect Interconfessionalism of the CDU, 1945-1965,” in Mark Ruff and Thomas Großbölting, eds. Germany and the Confessional Divide, 1871-1989 (New York, Providence: Berghahn Books, 2021).
"The Construction of Christian Democracy: Confession and Ideology in German Politics," in Katarzyna Stoklosa and Andrea Strübind, eds. Glaube - Freiheit - Diktatur in Europa und den USA: Festschrift für Gerhard Besier zum 60. Geburtstag (Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2007).
"Catholicism and Interconfessional Politics: The Catholic Church and the Christian Democratic Union," Kirchliche Zeitgeschichte 19, 2 (2006): 347-58.
"'Antimaterialism' in Early German Christian Democracy," in Thomas Kselman and Joseph A. Buttigieg, eds. European Christian Democracy: Historical Legacies and Comparative Perspectives (Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press, 2003).
"Die Volksgemeinschaft im Dritten Reich: Konflikt, Konzession, Konsens," in Hartmut Lehmann and Norbert Finzsch, eds. Zukunftsvisionen: Politische und soziale Utopien in Deutschland und den Vereinigten Staaten im 20. Jahrhundert. Krefelder Hefte zur deutsch-amerikanischen Geschichte, Vol. 4 (Krefeld: Stadt Krefeld, 2001).
"Volksgemeinschaft in the Third Reich: Concession, Conflict, Consensus," in Norbert Finzsch and Hermann Wellenreuther, eds. Visions of the Future in Germany and America (Oxford and New York: Berg Press, 2001).
"Christian Memories of National Socialism: Politicians and Clergy in Post-World War II Germany," in Frank Brinkhuis and Sascha Talmore, eds. Memory, History and Critique: European Identity at the Millennium. Proceedings of the Fifth Conference of the International Society for the Study of European Ideas, at the University for Humanist Studies, Utrecht, The Netherlands, August 19-24 1996 [CDROM] (Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, 1998).
"Stunde Null in German Politics? Confessional Culture, Realpolitik, and the Organization of Christian Democracy," in Geoffrey J. Giles, ed. Stunde Null: The End and the Beginning Fifty Years Ago. Occasional Paper No. 20. (Washington, DC: German Historical Institute, 1997): 25-38.
"Materialism and Secularism: CDU Politicians and National Socialism, 1945-1949," The Journal of Modern History 67, 2 (June 1995): 278-308.
OTHER ESSAYS
Special to the LNP editorial, “Europe Has a Lot of Experience Dealing with Agonizing History,” Lancaster News, July 12, 2020.
Special to the LNP editorial, “As Notre-Dame Burned, Paris Watched in Sorrow,” Lancaster News, April 21, 2019.
"The French Yellow Vests: A Social Movement Becomes a State Crisis," Guest Editorial, PennLive.com, December 10, 2018. Republished with my photographs, F&M Magazine, College Voices, "How a Social Movement Became a State Crisis” (Spring 2019), 12-13.
"The World Cup Starts Today. It Matters as Much for Politics as for Sports," Made by History Perspective, Washington Post, June 14, 2018.
Special to the LNP editorial, “Why We Stand With, and Feel For, Our Oldest Ally,” Lancaster News, November 21, 2015.
REVIEWS AND TRANSLATIONS
Review of James D. Strasburg, God’s Marshall Plan: American Protestants and the Struggle for the Soul of Europe, The Journal of Modern History (forthcoming).
Review of Jason Crouthamel, Trauma, Religion and Spirituality in Germany during the First World War, German Studies Review (February 2024, forthcoming).
Review of Martina Steber, The Guardians of Concepts: Political Languages of Conservatism in Britain and West Germany, 1945-1980, German History 41, 4 (December 2023): 630-632.
Review of Michael E. O’Sullivan, Disruptive Power: Catholic Women, Miracles, and Politics in Modern Germany, 1918-1965, EuropeNow Journal (October 13, 2020).
Review of Giuliana Chamedes, A Twentieth-Century Crusade: The Vatican’s Battle to Remake Christian Europe, George L. Mosse Program in History Blog (August 19, 2020).
Review of William L. Patch, Christian Democratic Workers and the Forging of German Democracy, 1920-1980, The Journal of Modern History, 91, 3 (September 2019): 719-23.
Review of Thomas Großbölting, Losing Heaven: Religion in Germany Since 1945, The American Historical Review 124, 2 (April 2019) 772-73.
Review of Mark Edward Ruff, The Battle for the Catholic Past in Germany, 1945-1980, H-Diplo Roundtable Review XIX, 42 (2018): July 2, 2018.
Review of Lauren Faulkner Rossi, Wehrmacht Priests: Catholicism and the Nazi War of Annihilation, Central European History 49, 3-4 (December 2016): 509-11.
Review of Karl-Joseph Hummel and Christoph Kösters, eds., Kirche, Krieg und Katholiken: Geschichte und Gedächtnis im 20. Jahrhundert, German Quarterly 88, 2 (2015): 257-59.
Review of Benjamin Ziemann, Encounters with Modernity: The Catholic Church in West Germany, 1945-1975, German Studies Review 38, 2 (2015): 447-49.
Review of Michael Kitzing, Für den christlichen und sozialen Volksstaat: Die Badische Zentrumspartei in der Weimarer Republik, American Historical Review 120, 2 (2015): 735-36.
Review of Thomas Flemming, Gustav W. Heinemann: Ein deutscher Citoyen, German History 32, 4 (December 2014): 660-62.
Review of Konstantin von Freytag-Loringhoven, Erziehung im Kollegienhaus. Reformbestrebungen an den deutschen Universitäten der amerikanischen Besatzungszone, 1945-1960, Francia-Recensio, 19./20. Jahrhundert – Histoire contemporaine 2014/1 (http://www.perspectivia.net/content/publikationen/francia/francia-recensio/2014-1/ZG/von-freytag_mitchell)
Review of Urs Altermatt, Das historische Dilemma der CVP: Zwischen katholischem Milieu und bürgerlicher Mittepartei, The Catholic Historical Review 99, 3 (July 2013): 574-75.
Review of Wolfram Kaiser, Christian Democracy and the Origins of European Union, Central European History 42, 1 (March 2009): 186-88.
Review of S. Jonathan Wiesen, West German Industry and the Challenge of the Nazi Past, 1945-1955, The Journal of Modern History 79, 4 (December 2007): 949-50.
Review of Ronald J. Granieri, The Ambivalent Alliance: Konrad Adenauer, the CDU/CSU and the West, 1949-1966, German History 25, 1 (2007): 116-18.
Review of Alexander von Plato and Almut Leh, eds., "Ein unglaublicher Frühling": Erfahrene Geschichte im Nachkriegsdeutchland 1945-1948, Kirchliche Zeitgeschichte 15, 2 (2002): 541-42.
Review of Matthias Schulze, Bund oder Schar - Verband oder Pfarrjugend? Katholische Jugendarbeit im Erzbistum Paderborn nach 1945, Kirchliche Zeitgeschichte 15, 2 (2002): 543-45.
Review of Hanna Schissler, ed., The Miracle Years: A Cultural History of West Germany, 1949-1968, The Historian 64, 03-04 (2002): 859-60.
Review of Christoph Kösters, ed. Caritas in der SBZ/GDR 1945-1989: Erinnerungen, Berichte, Forschungen, H-German, August 2002.
Review of Hans-Peter Schwarz, Konrad Adenauer: A German Politician and Statesman in a Period of War, Revolution and Reconstruction. Vol. 1: From the German Empire to the Federal Republic, 1876-1952, Central European History 31, 4 (1998): 446-49.
Translation of Michael Wildt, Review of Thomas Sandkühler, Endlösung in Galizien. Der Judenmord in Ostpolen und die Rettungsinitiativen von Berthold Beitz 1941-1944 and Dieter Pohl, Nationalsozialistiche Judenverfolgung in Ostgalizien 1941-1944. Organisation und Durchführung eines staatlichen Massenverbrechens, The Journal of Holocaust and Genocide Studies 12, 3 (Winter 1998): 502-06.
Review of Stathis N. Kalyvas, The Rise of Christian Democracy in Europe, Journal of Church and State 40, 4 (Autumn 1998): 896-97.
Review of Doris L. Bergen, Twisted Cross: The German Christian Movement in the Third Reich, Holocaust and Genocide Studies 11, 3 (Winter 1997): 434-37
Presentations
CONFERENCE PARTICIPATION
“Embodying Gendered Emotions in German Politics: Maria Sevenich and Christian Protest,” paper presented at the Women, Emotions, and Religion in Modern Germany and Beyond Workshop, Berlin, Germany, June 24-26, 2022.
“Maria Sevenich: Emotionalism and Religion in Postwar Politics,” paper presented at the 45th Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, Zoomland, October 1, 2021.
“Interconfessionalism Gendered: Cooperation and Conflict Across the Confessional Divide,” paper presented at the 43rd Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, Portland, OR, October 4, 2019.
“Gender, Materiality, and the Sacred,” seminar participant at the 42nd Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, Pittsburgh, PA, September 27-October 30, 2018.
“Religious Revivals in 19th and 20th Century Germany,” seminar participant at the 41st Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, Atlanta, GA, October 5-8, 2017.
“Germany and the Confessional Divide, 1871-1990,” seminar participant at the 40th Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, San Diego, CA, September 29-October 2, 2016.
“Religion in Germany during an Era of Extreme Violence: The Churches, Religious Communities and Popular Piety, 1900-1960,” seminar participant at the 39th Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, Washington, DC, October 2-4, 2015.
“Reconstructing the ‘Männerstaat’: Catholic Women in Early Postwar Germany,” paper presented at the 36th Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, Milwaukee, WI, October 6, 2012.
“Priests, Politics, and Protestants: The Role of the Catholic Clergy in Forging Postwar German Democracy,” paper presented at the 35th Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, Louisville, KY, September 24, 2011.
"'The Esteem of Women and Girls is in Danger!': Christian Democracy and Sexual Morality in the Postwar Years," paper presented at the 32nd Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, St Paul, MN, October 4, 2008.
"Balancing Babies and Books? The Benefits and Drawbacks of Post-Tenure Parenthood," paper presented at the Central Pennsylvania Consortium Women's Studies Conference, Franklin & Marshall College, March 3, 2007.
"From Kirchenkampf to Abendland: Protestant-Catholic Reconciliation after World War II," paper presented at the 30th Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, Pittsburgh, PA, September 30, 2006.
"Moderate Conservatism in the German Federal Republic: The Christian Democratic Union," paper to be presented at the "Globalization, Empire, and Imperialism in Historical Perspective" Conference of The Historical Society, Chapel Hill, NC, June 3, 2006.
"Catholicism and Interconfessional Politics: The Catholic Church and the Christian Democratic Union," paper presented on my behalf at the 29th Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, Milwaukee, WI, October 2, 2005.
"The Changing Role of the Catholic Church in West German Politics," paper presented at the 27th Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, New Orleans, LA, September 19, 2003.
"Das Abendland, Anti-Materialism, and Ideological Community: The Federal Republic and the United States," paper presented at the 24th Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, Houston, TX, October 6, 2000.
"Gendered Reconstruction: Christian Democracy and German Women," paper presented at the 113th Annual Meeting of the American Historical Association, Washington, DC, January 9, 1999.
"Narratives of Nazism and Female Power: Christian Democratic Women in Postwar Germany," paper presented at the 6th Conference of the International Society for the Study of European Ideas (ISSEI) on Twentieth-Century European Narrative: Tradition and Innovation, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel, August 19, 1998.
"Totalitarianism as Political Trope: The CDU Contribution," paper presented at the 21st Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, Washington, DC, September 26, 1997.
"'The Hour of the Woman' in Occupied Germany: Christian Democratic Women and the Postwar Gender Order," paper presented at Siena College Conference on World War II, Loudonville, NY, May 30, 1997.
"'We Demolished a Centuries-Old Barrier': Confessional Relations and Christian Politics after 1945," paper presented at the 1996 Meeting of the Southern Historical Association, Little Rock, AR, October 30, 1996.
"Die Würde der Frau und Mutter: Christian Discourse on Women's 'Proper Place' in Post-World War II Germany," paper presented at the 20th Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, Seattle, WA, October 13, 1996.
"Christian Memories of National Socialism: Politicians and Clergy in Post-World War II Germany," paper presented at the Fifth Conference of the International Society for the Study of European Ideas (ISSEI) on Memory, History and Critique: European Identity at the Millennium, University for Humanist Studies, Utrecht, The Netherlands, August 23, 1996.
"'To Be the Guardians of Goodness': Christian Democracy and German Women, 1945-1949," paper presented at the 10th Berkshire Conference on the History of Women, Chapel Hill, NC, June 9, 1996.
"The Constitution of Christian Victimhood: Protestants, Catholics, and the Early CDU," paper presented at the 19th Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, Chicago, IL, September 22, 1995.
"'The Basis for a New German Nationality': Christian Democracy and German Identity, 1945-1949," paper presented at the 109th Annual Meeting of the American Historical Association, Chicago, IL, January 7, 1995.
INVITED PRESENTATIONS
“Making Christian Democracy ‘Sexy’: Religion as a Category of Analysis,” Keynote Address delivered at Harvard University, Center for European Studies Workshop, "New Histories of Transnational Christianity," sponsored by the Harvard Colloquium for Intellectual History, February 7, 2013.
"A 'Religious Turn'? Putting Religion Back in European History and Politics," paper presented at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, Geneva, Switzerland, April 14, 2011.
"Volksgemeinschaft in the Third Reich: Concession, Conflict, Consensus," paper presented on my behalf at the Krefeld Historical Symposium, "Visions of the Future in Germany and America," in Krefeld, Germany, May 13-16, 1999.
"German Christian Democracy and the Rhetoric of 'Anti-Materialism,'" paper presented at the Nanovic Institute for European Studies and The Kellogg Institute for International Studies Conference, "Christian Democracy in Europe and Latin America," The University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, April 9, 1999.
"Before the Social Market Economy: Christian Democratic Economic Planning, 1945-1947," paper presented at the Rice University Center for the Study of Culture/Baker Institute Symposium, "The Road to Plandom: Non-Socialist and Pre-Socialist Economic Planning in Republican China and Europe, 1935-1950," Houston, TX, January 30, 1999.
"Christian Democratic Prescriptions for the Postwar Gender Order," paper presented at American Institute for Contemporary German Studies/ Friedrich Ebert Foundation Symposium, "Gender, Women, and German Party Politics," Washington, DC, June 14, 1996.
"The Ideology and Politics of German Christian Democracy: Constructing an Interconfessional Alliance," paper presented at the Post-War German History Research Seminar, German Historical Institute, Washington, DC, June 13, 1996.
"Gender and Family in Christian Democratic Discourse, 1945-1949," paper presented at the Standing Seminar in German History, Center for German and European Studies, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, February 22, 1996.
"Stunde Null in German Politics? Confessional Culture, Realpolitik, and the Organization of Christian Democracy," paper presented at the Symposium of the Friends of the German Historical Institute, Washington, DC, November 17, 1995.
"Religion and Politics in Post-World War II Germany: A New Perspective on the Early CDU," paper presented at the Introductory Seminar for Volkswagen Fellows in Post-War German History, German Historical Institute, Washington, DC, October 24, 1995.
"Vom Konfessionalismus zum Interkonfessionalismus: Die Entstehung der CDU 1945-1949" (From Confessionalism to Interconfessionalism: The Origins of the CDU, 1945-1949), paper presented at the Institute for European History, Mainz, Germany, July 1, 1993.
"Materialism and Secularism: CDU Politicians and National Socialism, 1945-1949," paper presented at the History Department Seminar Series, Boston University, December 4, 1992.
CONFERENCE SERVICE
Co-organizer and -convener of seminar, “The Centrality of Gender in Religious Transformation from the Late Eighteenth to the Twentieth Century,” at the 47th Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, Montréal, Canada, October 6-8, 2023.
Moderator for panel, “Women’s Work and Gendered Images in German History,” at the 47th Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, Montréal, Canada, October 7, 2023.
Chair for roundtable, “The Future of History at Liberal Arts Colleges: Creating an Inclusive Classroom,” at the 136th Annual Meeting of the American Historical Association, Philadelphia, PA, January 7, 2023.
Moderator for panel, “Nazi Germany, International Protestantism, and the German Churches,” at the 45th Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, Zoomland, October 1, 2021.
Commentator for panel, “Phantoms of the Past and Postwar Politics,” at the 43rd Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, Portland, OR, October 5, 2019.
Moderator for panel, “Queer Histories,” at the 2018 Annual Central Pennsylvania Consortium Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies Conference, Carlisle, PA, March 31, 2018.
Moderator for panel, "Personal Experience of Reproduction," at the 2017 Annual Central Pennsylvania Consortium Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies Conference, Lancaster, PA, March 25, 2017.
Moderator for panel, "Reproduction Politics," at the 2016 Annual Central Pennsylvania Consortium Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies Conference, Gettysburg College, Gettysburg, PA, April 2, 2016.
Moderator for panel, "Young Adult Literature," at the 2013 Annual Central Pennsylvania Consortium Women's Studies Conference, Lancaster, PA, March 30, 2013.
Commentator for panel, “Church, Media, Politics: The German and European Legacies of Klaus von Bismarck,” at the 36th Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, Milwaukee, WI, October 5, 2012.
Commentator for panel, “Shaping the Modern German (Church) Family,” at the 35th Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, Louisville, KY, September 23, 2011.
Moderator for panel, “The Politics of National Identity in Imperial Germany and Beyond,” at the 32nd Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, St Paul, MN, October 3, 2008.
Moderator for panel, “Christianity, World War II, and the Cold War,” at the 30th Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, Pittsburgh, PA, October 1, 2006.
Moderator for panel, “Self Deceptions in Germany: Historical and Philosophical Perspectives,” at the 28th Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, Washington, DC, October 10, 2004.
Moderator for panel, “The Ethics of Modern Politics: Albert Schweitzer, Carl Schmitt, Hermann Broch,” at the 28th Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, Washington, DC, October 8, 2004.
Moderator for panel, “A Bitter Ambiguity: Restitution and Reconciliation in Post-Defeat Germany, Italy, and Japan,” at the 118th Annual Meeting of the American Historical Association, Washington, DC, January 11, 2004.
Moderator for panel, “The Rev. Josef Kruszynski and Polish Catholic Teachings about Jews in the Interwar Period,” at the Pacific Lutheran University, Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Dartmouth College, and Kirchliche Zeitgeschichte Conference, “Christian Teachings about Jews: National Comparisons in the Shadow of the Holocaust,” Takoma, WA, September 27, 2002.
Moderator for panel, “The Politics of Confessional Culture in Nineteenth-Century Germany,” at the 25th Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, Washington, DC, October 5, 2001.
Commentator for panel, "Women and Children as Focus of Political Transformation of Postwar Germany," at the 23rd Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, Atlanta, GA, October 9, 1999.
Moderator for panel, "German Culture, Multiculturalism, and Imperialism," at the 23rd Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, Atlanta, GA, October 10, 1999.
Moderator for panel, "Responding to the Persecution of the Jews," at the 18th Annual Conference on the Holocaust, Millersville University, Millersville, PA, April 27, 1998.
Commentator for panel, "Re-Examining the Religious Divide: Gentiles and Jews in the Deutscher Kulturbereich," at the 21st Annual Conference of the German Studies Association, Washington, DC, September 26, 1997.
SELECTED COLLEGE AND COMMUNITY PRESENTATIONS
“The Political Consequences of the French Election for European Unity,” The French Election: A Faculty Panel, Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster, PA April 4, 2022.
“Pandemics in History,” Common Hour, Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster, PA, November 18, 2021.
“The Legacies of Angela Merkel,” Germany’s 2021 Federal Election: A Faculty Panel, Global Discussion Program, Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster, PA, September 17, 2022.
"Monuments and Statues: National and Local Historical Controversies," panel discussion hosted by LNP, Lancaster, PA, July 8, 2020.
“Helmut Kohl,” Quest for Learning Series on “Great World Leaders,” Non-Profit Public Education, Lancaster, PA, May 10, 2018.
Moderator, “Rainbow Reflections,” Panel and Discussion with LGBTQ-identified Alumni, Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster, PA, June 3, 2017.
“No Experiments? The Upcoming German Federal Elections and Europe’s Future,” The German Election: A Faculty Panel, Global Discussion Program, Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster, PA, September 19, 2017.
“French Presidential Elections: History, Candidates, Potential Impacts,” The French Election: A Faculty Panel, Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster, PA, April 12, 2017.
“Angela Merkel,” Quest for Learning Series on “Great World Leaders,” Non-Profit Public Education, Lancaster, PA, May 11, 2017.
“Ethics, Justice, and Power in the Humanities and Social Sciences,” Keynote Address at First Annual Student Research Conference, Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster, PA, April 10, 2016.
“Is Donald Trump a Fascist?,” Faculty Panel, Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster, PA, March 30, 2016.
“Germany in Europe and the World,” International Studies Club, Franklin & Marshall Marshall College, Lancaster, PA, March 29, 2016.
“Faculty Sabbaticals Abroad,” International Studies Program, Global Lunch Series, Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster, PA, December 5, 2011.
“The History of the Holocaust,” Hillel Lunch and Learn, Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster, PA, April 13, 2010.
“The Nasty Girl and German Vergangenheitsbewältigung,” Millersville University, March 2, 2010.
“Islam, Immigration, and Identity in Europe,” Faculty Panel, Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster, PA, February 4, 2010.
“Education Ain’t Enough (or Why the Liberal Arts Will Save Us,” Pi Gamma Mu Induction Ceremony Keynote Address, April 26, 2009.
"Gender and Leadership,” John Marshall Leadership Institute, Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster, PA, February 27, 2008.
Christian R. and Mary F. Lindback Foundation Award for Distinguished Teaching Address, “Learning Along the Way: Gender and Rewriting History,” Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster, PA, September 27, 2007.
“The Values of Education: The Promise and Tragedy of Youth,” Convocation Address, Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster, PA, August 28, 2007.
“Women as Victims, Perpetrators, and Bystanders in the Holocaust,” Women’s Center, Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster, PA, March 23, 2007.
“Denmark and the Jews,” Hillel House, Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster, PA, September 27, 2006.
“Thoughts on Indifference,” Holocaust Remembrance Week, Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster, PA, March 30, 2005.
Participant in symposium, "What is Feminism?," Lancaster Country Day School, Lancaster, PA, October 12, 1998.
Moderator for roundtable, "Lookism," Annual Women's Studies Conference, Central Pennsylvania Consortium, Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster, PA, March 28, 1998.
"The Women's Center: Past, Present, and Future," Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster, PA, September 16, 1997.
"Feminism 101," The Women's Center, Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster, PA, September 12, 1997.
"German History and Post-Modernism: Politics, Memory, and National Identity in East and West Germany," Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster, PA, January 30, 1995.