Stories

Professor Lou Martin’s Oral History and Coalfield Communities course at Chatham University partnered with the Center for Coalfield Justice and the West Virginia Regional History Center. Students interviewed coal industry workers, preserved their stories, and reflected on media portrayals, learning how oral history and empathetic listening can bridge divides and foster understanding.

Dr. Elisaveta Petkova’s Housing and Health course at Drew University connected public health with community-engaged learning. Partnering with local nonprofits, students conducted interviews, analyzed housing data, and created outreach materials while exploring links between housing, health, and justice. The course fostered civic engagement, professional skills, and socially responsible leadership.

Professor Dan Trudeau’s Qualitative Research Methods class at Macalester College partnered with East Side Freedom Library to create a public StoryMap digital walking tour. Through neighborhood visits and collaboration with local stakeholders, students deepened their engagement with community history, reciprocity, and solidarity—transforming how they viewed group work and civic partnerships.

Professor Michelle Chase’s Modern Latin America course at Pace University partnered with NACLA to give students hands-on archival research experience. Students digitized historic photographs, created photo essays, and connected Cold War history to contemporary issues of migration and U.S. foreign policy, with their work later featured on NACLA’s website and podcast.