Welcome to the History Department
The Department of History supports the primary mission of Bronx Community College:
- to provide students academic foundations and skills for their educational and professional futures, and
- to encourage students to value informed civic engagement
Our faculty teach courses in History (HIS), Geography (GEO), and Philosophy (PHL) that contribute both to transfer curricula and to career programs.
We are committed to fostering critical thinking, a broad liberal arts education, and preparing students to engage with life within diverse, democratic societies and globalized communities.
From the Chair
As we approach final exams and the end of the semester, we also reflect on fall highlights. In October, we marked Latinx Heritage Month with guest speaker Professor Mark Rice (Baruch College). In November, we worked together with faculty, staff, and students across campus for a Reflection on the Presidential Elections. Guided by the History Department’s Professor Seth Offenbach, we traced the evolution of the electoral process we know today. In December, we are concluding the semester by starting a new tradition—the Winter Open House!
If you have not yet had a chance to stop by the History Department, please do! In the Spring, we will continue to hold conversations on the past to help us understand the forces and processes that shape the present. And remember Spring 2025 registration is underway. In addition to HIs 10/11, HIS 20, GEO 10, and PHL 11, we’re offering HIS 14 Medieval History taught by Dr. Elizabeth Hardman, HIS 37 African American History taught by Dr. Prithi Kanakamedala, and for the first time HIS 26 A History of Latinos in the United States taught by Dr. Raquel Otheguy. ~Dr. Mara Lazda
In Spring 2025 we offer in person, hybrid and online classes in Modern World History, U.S. History, World Regional Geography, and Philosophy. We are also offering Medieval History (HIS 14), African American History (HIS 37), and a new course added to the BCC catalog a History of Latinos in the United States(HIS 26).
Contact Us
Main Office:
Colston Hall, Rm 301
2155 University Avenue
Bronx, NY 10453
Phone: 718-289-5653
Chairperson:
Dr. Mara Lazda
mara.lazda@bcc.cuny.edu
Deputy Chair:
Dr. Kate Culkin
katherine.culkin@bcc.cuny.edu
Administrative Assistant:
Ms. Paulette Randall
history@bcc.cuny.edu
Phone: 718-289-5653
Meet the Faculty
Meet the Faculty
Dr. Prithi Kanakamedala’s scholarly expertise is the history of New York City during the 19th Century. She is the author of Brooklynites: the Remarkable Story of the Free Black Communities that Shaped a Borough (NYU Press, 2024).
