Vita

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ABOUT JULIA

5449_583415468749_18811895_34851634_7828070_n_3As a social historian and digital humanist, Julia M Gossard researches the history of childhood, especially how children, education, state formation, social reform, gender, and global expansion were intertwined and affected one another during the early modern period in France and her colonies. Julia is an Assistant Professor in the History Department at Utah State University and a Distinguished Professor of Honors Education in the Honors Program at USU.

Several organizations and institutions have sponsored Julia’s work. The Society for French Historical Studies awarded Julia the Marjorie M and Lancelot L. Farrar Memorial Award for the best dissertation in progress at a North American university. The American Historical Association’s Bernadotte E Schmitt Research Grant, The American Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies, The Newberry Library, the History Department and College of Humanities and Social Sciences at Utah State University, the History Department, and The Graduate School at The University of Texas at Austin have also underwritten her research.

In 2015-2016 Julia was an Institute for Historical Studies Postdoctoral Research Fellow.  During this year she wrote the book manuscript (“Coercing Children”) of her dissertation “Reforming Children: The Pedagogy, Commerce, and Politics of Childhood in the Early Modern French World.” Her pioneering investigation in the use of childhood as a central category for historical analysis reconfigures the history of childhood in early modern France by considering children as actors as well as subjects.  Visit her Research page to learn more about her research and publications.

Dr. Gossard teaches early modern and modern European, Atlantic, and world history at Utah State University.  She offers undergraduate survey courses as well as upper division and graduate courses with a special focus on social history, especially childhood, gender, family history, education, and social reform. In Fall 2016, Julia is teaching  The Foundations of Western Civilization: Modern, 1500-1990 (undergraduate survey course) and Europe and the French Revolution, 1700-1815 (upper-division undergraduate course).  In Spring 2017, she will again teach The Foundations of Western Civilization: Modern, 1500-1990 and Witches, Workers, and Wives (upper-division undergraduate course). To find out more about these courses, her innovations in pedagogy (especially digital humanities), and her teaching philosophy, please visit her Teaching page.

Julia attended Southern Methodist University (SMU) in Dallas, Texas where she earned a Bachelor’s of Arts in History with Honors in the Liberal Arts and Departmental Distinction in History. During her time at SMU she studied abroad at their campus in Paris, France for a year to perfect her French, hone her history knowledge, and embark on archival research. Since graduating in 2008 she has served as SMU-in-Paris’s Assistant Director and Program Assistant, making her a study abroad specialist. Entering The University of Texas at Austin’s History Department in Fall 2009 with a fully funded recruitment package she earned her Master’s of Arts Degree in History in 2011. With the enthusiastic endorsement of all committee members, in August 2015 Julia was awarded her PhD in History.

List of Research Fields (Broadly Defined): Early Modern Europe; Early Modern France; Childhood, Children, and Youth; Education; Gender; Social Reform; Colonization and Empire(s); Commerce and Economics; Labor; State-Building; Subjecthood; Catholic Reformation

Teaching Fields: Early Modern Europe & World (proficient in Medieval & Modern as well); French History; Social History; History of Childhood, Children, & Youth; Gender & Sexuality; History of Education; History of Social Reform; Early Modern European State-Building; History of Commodities & Exchanges; Economic History; Labor History; Renaissance/Reformation; Tudor & Stuart England; Age of Revolutions; Atlantic History.  She is  also capable and prepared to teach on many other topics of cultural, political, and economic history in the early modern era. Julia is committed to incorporating and experimenting with pedagogical innovations in her teaching, especially digital humanities.


CURRICULUM VITAE

Current Appointments

  • Assistant Professor, History Department, Utah State University, 2016-Present
  • Distinguished Assistant Professor of Honors Education, Honors Program, Utah State University, 2017-Present

Education

   Ph.D.   The University of Texas at Austin, 2015

    • Early Modern European History (France; Supervisor: Julie Hardwick); GPA 4.000
    • Dissertation: Reforming Children: The Pedagogy, Commerce, and Politics of Childhood in the Early Modern French World
      • Committee Members:  Julie Hardwick (Supervisor); Brian Levack; Alison Frazier; Robert Olwell; Neil Kamil; Marc Bizer
    • Qualifying Exams (April 2012) – Achieved “Exceptional Knowledge” in all fields

   M.A.   The University of Texas at Austin, 2011

   B.A.     Southern Methodist University, 2008 (Major: History; Minor: French)

 

Previous Academic Appointments

  • Postdoctoral Research Fellow, The Institute for Historical Studies, The University of Texas at Austin, 2015-2016
  • Lecturer, History Department, The University of Texas at Austin, 2015-16
  • Named/Endowed Fellow, The Graduate School, 2014-2015
  • Assistant Director and Program Assistant, SMU-in-Paris Summer Program, 2009-2015
  • Supplemental Instructor Supervisor, Sanger Learning Center, School of Undergraduate Studies, The University of Texas at Austin, 2013-2014
  • Supplemental Instructor, History Department and The Thomas Jefferson Center for Core Texts & Ideas, The University of Texas at Austin, 2011-2012
  • Teaching Assistant, History Department, The University of Texas at Austin, 2013-2014; 2010-2011
  • Graduate Mentor, Intellectual Entrepreneurship Pre-Graduate School Internship, The University of Texas at Austin, 2011-2012
  • Research Assistant to Professor Julie Hardwick, The University of Texas at Austin, Fall 2011; Summer 2010
  • Education Abroad Intern, Southern Methodist University, December 2008-June 2009

 

Awards and Honors

External Awards:

  • Bernadotte E Schmitt Grant for Research in European, African, or Asian History, The American Historical Association, Summer 2017
  • Newberry Library Short Term Research Fellowship, June 2017
  • American Historical Association’s Undergraduate Teaching Workshop “Assignments Charrette,” Denver, Colorado
  • The Society for French Historical Studies Marjorie M. and Lancelot L. Farrar Memorial Award for the Best Dissertation in Progress at a North American University, 2012
  • American Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies Robert R. Palmer Research Travel Award, 2012
  • The Mellon Summer Institute in French Paleography at the Newberry Library, Summer 2012
  • Presidential Graduate Scholarship, American Catholic Historical Association, Spring 2012
  • Newberry Renaissance Consortium Grant, Spring 2012
  • Newberry Library/École Nationale des Chartes Exchange Fellowship, 2011 (declined)

Internal Awards & Grants – Utah State University:

  • Open Education Resources CHaSS Grant, Western Civilization Course ($500.00)
  • Summer Undergraduate Mentorship Grant, College of Humanities and Social Sciences ($1000 Faculty; $2000 Student)
  • Travel Grant, College of Humanities and Social Sciences ($1350)
  • Exploratory Seed Grant for DH@USU, College of Humanities and Social Sciences ($1875 Group; $315 Faculty Member)
  • Honors Course Development Award, Honors Program ($1000)
  • Research Assignment Design Workshop, Merrill-Cazier Library ($500)

Internal (UT) Awards:

  • The University of Texas Graduate School Named/Endowed Fellowship, The Graduate School, The University of Texas at Austin, 2014-2015
  • Departmental Research Fellowship, History Department, The University of Texas at Austin, 2012-2013
  • Professional Development Grant, The Graduate School, The University of Texas at Austin, Fall 2013
  • Research Travel Grant, History Department, The University of Texas at Austin, Summer 2012
  • Travel Grant, Dorothy and John B. Pope Excellence Fund, The University of Texas at Austin, Fall 2011
  • Research Travel Grant, History Department, The University of Texas at Austin, Summer 2011
  • Departmental Recruitment Fellowship, History Department, The University of Texas at Austin, 2009 – 2010
  • Recruitment Package (5 years fully funded), History Department, The University of Texas at Austin, 2009-2015

Undergraduate:

  • Departmental Distinction in History, Southern Methodist University, 2008
  • Honors in the Liberal Arts, Southern Methodist University, 2008
  • SMU Distinguished Scholar Scholarship, Southern Methodist University, 2005 – 2008
  • Paul Pigott Scholarship Foundation Recipient, 2005
  • Summa cum laude in History, Southern Methodist University, 2008

PUBLICATIONS

Book Manuscript (in preparation):

  • Reforming Children: The Pedagogy, Commerce, and Politics of Childhood in the Early Modern French World (revised dissertation)

Articles in Peer Reviewed Journals:

  • “Tattletales: Childhood & Authority in Eighteenth-Century France,” Journal for the History of Childhood and Youth (Vol. 10, No. 2, Spring 2017)
  • “The Crown’s Catholic Subjects: Lyon’s Écoles de Charité and the French State, 1660-1689,” Proceedings of The Western Society for French History, Volume 39 (2011)
  • “Review: Ritual and Conflict: The Social Relations of Childbirth in Early Modern England,” The Sixteenth Century Journal, Volume XLV, No. 4 (Winter 2014).
  • “Review: The Government of Childhood: Discourse, Power, and Subjectivity,” Journal for the History of Childhood and Youth, Volume 9, No. 1 (Winter 2016).

Works in Progress:

  • “Colbert’s Children: Cruxes of French Imperial Strategy” – article in preparation
  • “’She made me eat the rest of the bourgeoise children’: Missing Children in Eighteenth-Century Paris” – article in preparation

 Conference Presentations

  • Organizer and Panelist, “Jeunes de Langues: French Children in the Ottoman Empire,” Western Society for French History’s 43rd Annual Conference, Chicago, IL
  • Panelist, “Policing the Family: Childhood & Authority in Early Modern France,” Western Society for French History’s 42nd Annual Conference, San Antonio, TX, November 2014
  • Panelist, “Correcting Children: Education and Rehabilitation in Parisian Maisons de Correction,” Western Society for French History’s 41st Annual Conference, Atlanta, Georgia, October 2013
  • Organizer and Panelist, “Reforming the Poor: Lyonnais Charity Schools and the Catholic Reformation,” American Catholic Historical Association Spring Meeting, New Orleans, Louisiana, March 2012
  • Organizer and Panelist, “The Crown’s Catholic Subjects: Lyon’s Écoles de Charité and the French State, 1660-1689,” Western Society for French History Thirty-Ninth Annual Conference, Portland, Oregon, November 2011
  • Organizer, Chair, and Panelist, “Inculcating the Poor: Seventeenth-Century Lyonnais Charity Schools,” Sixteenth-Century Society and Conference, Fort Worth, Texas, October 2011
  • Panelist, “Children, Charity, and the Consolidation of Power: Lyon’s Écoles de Charité, 1660-1750,” The Center for Renaissance Studies Multidisciplinary Graduate Student Conference, The Newberry Library, Chicago, Illinois, January 2012
  • Panelist, “State, School, and Subject: Children, Charity and the Consolidation of State and Local Power in 17th century Lyon,” The Lived Experience of the State Conference, Duke University, March 2011
  • Panelist, “Children, Charity, Commerce, and the Consolidation of Power: The State and Community’s Interests in Lyon’s École Charitable de Saint Charles” 2nd Annual Texas A&M Graduate History Conference, Texas A&M University, February 2011

 

Research Experience and Skills

Archives:

  • Lyon, France: Archives Départementales du Rhône, Archives Municipales de Lyon
  • Paris, France: Bibliothèque Nationale de France (Site Mitterrand & Site Richelieu), Bibliothèque de l’Arsenal, Archives Nationales, Bibliothèque Mazarine, Archives d’Assistance Publique Hôpitaux de Paris
  • Rouen, France: Archives Départementales de la Seine Maritime
  • United States: Harry Ransom Center, The Newberry Library

Research Skills:

  • 11th-19th-century French paleography
  • Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite, Adobe, FileMaker Pro, Evernote, and Pages
  • Experience with digitizing archival documents with cameras and scanners
  • Extensive experience creating databases for analytic inquiry
  • HTML proficient

Language Skills

  • English – Native fluency
  • French – Fluent reading, writing, and speaking
  • Latin – Reading and writing proficient
  • Spanish- Reading proficient

 

UT Presentations & Media

Presentations:

  • Invited Panelist, “How Historians ‘Do’ Gender History,” The Department of History’s Graduate Symposium on Gender, History, and Sexuality, September 4, 2015
  • Invited Speaker, “Digital Workflow & Research Organization,” Presentation for the Graduate Program’s First-Year Research & Methodology Course, History Department, The University of Texas at Austin, September 2015
  • Invited Presenter, “Colonial Children: Crux of French Imperial Strategy,” New Works in Progress Series, The Institute for Historical Studies, The University of Texas at Austin
  • Invited Host & Speaker, History Department’s Annual Visiting Committee, 2014
  • Guest Lecturer, “Children in Early Modern Europe,” Dr. Julie Hardwick’s course, Witches, Workers, and Wives, The University of Texas at Austin, September 9, 2014
  • Guest Lecturer, “Building an Empire: The French Atlantic, 1524-1763,” Dr. Neil Kamil’s course, The US in the 17th-Century Atlantic World, The University of Texas at Austin, April 4, 2014
  • Guest Lecturer, “Slave Codes: Britain and France,” Dr. Neil Kamil’s course, The US in the 17th-Century Atlantic World, The University of Texas at Austin, March 2014
  • Invited Presenter, “Correcting Children: Education and Rehabilitation in Parisian Maisons de Correction,” The Department of History’s Graduate Symposium on Gender, History, and Sexuality, October 2013
  • Invited Speaker, “Adventures in the Archives,” History Department, The University of Texas at Austin, September 2013
  • Invited Commentator, “Talk: New Theoretical Developments in Gender and History: A Re/examination of Joan W. Scott,” The Department of History’s Graduate Symposium on Gender, History and Sexuality, February 17, 2012

Book and Film Reviews for UT Media:

 

Professional Development and Service:

  • Co-Coordinator, Symposium on Gender, History, and Sexuality, History Department, The University of Texas at Austin, 2013-14
  • Program Assistant, Western Society for French History Thirty-Ninth Annual Conference, 2011
  • ASPECTS Certificate Program & Grad Student Colloquium Participant, Center for Teaching & Learning, The University of Texas at Austin, 2010-2011

Professional Memberships

  • American Historical Association
  • American Catholic Historical Association
  • American Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies
  • Phi Alpha Theta
  • Society for the History of Childhood and Youth
  • The Society for French Historical Studies
  • The Western Society for French History