Theo Balcomb

A senior from Gorham, Maine, I am currently writing my thesis on marriage and motherhood in the Revolutionary War. I came to focus on early American women's activism after taking courses in history, English, sociology and women's studies. The American Studies major was invaluable because it gave me the responsibility to choose my own path at Barnard. Instead of being forced into specific classes, I freely selected those that interested me. Armed with analytical tools and multiple perspectives, I hope to work in public radio upon graduation.

Alice Chin

I am a senior in the American Studies department focusing on racial and socioeconomic oppression in the post-1945 period. I wrote my thesis on the structural changes that allowed Chinese immigrant students access to bilingual education in the New York City Public elementary and secondary school system in the 1970s. Currently, I am focusing my studies on how the country's legal systems interact with and oppress communities of color and poverty. My course in American Studies cultivated a critical analysis and understanding of this country and its place in the world, as well as the many injustices within American society that still need to be addressed. My favorite courses include American Women in the 20th Century, American Civilization Since the Civil War, America Since 1945, and Race, Poverty and American Criminal Justice.

Kathleen Cornerford

I chose American Studies because it gave me a truly unique opportunity to pursue my lifelong interest in education through multiple lenses. My American Studies concentration has allowed me to take the pedagogical and foundational background that the Barnard Education Program has given me a step further by allowing me to look critically at education through the lenses of English, philosophy, psychology, and history. My senior thesis about No Child Left Behind is now allowing me to assess and evaluate the American public education system, and the evolving role of the government in education, to decipher the meaning of education in American society.

Ellissa Corwin

I am an American Studies major because of its flexibility. It's a major that lets me change my mind, which I do often. I started out with an interest in media, but by senior year, I was more interested in politics. I was able to mold my theme, and my thesis, around this. My thesis explores the inner workings of the League of Women Voters of New York City, an intriguing group of ladies that probably would've been American Studies majors themselves. I want to do great things after graduation, and thanks to my experiences at Barnard, I hopefully will.

Natalie DeNault

I am an American Studies major because it offers the best of all departments and academic fields. Mix a little history with a little sociology, throw in some literature and poli sci...and you're looking at my curriculum. The Department has students concentrate on a particular time period and subject and my focus is Immigration, Ethnicity, and Education from 1945-present. I plan to become a public school educator and American Studies serves me by providing a strong basis for understanding the history and socio-political trends that have carried this country up to the present. I feel like American Studies makes me smart at life. I have particularly enjoyed my literature courses because I've found that novels, autobiographies, and poems provide a personalized and bottoms-up entry point for analyzing history. In addition to my major, I minor in Spanish and Latin American Cultures.

Naomi Ellenson

The American Studies department allows me to study American civilization through a historical, sociological, and psychological lens. The interdisciplinary nature of American Studies means that I can study Mark Twain, Karl Marx, WEB Dubois, and Yale art historian Jules David Prown all in one semester. American Studies embraces the concept that college is meant to engage me in a wide variety of subjects, a notion that I take to heart as an undergraduate at a liberal arts college.

Anne Epstein

I came into college with wide-ranging interests, and through a major in American Studies, I could examine all of them. By combining courses in art history, sociology, urban studies, anthropology, and history, I crafted a concentration focused on art and public space in urban America. I am grateful to know that when I graduate from Barnard, I will have more than a completed thesis and a diploma to show for my education; I will have a broad base of knowledge and strong critical thinking skills which I will be able to apply in any situation.

Allison Farer

The structure of the American Studies major has provided me with a unique opportunity to pursue my interests in American history and women's and gender studies. The interdisciplinary nature of Barnard's American Studies program has allowed me to satisfy my major requirements with courses in the History, English, Sociology, and Women's Studies departments; perhaps more importantly, it has given me with a framework through which I can place these classes in dialogue with one another. In writing a thesis on the anti-suffrage movement and the policing of sexual deviance, for example, I have been able to apply the gender theory that I encounter in Women's Studies courses to my reading of historical texts.

Brittany Fishman

I chose to be an American Studies major because the program afforded me the opportunity to explore my many academic interests. American Studies allows its majors to explore a topic from different perspectives and disciplines in order to form a more complete understanding of the issues at stake. My thesis has been focusing on how the television was transformed from World War II weaponry to the item we now know in our homes. I've been able to use the skills I developed and honed in Sociology, Art History, History and Political Science classes in order to write my thesis. American Studies has given me the chance to grow both intellectually and academically.

Melissa Goldberg

I was born and raised in New Jersey. I attribute my choice to major in American Studies to a dream I had one night in my sophomore year, in which I was sitting in the passenger seat of a convertible in suburbia with Allen Ginsberg behind the wheel and Walt Whitman, who was a giant, standing beside the car. I woke up the next morning and decided to major in American Studies and concentrate in 20th Century American Literature. American Studies offered me the opportunity to explore several aspects of American culture, primarily literature, music, and history, in conjunction with one another. My thesis about the intersection of folk music and environmentalism in the 1960s, also incorporates my minor in Environmental Science with the major, and allows me to channel many of my passions into a scholarly pursuit.

Alison Halperin

Born and raised in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, I grew up ingrained in Southern American culture and history. Coming to New York moved me far from my familiar lifestyle, and everyday I learn and experience something new. When I came to Barnard I did not know what I wanted to study. I did I know that I loved art, dance, and history, which could have taken me in many directions. Over the past three years I have found the perfect fit in the American Studies Department. Here I am able to explore my interdisciplinary interests with intelligent and incredibly devoted professors. American studies allow me to choose classes that fit me and even create new directions with independent studies. I am concentrating in Civil War history with a theme of Race. I feel very fortunate to be able to combine my Southern upbringing with the department and college resources. I am looking forward to writing a thesis about a subject that I feel so passionate about. I will remember my undergraduate years with a smile, knowing that I truly enjoyed my studies.

Jennie Rose Halperin

I chose American Studies because I am interested in the American narrative, and I enjoy the opportunity to look at American History through a critical and cultural lens. More specifically, my interests lie in Oral History, folk music, and media. These interests grew out of a strong connection to my field of study, my commitment to interdisciplinary studies, and a curiosity that is nurtured by the small, diffuse department and my adviser, Professor Esch. While not pursuing my academic interests, I work as a bicycle tour guide and also as an assistant at the Barnard Zine Library, which houses many of the voices that American Studies seeks to privilege. Otherwise I enjoy tap dancing, museum going, exploring the city, cooking, and colorful and vintage clothing.

Laura Herron

I am a proud American Studies major with a concentration in Film and Popular Culture. I will also graduate from Barnard with a minor in Psychology. I am particularly interested in the way that film reveals the fundamental tensions in the American experience and psyche. My thesis will explore a comparison between Frank Capra and Francis Ford Coppola, two filmmakers that were highly successful during eras of economic hardship in the United States. I chose the American Studies major in an effort to combine my interests in American film, culture, and history with a dash of psychology thrown in for good measure. I am a big proponent of studying the humanities, especially from a multi-disciplinary perspective; after all, how would we make sense of our lives without art and culture? When not tirelessly working on (or worrying about) my thesis, I enjoy working as a Writing Fellow, exploring the city, and sitting in meditation.

Anna Kessler

I am from Sherborn, MA, and throughout my schooling, I've always found myself very well-rounded academically. When Sophomore year at Barnard came, I struggled with deciding on my major, until a friend told me she thought the American Studies major would be perfect for me. And she ended up being right. I get to make use of all my academic strengths, and take classes in a variety of departments that correspond to my major, namely sociology and political science. After studying in Dakar, Senegal for a semester, I decided to write my senior thesis on Senegalese immigrants in New York City. The knowledge that I've gained particularly through my immigration, urban studies, and French classes has shaped my thesis writing, along with the literary and historical foundation that the American Studies major provides. After graduation, I plan to use my rich and complex academic background to pursue work in the public interest sector, most likely in the field of law.

Lucy Lobban-Bean

America is a country that systematically constructs identities that change depending on time and place. It is a country that places people in specific categories and positions that alter depending on economic, political and social climates and agendas. I have always been extremely aware of the transitory nature of identity, the ones we construct for ourselves and the ones that are sometimes given to us. I have always been interested in the way my own identity is shaped and reshaped over time and in order to place myself within this country and to know how I impact others, I feel it my duty to study America's history, its literature, its systems and structures.

I use the American Studies major at Barnard as an exercise in learning about myself and the place I occupy in the world. There is no other subject that allows for such freedoms.

Ellen Miller

As a student, I learn best when I can analyze a topic from a variety of perspectives and disciplines. So when I found out about the American Studies approach after months of indecision regarding which major to choose, I considered my prayers answered. The major allows me to explore the complexity of the United States through history, film, political science and literature classes. I am particularly interested in using an interdisciplinary lens to look at the ways social change is (or is not) achieved in the U.S. as the question of "Who is American?" continues to evolve.

Miriam Miller

Before coming to college, I had never considered being an American Studies major, but because of the interdisciplinary nature of the curriculum it eventually emerged as an obvious choice for me. I feel the major has provided me with a strong foundation that has helped me to understand the complexity of American culture, while still providing me with a lot of flexibility to explore the full range of my interests. Because of my concentration in Education, my favorite classes thus far have been Sociology of Education, History of U.S. Colleges and Universities, and the two American Civilization courses that I took.

Kate Stahl

As a senior American Studies major, I continue to love the department and the interdisciplinary approach that we are encouraged to take. This approach has allowed me to synthesize a diverse breadth of coursework into one exciting program. As I work on my thesis I can apply knowledge, insight, and experience that I gained from a variety of different areas of study including literature, history, sociology, and urban studies. This interdisciplinary approach has led me to a thesis topic that I might not have found otherwise and in which I have the opportunity to do interesting and exciting research. In addition, the education provided by the American Studies program is one that I can apply in a large variety of fields and occupations, including my intended field of theater management.

Anna Steffens

I was drawn to American studies because of its flexibility; this major allows me to fully explore my many interests in women's studies, queer studies, sociology, psychology, and cultural studies. During my busy time at Barnard, I have served as co-president of Q, co-chair of Queer Awareness Month, a research assistant at the Barnard Center for Research on Women, and an intern at Lambda Legal and the Vera Insitute of Justice. I am concentrating in gender and sexuality in American culture after 1945, and the American studies program has allowed me to explore endless aspects of these issues in many departments. Between my extracurricular involvement and my enriching academic work, I will be fully prepared to enter graduate school (perhaps for social work) when I graduate in 2010.

Rebecca Tuchman

My concentration in American Studies is family and social policy. My decision to major in American Studies stemmed in from my exeprience with the Nine Ways of Knowing requirement at Barnard. At Barnard, I learned that there isn't only one approach to evaluating and understanding a topic. The world around us is not one way; it is multifacited and the American Studies major allowed me to take the various disciplines I enjoyed studying and weave them together, challenging me to understand the theoretical aspects of society and gain an overall understanding.

Erica Wolf