Elayna Eastin and Sarah Land, two MA students from Missouri State University’s Department of History, recently presented their research at the regional Phi Alpha Theta (PAT) conference.
The conference was held March 14 at Arkansas State University in Jonesboro, Arkansas. Phi Alpha Theta is the national History Honor Society.
This year’s conference theme was “250 Years of US and the World.”
Papers highlight American role in world affairs
Eastin and Land selected topics that highlight America’s role in world affairs, especially in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. For both students, this was their first time to present at a professional history conference.
“As the faculty advisor for PAT, I was so proud of both students for the excellent presentations they delivered,” said Assistant Professor Chelsea Davis.
Eastin discussed her research on 19th-century Yokohama, Japan. In “Harbor Of Change: The Social And Cultural Whirlwind of 19th-Century Yokohama,” she shows how after 1859 the port city became an international trade center by developing a robust tourism industry.
Now in her first year of graduate studies at Missouri State, Eastin also works as an archivist at the State Historical Society of Missouri. Long term, she is also considering furthering her education at the doctorate level.
Meanwhile, Land presented a historiographical paper, “World War I and Wilson: America’s Place in Global History.” Her paper explored how scholarship on America’s influence during the post-World War I era has changed over the past 30 years.
Land, who will graduate this spring, hopes to one day pursue a doctorate in history.