Our Graduate Students

Keshad Adeniyi, from Watts, California, is a doctoral student in the History Department at Howard University. He holds a BA in Political Science from California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, and an MA in American studies from New York University. His intellectual interests are Nineteenth Century discussions concerning citizenship and repatriation as it related to Displaced African people during the Civil War and Reconstruction, especially Blackness, radicalism, confinement, and incarceration. His doctoral research is focused on the Contraband Camps that served as the holding grounds for freedmen as a result of Union army troops securing Confederate land during the American Civil War. He asks: how do these carceral structures inform the present? Upon completion of his PhD, he hopes to continue to empower, teach and educate at the university level propagating intellectual findings among non-traditional interest groups via carceral spaces and traditional educational settings.

Kerri Lee Alexander, from Bloomfield, Connecticut, is a doctoral student in the History Department at Howard University. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Arts Administration (Nonprofit Management) from Wagner College, and subsequently earned the Master of Arts in Theological Studies with Certificates in Black Church Studies and Theology, Women and Gender from Princeton Theological Seminary. Her intellectual interests include Women’s history and cultural praxis, Pan-Africanism and the African diaspora, contemplative spirituality, and issues of social justice. Her doctoral research will be focused on Caribbean enslaved women and Caribbean slave displacement via the Transatlantic Slave Trade. Upon completion of her PhD, she hopes to continue to reach broad audiences and interest groups, with her roots firmly planted in faith-driven leadership, historical competency, ethics, and service.

Victoria Colston-Brooks, a native of Greensboro, North Carolina, is a doctoral student with a concentration in African Diaspora Studies. She has a BA in History with a concentration in African American Studies from North Carolina Central University and an MA from Clark Atlanta University in Africana Women’s Studies. Her Africana Women’s Studies project is focused on Africana women and their participations and contributions to Hip Hop culture. Her other research interests include Africana Women’s intellectual history, The Black Arts Movement, Hip Hop throughout the African Diaspora, and Africana Feminisms/Womanisms. After completing her PhD, she would like to work as a tenured professor at a research institution that will allow her to teach, research, and publish on the African Diaspora.

Sharon (Jessé) Edwards, a native of Coldwater, Mississippi, is a graduate of Spelman College (BA History) and Tufts University (MAT History). She is currently ABD in the field of History with concentrations in Public History in the Department of History at Howard University. Jessé has worked as a Graduate Assistant and an intern archivist at the renowned Moorland-Spingarn Research Center. Currently, Jessé is working as an inaugural Social Justice Graduate Assistant for the “Just Futures Initiative” through the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Jessé’s scholarly interests include the History of Education, Black Education, Southern History, African-American History, and Public History. Her advisor is Dr. Nikki Taylor. Email: sharon.edwards@bison.howard.edu

Delan Ellington (They/Them) has worked to catalog the most marginalized, bringing the voices from the historically erased into the archives. Delan has always been motivated to protect, preserve, and empower voices underrepresented in already marginalized populations. They are getting a Master of Public History research focuses on collecting and preserving Black queer DC history and housing. They, serve on the board of directors of the Rainbow History Project the DMV focused LGBTQ historical society & No Justice No Pride, the largest provider of LGBTQ housing in D.C. Their focus is on Public History, having experiences working with the National Park Service, and International Spy Museum. They have a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology and History with an emphasis in Public History from the University of Missouri in Columbia Missouri. Delan Ellington was born in Cincinnati Ohio and raised in Chicago IL. 

Majella Chube Hamilton is a doctoral student in US History and Public History. She has distinguished herself in a successful career as a writer, editor, and communication strategic planner. She attended Howard University and received her Bachelor of Arts in Communication with honors from DePaul University in Chicago. For many years, Ms. Hamilton worked successfully in the public and private arenas as a writer, editor, communication specialist and community activist, engaged in initiatives of history, art, culture, business, and community, before choosing to pursue graduate study. She serves as Executive Director of The Ballard House Project, Inc., a 501c3, non-profit, charitable entity that serves as a community catalyst in gathering, documenting, and celebrating the history of the early African-American experience decades prior to, and during, the Civil Rights Movement. Her graduate research focuses on the impact of image, representation, and perception of race and culture in the United States from the end of slavery through the early twentieth century. Majella serves as a Graduate Assistant in the HU Department of History and interns as a Cultural Resource Specialist with the US Department of Interior, National Park Service Museum & Archives Resource Center in Washington, DC. 

Lora F. Hargrove, from Baltimore, Maryland is a doctoral candidate in the History Department at Howard University. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Howard University in Communications with an emphasis in Public Relations.  She earned her Master of Divinity Degree with an emphasis in homiletics and ethics and public policy and her Doctor of Ministry from Wesley Theological Seminary.  She has an interest in the ties between social justice, religion and music. In 2017,  she was awarded an inaugural Just-Julian Research Fellowship which provided her with the opportunity to focus on specific aspects of oral history within her research.  Her overall doctoral research is focused on the combined historical and theological connections between the African Diaspora and the motherland.  Upon completion of her PhD, she hopes to continue to engage in public discourse, lectures, and social engagement with audiences both within and outside of the Black church globally on the diasporic relevance in spiritually fluid and broad-based spaces.  

Melanie R. Holmes is a veteran educator in District of Columbia Public Schools. She currently teaches world geography in Middle School world, while serving as the Social Studies department chair. At a local and district-wide level, Melanie has written and led professional development on culturally-responsive curriculum so that children can receive an education that is inclusive of the unique experiences of people of color. In this way, she hopes students can learn more about their own history and develop respect for people of diverse backgrounds. Prior to teaching, Melanie was a newspaper reporter for The Philadelphia Tribune and the Afro-American Newspaper in Baltimore. Her focus as a journalist was to provide a voice for underserved individuals and communities by highlighting their concerns as well as spotlighting their successes. Melanie’s work has always been highly motivated by her passion for racial justice. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in print journalism from Howard University and a Master of Science degree in education from the University of Pennsylvania. She is now pursuing her doctorate in the African Diaspora with a minor in Caribbean and Latin American Studies. Her research interests include Black colonial resistance and Black Power movements. She hopes to use her doctoral work to inspire the youth to continue fighting for an equal society.

Andrew Maginn is planning to defend his dissertation in the Spring 2021 in Howard’s history department titled “Haiti’s First Families in the Transatlantic World, 1791 to 1880.” It examines the Christophe and Louverture networks in Great Britain, France, and the United States revealing Haitian satellite communities across transnational borders. Andrew earned his B.A. in US history at St. Andrews Presbyterian College, and his M.A in European history from North Carolina Central University. After graduating, he intends to transform the ways in which these topics are taught and written about.  

Alysha M. Page, from Indianapolis, Indiana is an alumnus of Ball State University (B.A. History, M.A. Medieval History) and Tufts University (M.A. Art History and Museum Studies). Her art historical studies focused on the memory and heritage of Blackness and American-ness as expressed through the nineteenth-century genre paintings of William Sidney Mount. More broadly her research focuses on various indexical meanings of the American flag and how various contemporary Black artists interpret it during the Civil Rights Movement and by comparison the Black Lives Matter Movement. She seeks to investigate how Black artists have historically used the flag to express how African Americans are able to function in a society where patriotism and American-ness are closely bound to whiteness. Her engagement with social justice theory, race relations, and representation in popular culture has led her to pursue a doctorate in history at Howard University, where she majors in US History with a minor in Public History. After completing her Ph.D. she hopes to continue to bring to light the nuances of the Black experience in America and educate this generation as well as the next on this subject through continued community outreach and museum work.

Matthew Quainoo is a doctoral student in US History and Public History in the history department at Howard University. He earned a BA in Africana Studies and Political Science from the University of Rhode Island. He completed an MA in Theological Studies, with a concentration in Religion and Society, from Princeton Theological Seminary. His research interests explore the interdisciplinary intersections of the nineteenth-century and twentieth-century African-American intellectual, political, and religious history. Matthew holds a certificate in Black Church Studies from Princeton Theological Seminary.

Margaret Reed is a lifetime resident of the Washington DC area. Born and raised in Falls Church, Virginia, she operated her own flower shop on Capitol Hill where she resided for over a decade until her marriage brought her back to Falls Church. Margaret earned an A.A. and an A.S. at Northern Virginia Community College, where she was selected by USA Today as the top student in Virginia and one of the top 20 community college students in the nation. She then transferred, as a history major and women’s studies minor, to the George Washington University where she completed her B.A. and M.A. During her time at GWU, she also completed coursework and research at the Folger Shakespeare Library. Margaret currently teaches Western Civilization, the United States, and African American history at Northern Virginia Community College. Her concentration at Howard University is in African American history with a particular interest in the US Colored Troops who served at the Union prisoner of war camp at Point Lookout, Maryland, during the American Civil War.  

Albert Thompson is a doctoral candidate in United States History; minor fields Public History, and the African Diaspora. Under Professor Daryl M. Scott's supervision, his dissertation “Race and the Liberal State: 1933-68” demonstrates how the New Deal of FDR created a new federal-state that eventually collided with Jim Crow and destroyed political White supremacy. He was recently appointed a visiting professor in US history at Howard University and previously served under Professor Nikki M. Taylor as the Program Manager of the Howard University Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship from 2018-2020. He holds a Master of Arts in military history from Norwich University, focusing on modern European history with an emphasis on Great Britain and Ireland. He is from Northern Virginia.

Phillip Warfield is a doctoral student studying US History with a minor in Public History in the History Department at Howard University. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in History from Southern Adventist University. At present, Phillip is a Graduate Assistant on the Just Futures Initiative, an Andrew W. Mellon Foundation grant which aims to cultivate the critical consciousness people need to analyze injustice in their own communities. His research interests include issues of social justice, Black and Latin American representation in popular culture, African American history, and an interdisciplinary approach to sharing history with broad audiences through multimedia production. Upon completion of his Ph.D., Phillip hopes to continue to bring historical research to the forefront of public memory, galvanizing interest not limited to teaching in university educational spaces, but also through his pursuit of multidisciplinary interests in writing, publishing, producing, and filmmaking.

Tiffany Camille Wheatland is a doctoral student in the History Department at Howard University specializing in African and African Diaspora history. Since 2013 she has served as a lecturer within the Department of Africana Studies at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York City teaching African and African-American history. Concurrently, she has worked in various capacities in the non-profit sector advancing criminal and social justice reforms for underserved communities, immigrants of African descent in particular. It was her experiences teaching and working in the community, which ultimately inspired her decision to pursue formal training as an Africanist. Her research interests link African nationalism, the black radical tradition and global black solidarity towards conceptions of transnational liberation, economic and political development. Her dissertation research will examine the transnational dimensions of black political thought and praxis inspired by the 1958 All-African People’s Conference in Ghana, exploring commonalities and connections between 20th-century black freedom struggles in West Africa and the Atlantic world, and the relevance of 'Global Africa' in the construction of the black international. Tiffany is an alumnus of The University of Iowa (Bachelor's degrees in International Studies and Political Science) and The New School (Master's degree in International Affairs). Upon completion of her PhD, she plans to continue researching, teaching and bridging the intellectual fragmentation in the histories of Africa and its diaspora.

Blake Wilson, a Richmond native, earned his BA in US History at Virginia State University. He served a stint as a Peace Corps volunteer in Paraguay. Blake is pursuing his MA in US and Public History in the history department at Howard University. While earning his degree, Blake hopes to learn more about how Jim Crow and Segregation have shaped American society. Upon completing her Masters, he hopes to pursue doctoral studies and teach at an Historically Black College or University.

Kendra Woodfolk, from Havelock North Carolina, is a doctoral student in the History Department at Howard University. Prior to attending Howard Univeristy, she received a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Acting and Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and a Master of Arts in Performance Studies from New York University. A storyteller by nature, Kendra chose to pursue a doctorate in history to illuminate truths about Black women's history, Black theatre history, Pan-Africanism, the cultural praxis of Black Americans, social justice, and Black Spiritual life. Her doctoral research will focus on the spiritual practice of Black women in the 20th century who engage in both Black American Christianity and Traditional African Spiritualities. At the completion of her PhD journey, she hopes to engage in teaching at the collegiate level, consulting, and documentary filmmaking.

Elijah Zehyoue is originally from Liberia, West Africa, but grew up in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He is currently a doctoral student in African Diaspora History in the Department of History at Howard University.  His research focuses on the religious and political history of Liberia, which includes African American Emigration, Race & Religion in the U.S., and the missionary impulses of the emerging black church. Elijah is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Morehouse College where he earned his B.A. in history and the University of Chicago Divinity School where he earned his Master of Divinity with a concentration in Black Theology and American Religious History. Upon completion of his Ph.D. Elijah hopes to teach college and seminary students while curating opportunities for the public engagement of history in the African Diaspora.