APSU’s Phi Alpha Theta students present work at regional history conference

CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. — Eleven APSU representatives, including both undergraduate and graduate students, as well as professors, attended the Tennessee Phi Alpha Theta (PAT) Regional Conference, held Saturday, April 1 on the campus of University of Tennessee at Martin.

Seventy-five students and professors from over 12 universities in across Tennessee, Alabama and Kentucky attended, with nine APSU students presenting their research and three University professors commenting on conference sessions.

Dr. Minoa Uffelman, professor of history and faculty advisor to Theta Delta, APSU’s PAT chapter, said the conference was a positive learning experience for her chapter’s students.

“This is the 10th Phi Alpha Theta Regional Conference I have taken students to, and it is one of my favorite events of the year,” Uffelman said. “It is exciting to see students present their own papers for the first time because there are hours of work that goes into their 20-minute presentation. The process began when they chose a topic, then research, write, revise, practice their presentations and finally present in a professional setting.

“The whole experience is extraordinarily gratifying and I am always proud of our students.”

The nine APSU who students presented their research topics during the conference included:

Sara Alexander, “Lenin’s Thoughts and Conduct in the Russian Civil War”
Jenny Brown, “Education in Early Medieval Irish Monasteries”
Katelynn DiStefano, “Germ Theory Acceptance in the Civil War: Transmission Control and Disinfectants attributing to the idea of Germ Theory”
Jennifer Holland, “Mind Games: German Military Intelligence on the Eastern Front during World War II”
Tia Joyce, “Bigger Bang for the Buck' or You Get What You Pay For? Evaluating the New Look”
Amanda Lawson, “Summer of Sacrifice: The Buddhist Crisis of 1963”
Brittany Orton, “The Quandary Surrounding Bawdy Women: Control of Prostitution during the Civil War”
John Schuler, “Why Did The German Small Unit Leader Of WWII Continue To Fight: And Sometimes Win?
Kristen Webster, “Guilty Until Proven Innocent: A Review of the African American Experience in the Tennessee Legal System during the Nineteenth Century

APSU graduate student Katelynn DiStefano has presented at previous PAT regional conferences, and she said the opportunity to present in front of experts and receive valuable feedback is important to her development as a historian.

“I adore going to the Phi Alpha Theta conferences because of the connections I make, the fun I have and the experience I gain,” APSU graduate student Kate DiStefano said. “Myself and the professor who was commenting on my panel are working together to groom my paper into a publishable work. These conferences give me an opportunity to present my research and to get critique before I make the big step into publication.”

For more information, contact APSU associate professor of history and PAT advisor, Dr. Minoa Uffelman at uffelmanm@apsu.edu.