I graduated in 2022 from UC’s College of Arts and Sciences with a major in History and a minor in Political Science. In the spring of 2022, I won the George B. Engberg Prize for the Best Senior Research Essay in Non-U.S. History for my research paper entitled “Property and Personhood: Parliament and the Levellers on the Franchise in the English Civil Wars.” I am a lover of history, philosophy, and theology. I’ve always been captured by big questions concerning why and how things are how they are. I’m the father of my almost two-year-old son, Philip, and I will marry my lovely fiancee, Audrey, in May. I love being a dad, and I really value the time I spend with my family. I enjoy cooking, engaging with my community and parish, reading, writing, and being outdoors. 

What are you up to these days?   

I am a substitute and special education aide at Milford High School. After graduating from UC, I received my alternative teaching license and began to scope out opportunities for teaching at the high school level. I’ve enjoyed my experience a lot, particularly with special needs kids. I work with all levels of disability (mild, moderate, intensive), and it’s been a wonderful experience getting to know them and helping with their development. 

What brought you to history at UC?  

Originally, I wanted to study psychology in my freshman year. Although I’d always loved history, I went into psychology because I thought psychological categories mapped onto the themes and ideas I wanted to explore, namely the historical development of politics and ideas. It didn’t take long for me to realize that studying psychology did not apply at all to intellectual history in the way I thought, so I dropped it and switched to history with the poli sci minor. Studying history satisfies my questions about why things are the way they are in ways other disciplines cannot do. Looking at documentary evidence and tracking how ideas morph and change tells me much more about the world than psychology or physics.

What did you focus on as a history student at UC?  

I was first drawn to American politics. Its’ practical effects on our culture and daily life were so apparent to me, and I wanted to explore the theoretical and historically contingent elements that spurred these effects: why do we have the political parties we have? What is conservatism? What is liberalism? Where do these political ideologies come from? I very quickly landed in early-modern Europe (about 1500-1800) to find these answers after being captivated by the sixteenth-century Spanish scholastics’ debates on the treatment of the American Indians (in a US History I class, thank you, Dr. Norman at UC Blue Ash!). 

Instead of taking my findings from the early modern period back to modern America, I’ve stayed behind and only periodically returned. Studying early modern history has given me answers to my initial inquiries, and it’s opened up so many more questions, too. I gave a lot of attention to early-modern England since America’s political and cultural heritage is so strongly linked to its English roots. I also focused on intellectual history and political theory (England and continental Europe), natural law theory, and the interplay between property, the role of the state, and the obligations of citizens.

Did you have any favorite history courses? Which ones and why?  

My favorite course was The European Renaissance with Dr. Susan Longfield Karr. The class really galvanized my interest in the Renaissance and the early modern period. Dr. K’s “addiction” (her words, not mine!) to the Renaissance ultimately inspired me to complete an independent study course on European intellectual history (From Natural Law to Human Rights?) in preparation for my capstone. We discussed the ideas of natural law and natural rights and their social, economic, political, and religious consequences. Both classes involved heavy reading and written and spoken reflection on many works. Some authors included John of Salisbury, Thomas Aquinas, Francesco Petrarch, Jean Bodin, Thomas Hobbes, Samuel von Pufendorf, Jean Jacques Rousseau, and many more. 

I also loved The Crusades with Dr. Robert Haug. I’ve loved medieval history since I was a child, and I’m only just now (in 2024) getting back into it. Imperial China with Dr. Man Bun Kwan challenged me to step out of the European context. He’s also hilarious and very brilliant.

What did you focus on in your capstone and why?  

In my senior capstone paper, I chose to focus on the British Civil Wars (c. 1639-1653), a series of conflicts centered around the powers of King Charles I and the English Parliament. I wrote about the debates between the Parliamentary factions, such as the Levellers, Presbyterians, and Independents/Dissenters, on the issue of property ownership and political representation.

Despite all parties being promoters of freedom and “English rights” against the supposedly tyrannical regime of Charles Stuart, the radical party of the Levellers was betrayed and eventually exterminated by their Parliamentary allies because they did not hold to the idea of unlimited property rights and property-based franchise. Their libertine ideals of common ownership and universal suffrage threatened the up-and-coming Presbyterians and Independents, who had vested landed and mercantile interests (confiscation of Catholic Church lands during the first phase of Reformation a century earlier proved very lucrative. It enriched generations of a few Englishmen and forced scores more into pauperism and vagrancy).

The point I wanted to drive home was that the Presbyterians and Independents, the latter of which was the party of dictator Oliver Cromwell, professed liberty and freedom but used this language as a veneer for their plunder of common lands and personal gain. These Parliamentarians deprived the English people they were supposedly fighting for the very things they professed to uphold

What skills did you pick up from studying history that have served you well beyond your courses? 

Reading and writing! You are at a disadvantage if you don’t know how to read and write! It doesn’t matter if you study everything I mentioned above or are into business, medicine, or computer science. Whatever you’re called to, I think everyone can benefit from reading and writing. It helps organize my thoughts, ideas, research inquiries, problems, and how I plan my day/week/month. It’s like a form of time travel, where you can hold multiple ideas from different times in the same space! Gaining writing skills from studying history has made me a better communicator in my professional and personal life. 

Learning how to gather sources has also been greatly beneficial. I know what sorts of databases and journals to consult, what academic credentials to look for, and what a decent scholarly source looks like. Although I have not written anything as substantial as my capstone since I completed it, I have constantly gathered, organized, and commented on relevant sources to my interests. 

Have any advice for current students?  

My advice to current students is to be flexible about what you will do with your degree after you graduate college. Have a plan, or better yet, have a specific job lined up for when you graduate. But also know that unexpected twists and pivots will happen, and that’s perfectly fine. You can use your history skills for many different jobs and fields: law, business, finance, education, tech, etc. Don’t be rigid with your expectations; see what is out there! There are endless opportunities if you’re willing to meet the right people and be of service.