PhD in History

Christopher Warren, 2022

Describe your dissertation, thesis, or capstone (if you completed one):

An examination of how Confederate burials at Arlington National Cemetery influenced commemoration and reconciliation in the North and South during the Gilded Age and Progressive eras.

How did you choose your specific area of study?

Researching post-Civil War commemorative practices intrigued me. Many of these commemorative practices still influence American society today.

How did your academic experiences in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences impact you?

The graduate courses in history gave me the intellectual foundation I needed to understand the cultural, social, and political background of different eras in American history.

Of which accomplishment(s) during your time at Mason are you most proud?

Completing a PhD as a part-time student is difficult. It takes more time, discipline, and energy to stay focused and keep working of many years. Just completing my dissertation and receiving m PhD was like running a marathon...one step at a time.

Are there faculty or staff members who made a difference during your Mason career?

Dr. Christopher Hamner in the Department of History & Art History was an excellent advisor. He kept my dissertation focused so that it was manageable and doable, and his advice was invaluable.

What advice would you give to an incoming cohort of graduate students?

You can't get in a hurry in a graduate program. Just enjoy the process and keep moving forward, even if it is just one page at a time. Any doubts you may feel during your program of study is the same doubts we all have. Just keep working and you will succeed.

What are your current career plans following graduation? What are your long-term career goals?

I am a curatorial director at the Smithsonian so I will continue in the museum field. I intend to publish my dissertation as a book with a university press. After I publish, I intend to start on another book, topic TBD!