USF Department of History

05/31/2026

USF George Washington's Ferry Farm Field School students visited the Octagon House in Washington DC for a special insider tour. The Octagon is a unique 1799 home build for John Tayle III at Washington's urging. The home had quite a history going from being a country estate when it was new to being rented out tenement rooms in the early 20th century. The home has the distinction of being where President Madison lived following the British burning of the White House. History majors Rebekah Greer and Rainey Skobal pick up the pen at the desk where Madison signed the Treaty of Ghent that ended the War of 1812.

05/28/2026

Nothing gives us more joy than to see our undergraduates thrive and excel! A huge shout-out to our amazing students who received department awards for their outstanding academic accomplishments.

Please join us in congratulating this year's winners:

- Nicholas Sponolios – Lawson-Hewitt Award
- Olivia Horn – Rosemary Moore O’Hara Award
- Jonathan Zizak – Fraser Ottanelli Award
- Elizabeth Hines – Rosenkranz Award

We are so proud of you all!!!

05/26/2026

One of the standout highlights from this past Spring semester was undoubtedly the grand re-opening of our Ancient Studies Center. Originally founded in 2008 by Professor Emeritus William Murray, thanks to a generous donation from Michael Garcia, the Center has entered a new chapter under the direction of our own Jesse Obert. The updated space boasts a beautifully rearranged physical and digital library, offering students and scholars a revitalized hub for studying and researching ancient history.

05/25/2026

Congratulations to our faculty Davide Tanasi, our doctoral candidate Angela Costello, and our alumna Kylie Dillinger for this new digital humanities paper just published on journal The Historian!

Published in The Historian (Vol. 88, No. 2, 2026)

05/14/2026

We are incredibly proud to spotlight our very own History major, Arielle Kessler!

Thanks to the Mellon Humanities Internship Program, Arielle recently completed a powerful internship at the Florida Holocaust Museum right here in the Tampa Bay area. During her time there, she gained hands-on archival experience by cataloging documents related to the life and legacy of Nobel Laureate Elie Wiesel.

For Arielle, the work was deeply personal, a meaningful way to honor her great-grandmother’s experiences in Nazi-occupied Europe and ensure these vital stories are preserved for future generations.

University of South Florida

05/13/2026

Congratulations to our freshly minted doctorate holder Madeleine Kraft and PhD student Angela Costello who will both be presenting at the Annual Meeting of the North American Patristic Society (NAPS) in Chicago from May 21–23".
Madeleine will present on “Religious Co-Production in the Catacombs of Santa Lucia: The Formation of Funerary Religion and the Materiality of Syncretism in Sicily, 3rd-6th Centuries CE”, and Angela on “The Daughters of Eve: Assessing the Writings of the Church Fathers to Better Understand Women’s Dress in Late Antiquity”.

We couldn't have asked for a better representative for our ancient history program!"

05/12/2026

Big congratulations to Dr. Cassandra Yacovazzi whose latest book "Mary Kay: How a Cosmetics Empire Transformed Women’s Work in America" (Columbia University Press) is now available for pre-order. The book goes beyond the pink Cadillacs and MLM stereotypes to reveal how Mary Kay Ash revolutionized women's economic opportunities in a male-dominated world. It is a captivating exploration of a complex visionary, a billion-dollar beauty empire, and the fine line between female empowerment and exploitation in the pursuit of the American Dream.

When Mary Kay Ash founded her company, Beauty by Mary Kay, in 1963, women had limited options in a male-dominated business world. By the 1970s, the cosmetics... | CUP

05/11/2026

Huge congratulations to our terrific MA and PhD students who graduated last week! We are incredibly proud of your hard work, resilience, and dedication.

We had 8 outstanding students complete their MA degrees. Please join us in celebrating: Amanda Aklan, Glorya Blair, Michael Charles, Jason Giese, Alexander Iwicki, Elissia Laporte, Dennis Moore, and Danielle Thurston!

We also want to send a massive congratulations to Dr. Madeleine Kraft on officially earning her PhD! This is a tremendous milestone and a testament to years of rigorous research and scholarship.