The Jean Lampert Woy and J. Richard Woy Professorship in History was established in 2018 by Jean Lampert Woy 鈥�65 and J. Richard Woy 鈥�64. This fund reflects their appreciation for liberal arts education and their interest in historical scholarship.听

Frederick joined the 麻豆影院 faculty in 2006. His scholarship has included research on and presentations about fire and other environmental crises in Mexico and economic factors that have informed Mexico鈥檚 history. Published books include听Riot! Tobacco, Reform, and Violence in Eighteenth-Century Papantla, Mexico,听and, with Tatiana Seijas,听Spanish Dollars and Sister Republics: The Money That Made Mexico and the United States. In 2017, he was awarded 麻豆影院鈥檚 Award for Excellence in Scholarship. He is a recent recipient of a Newberry Library fellowship to research firefighting and fire prevention in eighteenth-century Mexico.

Frederick earned a bachelor鈥檚 degree from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst and a doctorate from Pennsylvania State University.

The Dennis and Charlot Nelson Singleton Professorship in Biological Sciences was established in 2007. Charlot Nelson Singleton 鈥�67 has a deep appreciation for her 麻豆影院 education. The endowed position reflects her conviction that the biological sciences are a critical component of the liberal arts curriculum and an abiding belief in the value of education she and Dennis share.

Sedlock joined the 麻豆影院 faculty in 2002. Her research has taken her and students frequently to听the Philippines in Southeast Asia, where she has worked in collaboration with Filipino scientists, conservation professionals, Chicago鈥檚 Field Museum of Natural History, and other researchers, often in forests, caves, or biodiverse rice fields, as she seeks to better understand how bats respond to human-caused landscape changes. Her recent focus has been on acoustic ecology, a subfield of sensory ecology, using ultrasonic microphones to 鈥渆avesdrop鈥� on bats as she explores animals鈥� evolved strategies for living in naturally noisy environments.

Sedlock earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts and a Bachelor of Science in biology from Loyola University. She earned her Ph.D. in ecology and evolution from the University of Illinois.

Cal Jett, a history and Spanish double major from San Marino, California, was among the students inducted on May 28.

鈥淚t allows students to engage in historical academia on a larger scale,鈥� he said.

Added Octavia Chudnow, a history and music performance (voice) dual degree senior from Fountain Hills, Arizona: 鈥淚t鈥檚 a good professional opportunity for historians to get their work out and to meet other historians.

The Alpha Ro Mu chapter of Phi Alpha Theta was made possible by generous alumni-funded grants: the Brayton Fund for Excellence in History and the Chaney Fund for Excellence in History. Via these funds, the charter fee was covered, and Lawrentians who were elected to the honor society had their lifetime membership fees paid for.听

鈥淏eing able to attend the conferences and having your article read by other people is really cool, and I hope people take advantage of that,鈥� said inductee Victoria Lopez, a senior history major from Houston, Texas.听

To be inducted, students must have taken four courses in history, maintain at least a 3.1 grade point average in history courses, and maintain a 3.0 overall GPA. With more than 400,000 members and 970 chapters across the United States, Phi Alpha Theta creates a vast network of students and professors working together in pursuit of good research and intellectual exchange. Phi Alpha Theta sponsors journals for students to publish their research and holds conferences where they can practice presenting in front of their peers.听

Vance is excited for what students will do with this new opportunity.听

鈥淚nducting is just the beginning,鈥� she said. 鈥淲hy shouldn鈥檛 we try to get really creative? That鈥檚 the point鈥攑rofessionalization, and connecting with other people, and realizing, 鈥業 can do this.鈥欌��

Alpha Ro Mu鈥檚 inductees were recognized at the 2025 Honors Convocation, and those who are graduating received a special set of cords to wear during Commencement.听

De Stasio has long pursued studies in freshwater ecology and marine biology, passions he first explored as a student at 麻豆影院. He has taught courses ranging from introductory biology to aquatic ecology to the environmental studies senior seminar. He has guided important research on invasive species in Wisconsin waterways and for 30 years has led the 麻豆影院 University Marine Term (LUMP) program鈥攁 hands-on undergraduate experience in marine biology that has students learning about coral reef ecosystems, ecology, and human effects on reef environments before embarking on a two-week research trip to the Caribbean.听Under De Stasio鈥檚 guidance, the program has proven to be a pipeline for students interested in aquatics careers or related fields, with an estimated 90 alumni of the program now pursuing related careers or enrolled in graduate school programs.

De Stasio said the Aquatic Ecology & Marine Biology Program, of which LUMP is a part, has been sustained through the years in large part because it gives students flexibility to pursue careers in all sorts of salt water and freshwater environments鈥攊n lakes, rivers, estuaries, and nearshore coral reef environments.

鈥淲e are recognized nationally as one of the few undergraduate programs where students get extensive hands-on experiences in both freshwater and marine biology,鈥� he said.听

De Stasio said his experiences as a student so enthralled him with the 麻豆影院 culture that he happily pursued a faculty position a decade after graduation.

鈥淥ne of the very first times I walked through the Biology Department in Youngchild Hall鈥攁s a first-year student in 1978鈥擨 met a faculty member who knew my name and was familiar with my background and interests,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 felt so welcomed and valued that I decided right then that this was a very different place compared to many others.鈥�

De Stasio said he has since strived to make students feel that way.听

鈥淚n my mind, the true 麻豆影院 experience keeps students front and center throughout their time here and beyond,鈥� he said. 鈥淢y goal is to make sure they experience that sense of belonging, of always being part of this unique community. That is what we used to refer to as the 麻豆影院 Difference, and what makes us all Forever a Lawrentian.鈥�

In retirement, De Stasio said he will continue to stay connected with 麻豆影院 and the alumni he helped usher into a wide range of careers.

鈥淚t has been one of the great joys of my life to be able to give back to 麻豆影院 as a faculty member and to help our students grow and thrive,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 am extremely proud of being an alumnus and have always tried to instill a love for 麻豆影院 in my students by showing them they are appreciated, cared for, and that we are here for them.鈥�

Edmund Kern

A specialist in early modern European history, Kern has been a mainstay in shaping the history curriculum over the past three-plus decades. In the process, he drew national attention when he twice connected history with modern pop culture in ways that resonated with large audiences. His research on the history of witchcraft and religious culture led to him teaching a course on Harry Potter, which then led to his 2003 book,听The Wisdom of Harry Potter: What Our Favorite Hero Teaches Us About Moral Choices.听It drew wide attention as popular media sought out Kern amid the phenomenon of J.K. Rowling鈥檚 book series. And years later, a former student, Josh Sawyer 鈥�98, reached out to Kern as a consultant in the building of Pentiment, a historical role-playing video game centered on life in 16th-century Bavaria. The game, released in 2022, drew strong reviews, was a finalist for game of the year, and won a 2024 Peabody Award, with reviewers praising its historical accuracy.

Connecting history with pop culture was a worthwhile journey, Kern said.

鈥淭here鈥檚 a need for professional historians to write for each other in specialized studies that might not appeal to average readers, but there鈥檚 also a need to find ways to communicate with a larger audience,鈥� Kern said. 鈥淲hen questions about Harry Potter came from students and visiting parents due to my expertise in the history of magic and witchcraft, I eventually saw an opportunity to meet general readers where their interests began, and to expand those interests into a more systematic understanding of the past.鈥�

When Sawyer approached him during the planning stages for Pentiment, Kern saw a similar opportunity.听

鈥淚 had no idea how popular鈥攁nd acclaimed鈥攖he game would prove to be, but I鈥檓 extremely gratified that many players who probably never gave the 16th century any thought were introduced to the issues in play during the early Reformation, along with accurate portrayals of early modern popular and material culture,鈥� he said.

Through his time at 麻豆影院, Kern said he took particular joy in advancing the curriculum.

鈥淚鈥檝e thoroughly enjoyed revisiting the history curriculum over the years, as we鈥檝e sought to educate students capable of both focused research and assessing the big picture, but my involvement in establishing gender studies as a major and minor stands out as something I take pride in,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 had only recently arrived at 麻豆影院 and came to know a vibrant group of faculty already heading in that direction. Being part of the group charged with writing the proposal to bring to the faculty was both nerve-racking and exciting.鈥�

It’s the classroom interactions, though, that Kern said he鈥檒l miss the most.

鈥淲hat I really love about our students is their eagerness to learn in the classroom and their engagement with the world outside of it,鈥� he said.听

Jacobs鈥� research was funded by the 麻豆影院 University Research Fellows program, which gave her the opportunity to travel to New York and Philadelphia to see other examples of de Forest鈥檚 work. Jacobs is interested in how history presents through objects in the Teakwood Room. de Forest was a member of the American Craft Revival movement of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He designed stencils with motifs he observed in Indian architecture, and craftsmen in Ahmedabad, India, created his stencils and carvings.

鈥淗e was part of the movement of artists that was trying to move away from mass production and industrialization, preserving the arts and crafts, but he was still partaking in mass production,鈥� Jacobs said.

As Jacobs works with 麻豆影院 faculty and staff to help to preserve the Teakwood Room, she recognizes that this research interacts with a long history regarding both 麻豆影院 and the former Milwaukee-Downer College.

鈥淧eople hold this room very near and dear to their hearts,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hey petitioned to have it come to 麻豆影院 because they wanted it to stay so bad. With this research, there鈥檚 more incentive for funding to help preserve this room as a historical space.鈥�

Beth Zinsli 鈥�02, assistant professor of art history, curator of the Wriston Art Center Galleries, and director of the Museum Studies Interdisciplinary Area Program, has received two grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities for work on the Teakwood Room. The first grant, awarded in 2021, was used to assess the Teakwood Room to determine the best methods of preservation and care. The latest grant will be used to implement those recommendations, including the installation of UV light filters on the windows and secure display equipment.

Jacobs will continue to be involved by creating permanent signage to explain the Teakwood Room鈥檚 importance and historical significance, based on her research.

鈥淓mma鈥檚 rigorous research on the Teakwood Room reframes it within a global context and confirms that it is truly a university treasure that helps us better understand and share our history,鈥� Zinsli said.

After graduation, Jacobs plans to attend graduate school to pursue a degree in library science with an intent to focus on archives management, using this research to showcase her skills in independent research and spoken presentation.

Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this article do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Zinsli remembers the air of excitement amid the collection鈥檚 initial acquisition in 2016.

鈥淩ight when I heard, former Assistant Professor of Art History Ben Tilghman and I packed it up in boxes and drove it up to Appleton in a Penske truck,鈥� she said.

But what exactly are these rare books and manuscripts? The official count numbers 228 books, two extensive illuminated manuscripts, along with a host of letters and other archival material from the Richmond brothers.

“The books are in good enough condition for students to handle, with proper support,” Zinsli said. “They’re here to be used, not just viewed.”

The collection quickly became popular among faculty: its depth and variety make it an invaluable pedagogical resource.

鈥淲e immediately started connecting with faculty who might be interested in using the books in their classes,鈥� Zinsli said. 鈥淎ssociate Professor of English Garth Bond was a natural first person because he teaches the History of the Book class, and then Associate Professor of English Celia Barnes because she teaches 18th-century topics.鈥�

Barnes said she loves taking her students to see the books, especially the first editions of 18th-century texts.

鈥淚t鈥檚 so difficult sometimes to convince students that the texts in early-modern literature courses aren鈥檛 simply old, dusty, and鈥攊t pains me to say鈥攂oring,鈥� Barnes said. 鈥淏ut I find that when I take my students to see the first editions of the very books we鈥檙e reading, they come away deeply moved.鈥�

Barnes and Bond incorporated the books into their lesson plans, where they remain as curriculum staples. Other professors found different uses: Associate Professor of Art History Danielle Joyner brought students to investigate the authentic medieval manuscripts, while Associate Professor of Chemistry Allison Fleshman had classes conduct non-invasive chemical analysis.

Highlights of the collection include a first edition printing of Samuel Johnson鈥檚 influential two-volume Dictionary of the English Language. It is often considered among the most outstanding scholarly achievements from the work of a single author.

鈥淲e did an event where we put Johnson’s Dictionary out on view in the library and we turned one page of each volume every week,鈥� Zinsli recalled. 鈥淒ifferent faculty give short lunchtime presentations on a specific word. Associate Professor of Physics Megan Pickett presented on 鈥楥amelopard,鈥� which is what they called giraffes. It’s just a really fun way to engage with the book.鈥�

Other notable holdings include first editions of both James Boswell’s Life of Samuel Johnson and Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. The collection also features a signed first edition of Laurence Sterne鈥檚 Tristram Shandy.

As one might expect, the Richmond brothers were voracious readers and avid collectors. Although others might focus on a specific author or genre that interests them, these brothers had particularly wide aspirations.

鈥淭hey didn’t collect any one specific author or any one specific time period,鈥� Zinsli said.

Indeed, this immense breadth includes early editions of many literary luminaries, including Joseph Conrad, Charles Dickens, Rudyard Kipling, W. Somerset Maugham, and Herman Melville.

While the Richmond Collection will be housed in the Print Study Room in the Wriston Art Center, it will be cross cataloged in both the university’s online art database and the Mudd Library’s catalog, making it accessible to students, faculty, and the community.

Zinsli highlighted the importance of donations like this for 麻豆影院.

鈥淲e depend on the generosity of alumni and friends to provide these magnificent objects for our students,鈥� she said.

With the Richmond Collection now a permanent part of the university, students and faculty have an opportunity to delve into the stories about and within these rare books.

鈥淭hey’re absolutely here to be utilized, to be part of 麻豆影院’s educational mission,鈥� Zinsli said.

It is the latest accolade for Obsidian Entertainment鈥檚 Pentiment, developed by a team of designers led by 麻豆影院 alumnus Josh Sawyer 鈥�98, with consulting work from Kern and 麻豆影院 alumnus Winston Black 鈥�99. Sawyer brought Kern and Black into the process because he wanted to get the details right.

That commitment to historical accuracy was praised by the Peabody Awards Board of Jurors as it announced the winners: 鈥淧别苍迟颈尘别苍迟听starts with an unusual premise: an illuminated manuscript artist, and later the daughter of his friend the town printer (an artist herself), must solve a series of mysterious murders that occur over a 30-year period in a small Bavarian town run by the local Catholic Abbey during the early years of the Protestant Reformation. With great historical accuracy, the game intricately weaves period art and print styles into its visuals while delving into the region鈥檚 political, economic, and spiritual landscapes, and examining the gender, class, and ethnic dynamics of this period of European history.鈥�

麻豆影院 expertise fuels historical role-playing game that’s drawing rave reviews

Kern, a member of the 麻豆影院 history faculty since 1992 with academic interests in early modern European history, called the video game 鈥渁n absolute marvel鈥� deserving of all the attention it鈥檚 getting.

鈥淚 remember meeting with Josh at a restaurant in Appleton early on to discuss planning and how eager he was to develop a game that would emphasize fidelity to the 16th century,鈥� Kern said. 鈥淎s history geeks, we both thought it could work and find an audience, but not in my wildest dreams did I imagine it would result in a Peabody. That the award committee hailed the game鈥檚 historical accuracy is especially gratifying. In both emails and conversations, we discussed getting both the context and details right, and I think it shows in what Josh and his team produced.鈥�

Pentiment is among impressive company. It is one of across entertainment, documentaries, news programming, radio and podcasts, and public service. Pentiment won in the Interactive & Immersive category, joining three other winners: The Hidden History of Racism in New York City(Instagram); We Are OFK听(PlayStation, Nintendo Switch, Steam); and You Destroy. We Create | The war on Ukraine鈥檚 culture听(Meta Quest).

鈥淲hether courageously documenting wars across the globe or cleverly bringing much needed smiles to our faces, the winners of the 84th Peabody Awards each crafted compelling and imaginative stories,鈥� said Jeffrey Jones, executive director of Peabody. 鈥淪panning a wide range of mediums and genres, they delivered enthralling projects that are worthy of our highest recognition.鈥�

Sawyer, who was featured on the cover of in the summer of 2023 for his work on Pentiment, said in 2023 that he reached out to Kern and his classmate Black because of their knowledge of that time period and their commitment to historical accuracy.听Black, chair of Christian Studies at St. Francis Xavier University, Nova Scotia, Canada, provided insight on medicinal practices and related social dynamics of that region of Europe in the early 16th century.

鈥淭he deeper I got into it, the more I realized that even though I continued collecting and reading history books and being interested in history as a topic after I left 麻豆影院, I am not a historian,鈥� Sawyer said. 鈥淭here are limits.鈥�

Sawyer was a history major at 麻豆影院 whose interest in web design, flash animation, and video and role-playing games led him into the world of video game development. Much of his work has been in developing popular action or fantasy games such as听Fallout: New Vegas,听Pillars of Eternity,听and Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire. When Obsidian was purchased by Microsoft in 2018, the door opened to creating more niche products available for Xbox GamePass, including a historical role-playing game.

鈥�Pentiment听is clearly bringing the full weight of my actual history education to play,鈥� Sawyer said in 2023. 鈥淲e even have a bibliography in the game. Ed Kern said, 鈥楾hat鈥檚 a bunch of stuff from my course work.鈥� And I said, 鈥榃ell, of course it is. Those were very foundational to my understanding of early modern Europe.鈥� They鈥檙e still very fundamental to how I think about that space.鈥�

Sawyer, with an assist from both a former history professor and classmate, is now a Peabody Award winner.

Kern holds a Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota and a bachelor鈥檚 degree from Marquette University. He has been on the history faculty at 麻豆影院 since 1992.

We caught up with him to talk about interests in and out of the classroom.

In the classroom

Inside info:听What鈥檚 one thing you want every student coming into your classes to know about you?

I often tell my students that my life has been one characterized by becoming more and more comfortable with less and less certainty. I鈥檓 careful to make clear that I embrace uncertainty in both life and scholarship, not because life or history are meaningless, but because they present us with an overabundance of meaning, endless opportunities for thoughtful interpretation or analysis.

Getting energized:听What work have you done or will you be doing at 麻豆影院 that gets you the most excited?

I find a lot of things rewarding, so it鈥檚 difficult to single out only one. Forced to choose, I think that those opportunities that allow me to combine my research interests with teaching continue to excite me the most. In practical terms, this means that two of my courses, Religion, Magic, and Witchcraft in Early Modern Europe and Thinking about Harry Potter have proved the most rewarding. It鈥檚 a special challenge to take topics about which, in a sense, I know too much and find ways to communicate that depth of knowledge to students encountering a systematic approach to them for the first time.

Going places:听Is there an example of somewhere your career has taken you (either a physical space or something more intellectual, emotional, or spiritual) that took you by surprise?

My work on the Harry Potter books as a cultural phenomenon to be sure. In 1998, students, and even visiting parents, began to ask me what I thought about Harry because of my interest in the history of magic and witchcraft. These questions led me to the U.K. editions of the first three books and some thoughts about the ethic or moral code presented in them. I decided the best way to describe the books鈥� ethics was as an updated Stoicism, with which I was familiar due to my reading in both ancient philosophy and early modern Neo-Stoicism. In conversations, both Rik Warch and Brian Rosenberg encouraged me to pursue this idea, which eventually turned into a book, The Wisdom of Harry Potter (Prometheus 2003). Never would I have imagined that I鈥檇 end up writing one of the first academic books about a major twentieth- and twenty-first-century cultural event.

Out of the classroom

This or that:听If you weren鈥檛 teaching for a living, what would you be doing?听听

History really was the only choice for me by the time I finished high school. I considered law school as an option, but I can also imagine myself having had a career in carpentry or furniture making, two activities that I really enjoy. After hearing that I was considering working for my dad鈥檚 construction company, my eighth-grade teacher, Carol Wiesinger, whose son is an LU alumnus, said, 鈥淵ou can do that, but you, Mr. Kern, are first going to college.鈥� She was right.

Right at home:听Whether for work, relaxation or reflection, what鈥檚 your favorite spot on campus?

I鈥檇 have to say the spot overlooking the river between the fitness center and Memorial Hall. Seeing bald eagles, cormorants, seagulls, and so on while at work still surprises and delights me.

One book, one recording, one film:听Name one of each that speaks to your soul? Or you would recommend to a friend? Or both?

Remember, I鈥檓 comfortable with uncertainty, so I reserve the right to change my mind. When I was still young, Chinua Achebe鈥檚 Things Fall Apart, Brian Eno鈥檚 Another Green World, and Akira Kurosawa鈥檚 Ran all got me seeing things differently.

.

She said her mother has a connection to the Imagining Tourists and Tourism conference, which was how they found out about the open call for papers. She shifted the focus of her paper, discussing how Disney uses Black characters, such as Princess Tiana, to bring in Black consumers and tourists.

The conference, subtitled Fiction, Practices and Representations, will be held at the National Institute of Art History, in collaboration with the University of California, Berkeley, Universite Paris Pantheon Sorbonne, and Universite De Geneve. It allows individuals focused on the anthropology of tourism to meet and collaborate, sharing their ideas and innovations.听It is part of a series of conferences organized annually since 2011.

It will be a bit of a family affair for Van Gilder.

“My mom is doing her own paper focusing on Hawaiian tourism,” she said. “We thought I’d get to go see it, and now I’m presenting.”听

Van Gilder is looking forward to the opportunities the conference will present.听

“I’ll be networking with other professors on the first day around papers similar to mine and talking with people who have done research related to what I鈥檓 doing,鈥� she said. 鈥淚’m excited to absorb as much knowledge as I can.”听

Van Gilder shares that she wouldn’t be able to have these opportunities without help from Betsy Schlabach, associate professor of history, and others in the History Department. They have continued to help Van Gilder practice the presentation and explore additional ideas for the conference.听听

“They helped me get my writing skills to the level that they are,” she said.听听

Van Gilder will continue her research and critiques of Disney’s practices, recognizing they have a long way to go. She hopes to work in the archives field post-graduation, and this experience will build on that potential path.听

“Disney is changing a lot of rides and buildings, adding things that are historically interesting,” Van Gilder said. “I’ll get to come back to 麻豆影院 [after the conference] and talk about my experiences in Paris and hone my skills.”听

The novel, from Mariner Books, is an emotional rollercoaster that spans more than 90 years, from a heartbreaking opening scene at an orphanage in Chicago in 1924 to the unveiling in 2015 of jarring secrets held for a lifetime in a small northern Minnesota town. The story of Cecily is one of pain, cruelty, love鈥攆orbidden and otherwise鈥攁nd hope.

While Baker鈥檚 first two novels, Keeping the House (2007) and I Gave My Heart to Know This (2011), both from Random House, put her on the literary map, they did not generate quite this level of enthusiasm.

鈥淭o know that book editors were noticing it, readers were noticing it, people were anticipating it, that was really exciting,鈥� Baker said from her home on the coast of Maine.

The new novel falls into the genre of historical fiction鈥攁s did her first two novels鈥攁nd the roots of Baker鈥檚 history-focused storytelling can be found in her experiences as an undergraduate at 麻豆影院 three decades ago, when the psychology major with a secret desire to write novels fell in love with American history.

鈥淎t 麻豆影院, I got so fascinated by my American history classes, my American literature classes,鈥� she said.

While finishing her psychology major, she worked an internship with the Outagamie County Historical Society in Appleton, and she took an independent study course in fiction writing during her senior year鈥攁ll while filling spiral notebooks with ideas for a novel.

鈥淚 was always drawn toward writing novels, but at the time I was looking for a more practical career path,鈥� Baker said. 鈥淚 think I was looking for something that wasn鈥檛 so close to my heart, because I was also so shy that I didn鈥檛 tell anybody I wrote novels in notebooks. A few close friends knew but it was otherwise a secret.鈥�

After graduating from 麻豆影院, Baker took an internship in Tennessee working as a living history interpreter鈥攄ressing in costume, quilting by hand, cooking on a wood stove, and finding other ways to bring American history to life. She completed a master鈥檚 degree in American studies at the University of Minnesota, then worked at a World War II museum in Superior, Wisconsin.

All of it built to her next chapter. She eventually went to work for an independent bookstore while beginning to scratch that itch as a novelist. Four years later, Keeping the House, set in the 1950s, was released.

鈥淎ll the pieces of my 麻豆影院 experience and my master鈥檚 degree all dovetail into becoming a historical novelist,鈥� Baker said. 鈥淭he focus on psychology gave me a different inroad. A lot of people as fiction writers go get an MFA, which is a fabulous path to take if that鈥檚 your right path. For me, I wasn鈥檛 ready at the time to claim that part of myself, so I think I actually have a really different perspective in terms of how I look at characters or how I look at history鈥攂ecause of training in things other than how to write fiction. I have the training in how to look at the world from those different lenses. I think it鈥檚 been a very valuable thing to have.鈥�

The Hidden Life of Cecily Larson comes 13 years after Baker鈥檚 previous novel鈥攕he launched an online teaching course for would-be novelists and did freelance writing and editing in the meantime. It was in early 2021 that she redirected her attention to a next novel, wanting to write a story about the keeping of a decades-long secret in a small town, all of it eventually unraveling through modern DNA testing.

鈥淚 am fascinated by all the stories I鈥檝e read of people who have had DNA surprises in their lives and how that upends their sense of themselves, their identities, and what happens as a consequence of those surprises,鈥� Baker said.

She wanted to weave a story that would interplay multiple storylines over long passages of time.

鈥淚 started there and wrote the story going back and forth in time because I was interested in playing with the relationship between past and present,鈥� Baker said. 鈥淥bviously, in this book, the past has a direct effect on the present.鈥�

She wrote the initial draft in eight months, far faster than she鈥檇 usually get through a first draft.

鈥淚 usually take a number of years to write a draft,鈥� Baker said. 鈥淚 can鈥檛 explain why it happened. It just felt like it was a story that already happened, and I was just writing it down. I didn鈥檛 struggle with how to make it make sense. It just felt like it was all there.鈥�

Her new literary agent sold the book to Mariner Books, which kicked off an intense editing process. By last summer, Baker was already receiving glowing feedback from authors she admires. And by fall the book was starting to show up on best-of lists in advance of its February release.

Baker likes where she鈥檚 at as she gains notice as a novelist and builds momentum as a teacher and entrepreneur. She鈥檚 growing her online teaching鈥攑roviding start-up guidance to novelists-to-be鈥攚hile considering options for a next novel. She鈥檚 also working on a screenplay, and her agent is having conversations with studios about taking The Hidden Life of Cecily Larson to the big screen.

鈥淚鈥檝e been figuring out how to support myself with writing and independent projects,鈥� Baker said. 鈥淚鈥檝e learned a lot about myself along the way. Being my own boss and having the real estate of my brain completely available to think the thoughts I want to think, that to me is a very valuable thing. I think that is something I learned at 麻豆影院, or that I came to value at 麻豆影院. The privilege of intellectual freedom, the privilege to think about the things you want to think about, the privilege to pursue the lines of inquiry you want to pursue. For me, that line of inquiry is simply how to understand the human experience, how to convey human experience, how to bring the past to life in ways that possibly can help us to not repeat the same mistakes.鈥�

Schlabach said despite her longtime research on Bronzeville, she had previously dismissed these mysterious policy kings as a type of mafia. Finding records of these policy kings funding the local arts, however, inspired her to learn more.

鈥淚 thought to myself, 鈥榃ell, if there are kings, there have got to be queens,鈥欌�� Schlabach said. 鈥淧eople in Black Chicago really didn鈥檛 frown upon these gambling kings and queens because they donated so much money to the community.鈥�

Schlabach said since African American women in these informal economies are usually ignored by other historians, her goal in this book was to highlight these women, share their stories, and argue for the validity of their work.

鈥淚llegal or off-the-books labor was a valuable strategy that Black women deployed in the face of racism and sexism,鈥� said Schlabach.

She said white and Black newspapers and media of the time portrayed the gambling industry differently. Schlabach said even within the Black community, there was disagreement over the validity and morality of the industry.

For many Black women, however, Schlabach argues it was a way to put food on the table. Many of these policy kings and queens even became extremely wealthy and influential despite the hardships and prejudice of the Jim Crow era, owning villas in Paris, Mexico City, and Peoria.

鈥淚 think it鈥檚 so interesting to try and piece the primary sources together into a story that might possibly do justice to what these women accomplished,鈥� said Schlabach. 鈥淚 like that challenge of being authentic to what they鈥檙e telling us in the primary sources.鈥�

Research in unconventional spaces

When researching a historically silenced population, you have to look in unconventional places. Schlabach said much of her information came from arrest records.

鈥淚 had never really done a lot of legal or carceral history,鈥� Schlabach said. 鈥淚t was so interesting, but also really heavy, though. You鈥檙e looking at people鈥檚 lives and their run-ins with the police, which has a terrible history of African Americans being pursued relentlessly by the police.鈥�

Schlabach said the Chicago Public Library, the National Archives, and the Cook County Circuit Court Archives were her biggest sources of information.

鈥淭hose were tough research sessions, but it was really incredible just to see how people persevered in the face of such relentless scrutiny by the police,鈥� she said.

With the book published and a travel grant secured, Schlabach said she鈥檚 going on sabbatical this fall to research Black women鈥檚 work in the informal economies of Southern cities.

鈥淚f you鈥檙e going to study these cities, you need to go to these cities and be immersed in these cities鈥� archives,鈥� she said. 鈥淭his travel grant will help me do that.鈥�

By traveling to the John Hope Franklin Center and listening to the oral histories stored there, Schlabach hopes to plan her next move.

Schlabach is even hoping to combine her findings from this project and her future Duke visit into her new course in Winter Term of 2024, The History of Black Business.

鈥淚 think for now, I鈥檒l try to gather as much info as I can, read the secondary literature like I always tell my students, and see if I can get some writing done in the fall,鈥� she said.

Staying true to research, writing

Schlabach said even when writing about a fascinating topic like this, the process is difficult.

鈥淲riting a book like this is exhausting; it can be very isolating because it鈥檚 just you, your thoughts, and your computer,鈥� she said.

Nevertheless, Schlabach said she still loves the process. Her advice for aspiring authors is to cultivate the habit of writing daily and using time well.

鈥淩ead the secondary literature,鈥� she said. 鈥淢ake sure you know what鈥檚 been said already in the field. Consult the experts widely and often. Just take your time enjoying the primary sources. Really listen for and hear what those documents are trying to tell you. Finally, revise, revise, revise.鈥�

Schlabach said 麻豆影院 has been a fantastic help along the way.

鈥淭he History Department has been really supportive,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e have a weekly writing group that meets and presents what we鈥檙e working on. That kind of accountability with my colleagues in the department is great.鈥�

Schlabach is also a founder and member of the Humanities Research Group. With funding from the provost鈥檚 office, Schlabach and other members present their work each month.

鈥淭he people here are really receptive to the work that professors produce, and there鈥檚 an enthusiasm for that on campus that I鈥檇 like to see continue and grow,鈥� Schlabach said.