Guerci '11 one of just ten national Lehrman History Scholars
Mark Guerci One of just ten recipients of a summer Gilder Lehrman History Scholarship, Guerci will spend five weeks this summer in New York City conducting Civil War era research. Photo courtesy of Mark Guerci
Mark Guerci ‘11 has been named a 2010 Gilder Lehrman History Scholar. He is one of just 10 students in the nation selected for this $10,000 scholarship. Guerci will participate in a five-week intensive history research program in New York City this summer.
"I was surprised and gratified to learn of my selection to participate in this year's Gilder Lehrman History Scholars Program," Guerci said. "Aside from giving me an occasion to rub shoulders with other aspiring historians and some of America's top scholars, the History Scholars Program will complement my primary focus on the Civil War era."
Guerci , who spent the spring semester studying 19th century British History at the University of Oxford, added the program will provide him the time to reorient himself to 19th century American history. He said he is also working on his honors thesis - an examination of Unionism in the Appalachian Mountains during the Civil War.
Guerci, a history major, plans to pursue a doctorate in history following his graduation from William & Mary.
The Gilder Lehrman History Scholars Program, established in 2003, identifies and supports the top undergraduate majors in American history across the country. The scholarships are awarded to rising juniors or seniors for either one or five-week durations. This year, ten students have received five-week history scholarships and thirty have been awarded scholarships for a one-week program.
Recipients of the five-week scholarship develop primary-source research projects using rare, unpublished, historical documents in the Gilder Lehrman Collection on the Founding Era, slavery and abolition, or the Civil War. History Scholars meet and study in small seminars led by distinguished historians.
The students also receive behind-the-scenes tours of rare archives at such iconic New York institutions as the New-York Historical Society, the New York Public Library, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Founded in 1994, the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History is a nonprofit organization improving and enriching American history education through a wide range of programs and resources for students, teachers, scholars, and history enthusiasts throughout the nation. To find out more, visit their website.
