Margaret Lawson – Department of History

Alabama Memory Project Seeks to Reclaim Lost Lives, Inspires Future Researchers

May 5, 2022

The Alabama Memory Project is an undergraduate research course directed by Dr. John M. Giggie and sponsored by the Summersell Center for the Study of the South. Launched in 2017, this project seeks to memorialize publicly the lives lost to lynching in the state of Alabama. Working on a county-by county basis, Alabama Memory students commit themselves to recovering every historical detail possible about each lynching case. Most importantly, this project seeks to not only uncover why these men, women, […]

History of Us Featured in Recent Edition of Collegian

February 2, 2021

A History of Us An article about Dr. Giggie’s “History of Us” class, the first Black History class taught in an Alabama public high school, was featured recently in the College of Arts & Sciences magazine, Collegian. “On a January morning, 18 Central High School students sat around a circle of tables in their first period class. It’s silent, but it’s not tense—there’s an air of thoughtfulness, of students searching to find their answer to the question posed moments before. […]

Dr. John Giggie to Address National Conference on Citizenship

October 12, 2020

Dr. John Giggie will address the National Conference on Citizenship‘s Learn, Ask, & Share Circle this Wednesday, October 14, at 1 pm CDT. Giggie will discuss his work designing and teaching History of Us, the first Black History course taught in an Alabama public school. Joining him will be Ms. Margaret Lawson, education/history graduate student and co-creator, and two alums, Ms. Delphia McGraw and Ms. Noa Jordan. Registration is free for this online event. Details are available at the National […]

Dr. John Giggie to Participate in David Mathews Center’s Civic Institute, August 21

August 18, 2020

The Mathews Center will host its annual Civic Institute on August 21st, 2020. The event will be held entirely online. The theme of this year’s event is Common Bonds: Collective Purpose and Civic Resilience in Uncertain Times. Dr. David Mathews, President and C.E.O. of the Kettering Foundation, will deliver a (pre-recorded) keynote address drawing on his experiences at the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare—where he served as Secretary during the Swine Flu outbreak of 1976. Mathews is an alum of The […]

UA Faculty and Students Present at University of Montevallo’s Civic Institute

August 21, 2019

Last week our faculty and students participated in the annual David Mathews Center for Civic Life‘s Civic Institute in Montevallo. The panel, organized by Dr. John Giggie and titled “Geographical Imaginations: The Role of Recuperative Storytelling in Southern History and Memory,” explored the transformative potential in little-known, marginalized, and difficult pasts. Panel participants included two UA History majors: Margaret Lawson, who discussed her work on “History of Us,” a course that trains Central High School students to become producers of history as they […]

History Students Excel at URSCA

April 20, 2019

The College of Arts and Sciences held its 16th annual A&S Summit for Undergraduate Research, Scholarship, and Creative Activity (URSCA). Five of our students submitted research projects in History, and an additional two of our students worked in the related field of Classics. In the Humanities and Fine Arts Oral Presentations session, Molly Buffington, triple major in History, German, and Latin, presented A War of Words: The Lutheran-Calvinist Debate on Acts 3:21 and the Eucharist. Her work, a project she […]

History Students Participate in and Win at URCA Conference

April 20, 2019

Several history majors recently participated in the Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (URCA) Conference on campus. Emily Adams presented “Ethical Espionage: The Role of Covert Operations in a Democratic Government,” a project she has completed with Dr. Caroline McClure in the Geography Department. This research explores whether ethically-ambiguous covert action operations have a place within the foreign policy of a democratic government by analyzing the United States’ covert operations in Cuba during the Cold War. By combining research in political […]

History Undergraduates Score Outstanding Research Award

April 20, 2019

Two of our History majors – Molly Buffington and Margaret Lawson – recently received the prestigious Randall Outstanding Undergraduate Research Award, which recognizes undergraduate students who are involved in innovative research around campus. Margaret was recognized for her project “History of Us: Empowering High School Students to Confront the Legacy of Lynching.” Under the guidance of Dr. John Giggie, she worked to integrate new research on lynching in the American South into high school history curriculum. Molly Buffington was also […]

Summersell Center to Partner With Central High School to Teach About Lynching History

April 17, 2019

Dr. John Giggie and the Summersell Center for the Study of the South were recently recognized for their efforts to map the history of lynching victims in Alabama and develop a program for teaching about racial violence and southern history at the secondary education level. The Council on Community-Based Partnerships at The University of Alabama awarded Dr. Giggie a grant to expand the Center’s partnership with Central High School in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Specifically, the Community Engagement Graduate Fellowship covers the […]

Department Hosts Friends & Alumni at SHA-Birmingham

December 3, 2018

The Department of History was happy to host a Department Friends & Alumni Meet-Up for all attendees at the 2019 Southern Historical Association Conference in Birmingham this November. Current professors and graduate students were able to mingle with alumni, former and emeritus faculty, and other friends of the department. The event was sponsored by the the Summersell Chair of Southern History Endowment Fund. The Summersell Center for the Study of the South also sponsored membership and housing for four undergraduate students – Margaret […]

Summersell Center Sponsors Undergraduate Attendance at SHA Conference

November 29, 2018

The Summersell Center and Director Dr. John Giggie sponsored the attendance of four undergraduate students – Margaret Lawson, Isabella Garrison, Emma Pepperman, and Morgan Alexander (not pictured) – at the Southern Historical Association’s 2018 Conference in Birmingham, Alabama this past month. The SHA is a major conference on historical research into the American South. The students, who are all planning on pursuing graduate study after graduation, were able to meet and network with graduate students, historians, editors, and The University of Alabama alumni. […]