History
Danielle St. Hilaire , Department Chair
An appreciation of historical context is central to understanding the world around us. Our study of history is an exploration of human experience: the ways diverse peoples have differed in their ideas, institutions and cultural practices; the ways experiences vary by period and nationality and social circumstances; and the patterns of conflict and peacemaking throughout the human experience. We ask our students to make connections between the past and the world they now inhabit and to ponder how that informs how we can respond to the world today.
All Upper School students take Religions and Revolutions in grade 9 and U.S. History in grade 11. Beginning in grade 11, students have the opportunity to take advanced history courses. Advanced U.S. history students complete a semester-long capstone, primary source-based piece of original research. Most students also take Contemporary Global History in grade 10, and virtually all take a history elective in grade 12. See below for a listing of our broad range of electives. Our history courses emphasize the analysis of primary sources in the development of critical thinking and original argument.
Interested students may also join clubs such as Model United Nations, History Bowl, World Affairs Council, the Debate Team, and Mock Trial, where knowledge and a deep understanding of the origins of current events is essential.
History Elective Courses
All history electives are one semester long. Eligibility for advanced history courses requires departmental approval. Students’ performance in previous history courses and an in-class writing exercise are considered. Advanced electives are for grade 12 students only.
- Capitalism and Consumption: "Getting and Spending" (Spring semester)
- Constitutional Identity Advanced (Fall semester)
- Counter narratives of Resistance Advanced (Fall semester)
- Creating Africa Advanced: European Racism, the Diaspora, Colonialism and Identity (Spring semester)
- Intro to Philosophy: the Good, the True, and the Beautiful (Fall semester)
- International Relations (Spring semester)
- International Relations Advanced (Fall semester)
- Philadelphia Black History from Reconstruction to Present (Fall semester)
- The Sociological Imaginations: Race, Class & Gender in an Unequal World (Spring semester)
- Modern Chinese History (Spring semester)
- Modern Africa Advanced (Not offered 2025-2026)
- Modern European History Seminar Advanced (Not offered 2025-2026)