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History Graduate Student Association Conference

HGSA Conference Video

Since 2005, Loyola's History Graduate Student Association (HGSA) has hosted an annual conference for history graduate students to share their work, receive valuable feedback, and collaborate on future research. The conference attracts graduate students from across the country who come together to present on a wide variety of topics.

We have announced our 2026 theme "The Power of Public History: Resistance, Revolutions, Renaissance" and are accepting submissions for projects until November 30th, 2025! This year's conference will be held from February 20th-22nd, 2026 at Loyola's Water Tower Campus. We hope to see you there!

Our Keynote Speaker for this year’s conference will be Rebecca Amato, Director of Teaching and Learning at Illinois Humanities. We are excited to welcome her to our Water Tower campus this spring!

Along with our Keynote speaker, we will also be hosting 2 expert panels at this year’s conference.

Panel 1, which will take place on Saturday, February 21st, will be On Resistance, and the State of Our Organizations. This panel will feature Analú María López (Huachichil/ Xi’úi), Jackie Rodriguez, and Dr. Sumayya Ahmed.

Panel 2, which will take place on Sunday, February 22nd, will be On Revolution and Renaissance, Fighting Back. This panel will feature Matthew Randel-Bent, Antonio Ramirez, and Leila Wills.

HGSA is proud and excited to welcome our speakers and panelists to this year’s conference, and we hope to see many of you there as well!

Those with questions, comments, or project submissions can reach out to us at loyolahistoryconference@gmail.com

Previous HGSA Conference Programs

Our Keynote Speaker for this year’s conference will be Rebecca Amato, Director of Teaching and Learning at Illinois Humanities. We are excited to welcome her to our Water Tower campus this spring!

Along with our Keynote speaker, we will also be hosting 2 expert panels at this year’s conference.

Panel 2, which will take place on Sunday, February 22nd, will be On Revolution and Renaissance, Fighting Back. This panel will feature Matthew Randel-Bent, Antonio Ramirez, and Leila Wills.

Previous HGSA Conference Programs

Ve'Amber Miller, MA in Public History ('21)

"What I enjoyed most about the Public History MA program at Loyola was the connections I made with my cohort. Quite often, teamwork became less of a c

Ruby Oram, PhD in Public History and American History ('20)

"This program is ideal for prospective students who want a foot in both worlds. I left the program feeling confident that I could work with cultural institutions as a public historian or pursue an academic career as a US historian in a four-year university. I currently do both as a faculty member at Texas State...."

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Tara Hinkley, MA/MLIS Dual Degree Program ('21)

"Loyola's dual MA/MLIS program with Dominican has helped me hone my skills in librarianship, archives work and museum oriented work. My classes at Loyola provided connections with professionals doing history in many different ways and it truly opened my eyes to the incredible breadth of opportunities available to public historians..."

Bryan Escobar, MA in History ('14)

"Combining the traditional master鈥檚 program at Loyola with a minor focus in public history was an amazing experience for me. Going into graduate school I knew I wanted to work in the museum field but considered going through the traditional history route..."