MA Public History Alumni Employment Information
Loyola University Chicago has been a pioneer and innovator in public history education, establishing one of the nation’s first graduate-level public history programs in 1980. Loyola’s Public History Program was a founding institutional member of the National Council on Public History and one of the first universities to offer a PhD in public history.
For more than four decades, Loyola’s Public History Program has trained a significant number of students pursuing careers in museums, historical societies, government agencies, historic preservation, private consulting firms, and archives and records management. Students are broadly trained for employment in multiple areas of public history practice. Loyola’s public history curriculum is innovative for balancing theory and practice, teaching the best professional standards, and training students to apply historical skills through project-based learning. Public history is also a popular minor field among traditional MA and PhD candidates at Loyola. The Program promotes an inclusive environment for the multiple audiences and venues of historical training.
Loyola’s Public History Program is deeply involved in the rich urban cultural community of Chicago. Students and faculty are engaged in numerous national and local organizations. Loyola graduates have gone on to careers in national institutions such as the National Archives and the National Park Service, state agencies such as State Offices of Historic Preservation and state Humanities Councils, and private organizations from history consulting companies to major corporations such as Motorola and Kraft Foods.
2025
Anna Bittner
Speech and Debate Teacher, Harker School
Marin Burke
Cataloguing Assistant, May Weber Ethnographic Study Collection
Lindsey Meza
Research Assistant, Intermountain Histories
Anna Wilmhoff
Park Guide, Abrahahm Lincoln Birthplace National Historical Park, National Park Service
2024
Brian Burtka, S.J.
History Teacher and Jesuit Scholastic, St. Ignatius School, Cleveland, OH
Haley Carlton
Development and Event Coordinator, The Richard H. Driehaus Museum
Sam Lilly
Development Associate, Kohl’s Children’s Museum
Brooke Sapper
Collections Assistant, Griffin Museum of Science and Industry
Emily-Paige Taylor
PhD Candidate, Loyola University Chicago
Grace Tony
Special Collections Assistant, Bradley University
2023
Jenny Barry
Local History Librarian, Cook Memorial Public Library
Liz Ferry
Guest Services Coordinator, The Richard H. Driehaus Museum
Chris Foster
Residence Hall Director, Western Michigan University
Alex Friedlen
Graduate Student, Queen Mary University of London
Caroline Handley
Manager, Strategic Forecasting Committee, American Dental Association
Caroline Lauber
Consulting Associate, Partners for Sacred Places
Kathryn McGranahan
Tour Guide, Tours By Foot
Lauren Steinkoenig
Collections Manager, Fort Walla Walla Museum/ Walla Valley Historical Society
Willow Tomkovicz
Special Collections Assistant, Library, East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania
Adam Yunis
PhD Candidate, Loyola University Chicago
2022
Jennifer Cimmarusti
Office Manager, Curtis Scott Advertising
Sophie Croll
Assistant Director of Teacher Programs, The Newberry Library
Mary Cole Daulton
Graphic Designer, WRA Architects, Inc.
Meghan Flannery
Collections Inventory Assistant, The Museum Lady
Dana Gordon
Adult Education Instructor, South Suburban Genealogical & Historical Society and Library
Kenleigh Howard
Campaign and Major Gifts Assistant, North Shore Country Day School
Madeleine Lawler
Project Associate, Exhibits, Minnesota Historical Society
Maris Rosenfeld
Community Education and Outreach Coordinator, SHALVA
Keeley Shoudel
Office and Assistant to the Founder, Kaufman Hall
Mikey Spehn
Board Member, Historic Preservation Society of the Illinois Chapter of the Black Panther Party
2021
Scarlett Andes
Manager of Student and Faculty Services, Spertus Institute for Jewish Learning and Leadership
Jennifer Duvall
Research Librarian, Elmhurst University
Rachel Madden
Senior Communications Specialist, UL Research Institutes
Ve'Amber Miller
Digital Content and Outreach Coordinator, Hopkins Retrospective Project, Johns Hopkins University
Miranda Ridener
Executive Director, Neenah Historical Society
Lizzie Schmidt
Curator of Objects and Exhibits, Goodhue County Historical Society
Casey Terry
Manager, Public Engagement, Indiana Historical Society
2020
Laurel Overstreet
Lead Curator of Special Exhibits, Washington State Historical Society
Anthony Stamilio
PhD Candidate, Loyola University Chicago
Austin Sundstrom
Park Guide, National Park Service, Vicksburg National Military Park
Alicia Zeimet
Public Engagement Coordinator, The Richard H. Driehaus Museum
2019
Anna Claspy
Architectural Historian, EBI Consulting
Alexandra Gradwohl
Program Director, Maritime Washington National Heritage Area, Washington Trust for Historic Preservation
Sean Jacobson
Received PhD from LUC in 2022
Assistant Professor of History, University of North Alabama
Alex Lieberman
Business Technology Analyst, Wells Fargo
Bryan Morey
Collections Manager, Kentucky Museum, Western Kentucky University
Angela Rothman
Planner, HNTB Corporation
2018
Sammy Hernandez
St. Augustine College
Kate Johnson
University Archivist, University of Northern Colorado
Marie Pellissier PhD History Candidate, College of William and Mary
Program Officer, Massachusetts Humanities Council
Stephen Petrie
Informal Education Coordinator, Milwaukee Public Museum
Karen Sieber Consulting Historian Specializing in Historical Recovery
Adjunct Faculty, Southern New Hampshire University Manchester
2017
Megan Bordewyk
Digital Library Associate, South Dakota State Library
Ellen Bushong
Governance and Affiliate Relations Specialist, American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons
Julia Lacher
Project Associate, American Bar Association
Matt Norgard
Associate Attorney, The Law Office of Kenneth T. Goldstein, PLLC
Nicole Stocker
Museum Educator, Lake County Forest Preserve District
2016
Caroline Giannakopoulos
Project Archivist, Women and Leadership Archives, Loyola University Chicago
Kyle Mathers
Museum Manager and Curator, Loyola University Museum of Art (LUMA)
Margaret McClain
Budget Analyst, City of Madison, WI
Kelly Schmidt Received PhD from LUC in 2021
Reparative Public Historian, Associate Director of the WashU & Slavery Project, Washington Univeristy in St. Louis
Adam Widera
Automated Systems and Technical Services Librarian, Finger Lakes Community College
The variety of careers pursued by Loyola public historians is illustrated by select alumni:
View more Public History Outcomes here
Loyola University Chicago has been a pioneer and innovator in public history education, establishing one of the nation’s first graduate-level public history programs in 1980. Loyola’s Public History Program was a founding institutional member of the National Council on Public History and one of the first universities to offer a PhD in public history.
For more than four decades, Loyola’s Public History Program has trained a significant number of students pursuing careers in museums, historical societies, government agencies, historic preservation, private consulting firms, and archives and records management. Students are broadly trained for employment in multiple areas of public history practice. Loyola’s public history curriculum is innovative for balancing theory and practice, teaching the best professional standards, and training students to apply historical skills through project-based learning. Public history is also a popular minor field among traditional MA and PhD candidates at Loyola. The Program promotes an inclusive environment for the multiple audiences and venues of historical training.
Loyola’s Public History Program is deeply involved in the rich urban cultural community of Chicago. Students and faculty are engaged in numerous national and local organizations. Loyola graduates have gone on to careers in national institutions such as the National Archives and the National Park Service, state agencies such as State Offices of Historic Preservation and state Humanities Councils, and private organizations from history consulting companies to major corporations such as Motorola and Kraft Foods.
2025
Anna Bittner
Speech and Debate Teacher, Harker School
Marin Burke
Cataloguing Assistant, May Weber Ethnographic Study Collection
Lindsey Meza
Research Assistant, Intermountain Histories
Anna Wilmhoff
Park Guide, Abrahahm Lincoln Birthplace National Historical Park, National Park Service
2024
Brian Burtka, S.J.
History Teacher and Jesuit Scholastic, St. Ignatius School, Cleveland, OH
Haley Carlton
Development and Event Coordinator, The Richard H. Driehaus Museum
Sam Lilly
Development Associate, Kohl’s Children’s Museum
Brooke Sapper
Collections Assistant, Griffin Museum of Science and Industry
Emily-Paige Taylor
PhD Candidate, Loyola University Chicago
Grace Tony
Special Collections Assistant, Bradley University
2023
Jenny Barry
Local History Librarian, Cook Memorial Public Library
Liz Ferry
Guest Services Coordinator, The Richard H. Driehaus Museum
Chris Foster
Residence Hall Director, Western Michigan University
Alex Friedlen
Graduate Student, Queen Mary University of London
Caroline Handley
Manager, Strategic Forecasting Committee, American Dental Association
Caroline Lauber
Consulting Associate, Partners for Sacred Places
Kathryn McGranahan
Tour Guide, Tours By Foot
Lauren Steinkoenig
Collections Manager, Fort Walla Walla Museum/ Walla Valley Historical Society
Willow Tomkovicz
Special Collections Assistant, Library, East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania
Adam Yunis
PhD Candidate, Loyola University Chicago
2022
Jennifer Cimmarusti
Office Manager, Curtis Scott Advertising
Sophie Croll
Assistant Director of Teacher Programs, The Newberry Library
Mary Cole Daulton
Graphic Designer, WRA Architects, Inc.
Meghan Flannery
Collections Inventory Assistant, The Museum Lady
Dana Gordon
Adult Education Instructor, South Suburban Genealogical & Historical Society and Library
Kenleigh Howard
Campaign and Major Gifts Assistant, North Shore Country Day School
Madeleine Lawler
Project Associate, Exhibits, Minnesota Historical Society
Maris Rosenfeld
Community Education and Outreach Coordinator, SHALVA
Keeley Shoudel
Office and Assistant to the Founder, Kaufman Hall
Mikey Spehn
Board Member, Historic Preservation Society of the Illinois Chapter of the Black Panther Party
2021
Scarlett Andes
Manager of Student and Faculty Services, Spertus Institute for Jewish Learning and Leadership
Jennifer Duvall
Research Librarian, Elmhurst University
Rachel Madden
Senior Communications Specialist, UL Research Institutes
Ve'Amber Miller
Digital Content and Outreach Coordinator, Hopkins Retrospective Project, Johns Hopkins University
Miranda Ridener
Executive Director, Neenah Historical Society
Lizzie Schmidt
Curator of Objects and Exhibits, Goodhue County Historical Society
Casey Terry
Manager, Public Engagement, Indiana Historical Society
2020
Laurel Overstreet
Lead Curator of Special Exhibits, Washington State Historical Society
Anthony Stamilio
PhD Candidate, Loyola University Chicago
Austin Sundstrom
Park Guide, National Park Service, Vicksburg National Military Park
Alicia Zeimet
Public Engagement Coordinator, The Richard H. Driehaus Museum
2019
Anna Claspy
Architectural Historian, EBI Consulting
Alexandra Gradwohl
Program Director, Maritime Washington National Heritage Area, Washington Trust for Historic Preservation
Sean Jacobson
Received PhD from LUC in 2022
Assistant Professor of History, University of North Alabama
Alex Lieberman
Business Technology Analyst, Wells Fargo
Bryan Morey
Collections Manager, Kentucky Museum, Western Kentucky University
Angela Rothman
Planner, HNTB Corporation
2018
Sammy Hernandez
St. Augustine College
Kate Johnson
University Archivist, University of Northern Colorado
Marie Pellissier PhD History Candidate, College of William and Mary
Program Officer, Massachusetts Humanities Council
Stephen Petrie
Informal Education Coordinator, Milwaukee Public Museum
Karen Sieber Consulting Historian Specializing in Historical Recovery
Adjunct Faculty, Southern New Hampshire University Manchester
2017
Megan Bordewyk
Digital Library Associate, South Dakota State Library
Ellen Bushong
Governance and Affiliate Relations Specialist, American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons
Julia Lacher
Project Associate, American Bar Association
Matt Norgard
Associate Attorney, The Law Office of Kenneth T. Goldstein, PLLC
Nicole Stocker
Museum Educator, Lake County Forest Preserve District
2016
Caroline Giannakopoulos
Project Archivist, Women and Leadership Archives, Loyola University Chicago
Kyle Mathers
Museum Manager and Curator, Loyola University Museum of Art (LUMA)
Margaret McClain
Budget Analyst, City of Madison, WI
Kelly Schmidt Received PhD from LUC in 2021
Reparative Public Historian, Associate Director of the WashU & Slavery Project, Washington Univeristy in St. Louis
Adam Widera
Automated Systems and Technical Services Librarian, Finger Lakes Community College