University of Minnesota
Department of History
history@umn.edu
612-624-2800


Department of History's home page.

You Make Us Great

The Department of History is a pioneer in fields like women's and gender history and African history.  We have helped moved these areas to the center of the discipline and the intellectual mission of the University of Minnesota. In these fields, we have taught thousands of undergraduates and trained over 40 graduate students, who have gone on to prominent careers in academia and elsewhere in North America, Europe, and Africa.

Our innovative teaching provides our undergraduates with substantive knowledge and new experiences that link the University to the community.  In particular, our History Day interns teach students in Minneapolis public schools research and presentation skills as they develop their projects.  Our public history courses and exhibits have taught students research techniques in archives and in interviews. Their research on the Dinkytown and Riverside neighborhoods enabled the community to understand its own history.

What Your Gift Can Do

Your generous support for the history department is more critical than ever. It helps us attract and retain the very best scholars and students even as state funding declines.

Your contribution allows us to ensure:

  • A distinguished faculty
    Creating endowed chairs and professorships and supporting interdisciplinary research centers and programs will help us recruit and retain outstanding faculty.
  • Excellence and competitiveness of our graduate program
    Faculty choose institutions that attract the best graduate students. We need to ensure the excellence and competitiveness of our graduate programs so that we can compete for the best faculty and brightest students.
  • A diverse and engaged undergraduate student body
    Although we are attracting better students than even before, too many outstanding students choose other institutions. The deciding factor is often finances. Merit and need-based scholarships are essential to our success in recruiting these talented students.

Choose a Fund

To remain competitive, we need your support for undergraduate scholarships, graduate fellowships, and funds to allow us to make strategic investments in our department. We have several endowed funds that may interest you.

  • Center for Early Modern History Founders Fund: The Founders Fund will provide valuable financial support for CEMH programming and operations. Gifts may provide funding for conferences, workshops, publications, graduate programs, student support and operating expenses - all the important activities that are central to the CEMH mission.
  • Sara Evans Fellowship in Women’s History: Establishes a fellowship
    that will support outstanding graduate students in women's history,
    carrying on the legacy of Professor Emerita Sara Evans.
  • History Day Mentoring Scholarship: Provides scholarships to
    undergraduate students who serve as History Day mentors in local
    middle and high school classrooms, helping younger students develop
    the strong research and literacy skills necessary for college.
  • History General Fund: Provides unrestricted support allowing the department to make key strategic investments in high-priority areas when opportunities and critical needs arise.

Your gift can help support the next generation of leaders and thinkers.

Make a Gift

Make a gift to the Department of History online through the University of Minnesota Foundation.

Eva Widder

For more information on ways to give, contact:

Eva Widder
CLA External Relations
225 Johnston Hall
101 Pleasant Street SE
Minneapolis, MN 55455

Email: Eva Widder
Phone: 612-626-5146
For other giving options, visit the U of M Foundation.