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History

What is 'History? (HIST)'

History is the study of the past with special attention to the written record of the activities of human beings over time. Scholars who write about history are called historians. It is a field of research which uses a narrative to examine and analyse the sequence of events, and it often attempts to investigate objectively the patterns of cause and effect  that determine events. Historians debate the nature of history and the lessons history teaches. A famous quote by George Santayana has it that "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it."

Is it for you?

History Instruction at Metropolitan Community College should improve participant abilities in the following areas:

  • Outcome 1. Understanding people and societies
  • Outcome 2. Understanding change and how the society we live in came to be
  • Outcome 3. Valuing the importance of history in our own lives
  • Outcome 4. Testing our own moral sense, by comparing it against some of the real complexities individuals have faced in difficult historical settings.
  • Outcome 5. Forming a personal identity based on a rich past
  • Outcome 6. Developing habits of mind that are vital for responsible public behavior, whether as a national or community leader, an informed voter, a petitioner, or a simple observer.
  • Outcome 7. Assessing evidence
  • Outcome 8. Assessing conflicting interpretations
  • Outcome 9. Assessing past examples of change
  • Outcome 10. Evaluating how history is useful in the world of work and how it applies directly to many careers and can clearly help us in our working lives.

Our outcomes are based on the article “Why Study History" by Peter N. Stearns at the American Historical Association web site.

Jobs Expectations

  • Archivist-public and private sector
  • Educator
  • Museum Curator/Guide
  • Consultant for historic restoration contractors
  • Lobbyist
  • Research Assistant for publishing companies
  • Tourism Bureau Manager
  • National Park Assistant
  • Writer/Editor
  • Researcher for Historic Preservation Societies
  • Corporate Historian
  • Film Research Technical Advisor

Program Faculty

  • Stewart Brewer
  • Bonnie Fitzgerald - Program Coordinator
  • Amy Forss

Course Descriptions

  • HIST 1010 United States History to 1877
  • HIST 1020 United States History from 1865 to present
  • HIST 1050 Introduction to Black History
  • HIST 1060 The History of Black Women in America
  • HIST 1070 Traditional and Modern China
  • HIST 1080 Traditional and Modern Japan
  • HIST 1110 World Civilization from Prehistory to 1500
  • HIST 1120 World Civilization from 1500 to Present
  • HIST 2050 Modern Europe Since 1815
  • HIST 2200 Latin American History
  • HIST 2220 U.S. Global Military History

Credit classes and Registration

Sources for this information include The American Historical Association and Wikipedia.org.