My teaching concentrates on the history of the United States in an expanded field, from the era of colonial slavery to the present day, from the fine details of material artifacts to critical theories of large-scale sociohistorical transformation. Topics of particular interest include the history of capitalism, American mass culture, race and American material culture, and historical theory and method.

As a lecturer and as a discussion leader, I have developed a successful object-based pedagogy to teach students about American history as well as the craft of historical research. Often working in collaboration with local libraries and museums, I show students how archival artifacts—letters, postcards, toys, fabrics, wax cylinder phonographs, advertisements, beauty products—illuminate the experiences of historical change.

Forthcoming Workshop

Chicago Designs: New Approaches for Teaching Politics, Commerce, and Culture, hosted by The Newberry Library in Chicago, June 14-17, 2022.

Recorded Talks

“Black Revolutions: Organizing the Production of Black Design," BIPOC Design History Course (January 23, 2021)
On Charles Dawson for Art & Design in Chicago, WTTW/PBS, television broadcast October 26, 2018

Recent Courses

• American Things (A Social History)
• Racial and Ethnic Relations
• Slavery in the American South
• Race in American Material Culture
• Mass Culture in American Life