Sarah West, MA

PhD in History Student · University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg

(909) 552-3202

sarah@thewest-side.com

Education

Mississippi State University, Starkville, MS

Ph.D. in History                                                                                                        Expected May 2027

My focus is on women and classism in the South during the Reconstruction. I will examine concepts surrounding the shifting societal roles of women after the Civil War and any shifts in the application of Southern honor to women as their men returned, or didn’t, from the war. 

California State University, San Bernardino, San Bernardino, CA

Master of Arts in History 

May 2022

My focus was on women and classism in the South during the Civil War era. My MA thesis examined the concept of Southern honor and its application to all women during the Civil War.

University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA

Bachelor of Arts in History, US History Concentration

August 2020

Riverside City College, Riverside, CA                                                                                       

Associate of Arts in History with Great Distinction                                                       March 2018

Associate of Arts in Social Behavioral Studies with Great Distinction                           March 2018

Associate of Arts in Humanities, Philosophy, and Arts with Great Distinction              March 2018

Related Experience

Mississippi State University, Starkville, Miss.

Senior Assistant Editor, Civil War and Reconstruction Governors of Mississippi Project

In partnership with the Mississippi Department of Archives and History, this digital documentary project is grounded in 20,000 documents spanning from the secession crisis to early Jim Crow South. Digitizing these letters offers insights into nearly every major issue of the are in Mississippi. As the Assistant Editor, I manage the metadata team which includes reviewing their work, training, and support. I perform final reviews of all metadata and upload the required elements to Contentdm and I match calendar ID’s with incoming images.

California State University, San Bernardino, San Bernardino, CA                                                                          

Research Intern                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             

I worked closely with my graduate student colleagues to compile data to write a textbook for public fourth grade classrooms that analyzed the impact of the mission system on indigenous California tribes. I found and analyzed both primary and secondary sources across the state as well as oral, non-written traditions. I researched independently and gained experience in utilizing a revisionist historical lens as well as practice in editing, source cross-examination, and meeting K-12 criteria. This work is in the final stages of copywriting before publication in 2022. 

University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, Miss.

Intern, Civil War and Reconstruction Governors of Mississippi Project

As an intern I worked with the team to transcribe and tag letters to the governor of Mississippi during the Civil War era. I gained experience working with penmanship and writing styles of the 19^th century and identifying and processing related subjects in the letters. As a result of this work, I now have a larger understanding of the value of a project such as this. The increase of accessibility to historical records ultimately aids in the challenging the mythologized history of military and societal heroism and chivalry. It gives the public the ability to explore the narrative outside of traditional education but to form their own perceptions of the event with valuable primary resources rather than succumbing to the interpretations of others.

University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA.

Student Research, Robert J. Chandler collection on student activism                                          

As a student I was given access to the unprocessed Chandler Collection. This collection consisted of material that was gathered by Robert J. Chandler circa 1958-1978. It was through this access that I was able to curate media that reflected the 1960’s student experience as it pertained to counterculture, free love, and experimental drug movement and the footprints it left on our culture. The intention for this project was to be displayed at an exhibit that showcased a glimpse of this fascinating collection. Unfortunately, the onset of COVID which resulted in the closing of the university hindered that goal.

2023

2021

2021

2020

Publications

Conferences

Honors and awards

Languages And Skills

Community service