As a Master’s student studying public history at the University of Central Florida, I often heard much about the Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media. I utilized several of their projects for my own research and exhibits! Who knew that my next step would be to work in the Center for my PhD at George Mason University?

The Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media was founded in 1994 under Roy Rosenzweig. Since then, technology and digital history have only developed further and allowed for more of an intersection between history and computer technology. The concept of the Center is the combination of scholarship and technology through collaboration to democratize and promote historical education and preservation.

The Center for History and New Media is organized into three sections: Education, Public Projects, and Research. The first of these sections, Education, focuses on the practice of teaching history. There are multiple resources available, such as Teaching History and History Matters, which develop critical thinking skills in students and providing teaching modules for teachers. Second, the Public Projects section has resources available for museums, archives, and digital collections. One of the most famous of these projects is Omeka, which allows for the publication of online exhibitions, research, and collections. Last, the Research section assists in the process of researching history. This is possible through projects such as Zotero, which is used to manage and cite sources for historical research.

As a new Digital History Fellow for the Center, I will be working within these various sections throughout my first year. For me, this will mean testing projects, exploring tools and websites, learning from and contributing to the Center through opportunities such as brown bag talks, writing blog posts about my experiences, and learning more about these various projects that are in the Center. I am very excited to begin this journey at the center for History and New Media!