HIST UN3518

I learned about the thinly hidden history of Columbia's involvement with pretty much every evil practice in the United States and abroad.

I learned a lot about Columbia's history, the history of slavery in the North, and the different ways that universities are tied to the slave trade. I also developed strong research and writing skills.

This course was an amazing engagement with the history of the University we all attend. Even as a student who is not a student of history, I found myself ready and able to engage with the course material with the guidance of the professor. I was able to engage in new forms of research, namely engaging with the Rare Books and Manuscripts Library, as well as other archival materials. I learned how to both examine and make use of historical documents in a new way, and learned a great deal about the history of the connection between Columbia and slavery and settler colonialism. These histories are veiled from us in both the advertising of the university and also in the fact that this subject remains largely unstudied and unshared. I found this class to be critical to my education at the university in understanding my role in institutions of oppression.

This was one of the best classes I've taken at Columbia. I had never before been to the RBML and to spend extended time there was really formative for me. I feel like my research skills got stronger and my interest in doing research grew a lot. I think this class does a lot of important work and it's important to know about Columbia's history

SOOO much, I wouldn't even know where to start. Better ways of thinking about settler colonialism, understanding my place within an elite institution, major shortcomings of private universities in the US and their disappointing acknowledgements of their histories, about the Opium Trade with China in the 1800s, how little initiative Columbia shows to actually engage with the material and research that we are exposing. This is undergrad research!! That is soooo cool and such a privilege and to know that the university's response is so underwhelming is quite disappointing. But this class must live on forever! The best class I've taken at Columbia.

I learned how to research archival material and write a research paper based on archival (and online) research.

I learned how to do primary research in this class. I also learned how to manage a decently heavy reading load and bring insights from the reading into class.

I learned about the history of Columbia and other elite universities' connection to slavery and how universities are trying to take responsibility for these connections

This class was both incredibly interesting, engaging, and enjoyable. I learned a great deal from the class itself and from the sharing of our work between the class.

both professors are excellent- they are passionate and engaging speakers; they made class discussions lively and energetic; they valued student perspectives; they pointed us to the direction of secondary sources; they both know so much about Columbia's ties to slavery; they also provided such detailed feedback on our written assignments. I really got so much out of this class- one thing that might be nice is more opportunities for peer review- I actually really enjoyed that one class session where we go to respond to other students' work- so maybe adding in more opportunities for peer review would great- but this class is very important- I think more CU students should take it- being in the RBML was humbling because I saw just how many resources we have for those who want to do this kind of work 1 Columbia University: Arts & Sciences Fall 2022 Course: HISTUN3518_001_2022_3-COLUMBIAUNI&SLAVERY : HISTUN3518_001_2022_3 - COLUMBIA UNI & SLAVERY Instructor: Stephanie McCurry