Opportunities and Activities

History Club

The History Club at Misericordia University invites all to join!! In fact, the History Club draws participants from a wide variety of majors, even if history majors do make up the majority of members. The club participates each year in a variety of fund-raising and service projects. Service projects in the past few years have included activities such as collecting oral histories for the Back Mountain Historical Association, participating in Bowl for Kids’ Sake, and judging projects at the local History Day competition. The club recently made a camping trip to Gettysburg, too. In addition to these activities, the club presents a great opportunity to get to know your fellow students, majors and non-majors alike, in an informal and welcoming atmosphere. The History Club was named Outstanding Academic Organization for the 2003-2004 academic year.

Phi Alpha Theta

Students who meet the academic requirements will be invited to join Phi Alpha Theta, the national history honor society. Undergraduate students must complete at least 12 semester hours in History (4 courses) with a GPA of at least 3.1 in History and have a GPA of 3.4 or better overall. Membership in the society provides opportunities for students to publish their work in the society’s journal, The Historian, and to present at regional and national meetings.

Phi Alpha Theta Induction Ceremony Spring 2005
Ryan Kearney and family with Dr. Austin at the Spring 2006 PAT Induction Ceremony Spring	Carmie Delpizzo and her proud parents at the Spring 2006 PAT Induction Ceremony.

Service-Learning

The History Department offers several service-learning courses that give students the opportunity for experiential learning and participation in service to the larger community. These courses are intended to deepen students’ understanding of ideas and themes presented in the classroom and encourage students’ development as engaged citizens. Recent service-learning placements have included a range of local organizations, including the Scranton Anthracite Heritage Museum, the American Red Cross, the Humane Society of Lackawana County, the Pennsylvania Environmental Council, Kids Café, and the Peace Center.

Trips

The Misericordia University campus is beautiful and Dallas is a peaceful community conducive to a focus on learning; in addition, the college’s proximity to major east coast cities provides great opportunities for cultural enrichment. Students can have memorable experiences that bring courses alive. Trips for academic groups and clubs can make the Misericordia experience that much more special. In the past few years, history faculty and students have traveled to Philadelphia, Seneca Falls, Gettysburg, and New York City. In addition, history faculty have traveled with honors students on trips to Boston and Washington, D.C.

Students at Elizabeth Cady Stanton House, 2003	Trip to Philadelphia Museum of Art
Modern French Culture class at a restaurant in Philadelphia	Trip to New York City Fall 2005 Metropolitan Museum of Art and Guggenheim Museum

Student Opportunities

Writing-Intensive Courses As part of the core curriculum at Misericordia University, all students are required to take at least two core classes that have been designated “Writing Intensive.” These courses, while still focusing on the content offered in non-writing intensive classes, emphasize the development of writing skills and require a series of individual conferences over the course of the semester. No more than twenty students may enroll in writing intensive courses so that instructors can devote more time to improving each student’s writing skills. The History Department offers writing intensive classes each semester in both Western Civilization and United States history survey courses.

Research Seminar All history majors at Misericordia University are required to take HIS 491, the Research Seminar. Designed as an introduction to historical methods and research, students select their own topics and are then guided in their research and writing. This course provides students the opportunity to work as historians work, writing 25-30 page papers based on primary evidence.