Department Staff
Department Chair:
Bruce Cumings, Chair of the Department
(773)702-8395 | SSRB 331
The department chair’s responsibilities include general oversight of department programs, procedures, committees, and appointments, and supervision of staff and budget.
Office Staff:
Kelly Pollock
Graduate Affairs Administrator
(773)702-3150 | SSRB 329
I advise graduate students on registration procedures, program requirements, and funding, am responsible for assuring that requirements are met in a timely manner, untie bureaucratic knots, and serve as the students' liaison to the Graduate Student Affairs and Fellowships Committees. Please feel free to email, call, or stop by if you have any questions. I am also webmaster of this site, so if you have corrections, additions, changes, etc, please send them to me.
Cyndee Breshock
Administrator for Chair and Faculty Affairs
(773)702-8394 | SSRB 331
I oversee the daily operations and administrative functions of the department office, and serve as the primary departmental liaison to divisional, university, and external agencies. I manage the administrative processes for faculty and academic non-faculty recruitment, appointments and promotions; and provide support to the Chair. I also coordinate graduate students' work/study awards and schedule the John Hope Franklin Common Room (SSRB 224), which is available for workshops, lectures, and conferences.
David Goodwine
Department Office Assistant
(773)702-8397 | SSRB 330
Graduate students get in touch with me about scheduling your hearings for orals, the dissertation proposal, and your final defense. Together with Kelly, I am also here to help answer your questions about the department, the university, etc. I can also arrange a campus visit for prospective graduate students. Please contact me two-weeks beforehand. Autumn quarter (October and November) is the best time to visit.
Pat Princell
Faculty Secretary
(773)702-5961 | SSRB 334
I work part-time in the History Department, helping with the quarterly schedules of classes and faculty with correspondence and book orders.
Molly Hudgens
Undergraduate Coordinator
(773)702-2178 | SSRB 225
Hours: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday - 12-4pm
I am a graduate student in the History Department who works part-time in the Department office. I help
undergraduate who major in History, and I serve as a source of information and as a contact with the Department, the Collegiate Affairs Committee and the preceptors. I send out quarterly newsletters, information about internships and fellowships, and maintain the undergraduate web page and bulletin board (2nd floor Social Science Bldg.).
Hsiu-Hsien Chiang
Placement Coordinator
(773)702-1597 | SSRB 225
Hours: Monday/Wednesday 9-12, Thursday 10-12, Friday 1-4:30
I help graduate students when they go on the job market by posting academic and other jobs to HistAdmin, by scheduling mock interviews before the AHA convention, and by helping the Placement Committee’s Chair with its workshop on preparing for the academic job search. I also have information on teaching, kits for the job search, binders with lists of graduate and post-doctoral fellowships, and current academic faculty openings (part-time, visiting, adjunct, and tenure-track).