Research Guides: HIST 491C / LAS 450/ AMS 490 / Africana 406: Race and Racism in the Americas (Spring 2024): Introduction

Introduction: Who Am I?

Hello! I'm the W&M History Librarian. A few facts about me:

I'm the subject librarian for History, Philosophy, and Government Documents at W&M
Before moving here, I was an assistant professor & librarian at Portland State University (Oregon), and before that was the History Librarian at Drew University in Madison NJ, where I was also on the History & Culture faculty. I began my library career as the research librarian to the North Dakota legislature in Bismarck ND - it was very, very cold.
In addition to a Library Science masters degree, I'm also trained as a historian (BA, MA, PhD), and my research interests are Anglo-American History, the history of 19th century cultural & intellectual life, and (my favorite topic!) the history of higher education.
I grew up in a farm town about an hour from Buffalo NY; my town was so small that learning to square dance & using snow shoes were part of the K-12 curriculum. It has 1 traffic light, 4 pizzerias, and a weekly farmers' market.
My publication areas have been the history of education, history of publishing, data management, and government information.
The opportunity to work with WM students -- especially History students! -- was the main reason I came to William & Mary.

Make a Research Appointment
I hold regular office hours and invite students to make an appoint to visit me. Whether you're working on a large project or are having trouble finding a couple really tricky sources, I'm very happy to help.

Appointment can be in person, or via Zoom, or via phone - whichever makes you comfortable.
Chat
Need *immediate* help? Try the chat feature on the main page. It's staffed by a full time member of the library faculty during business hours. If the question is extremely complex they'll forward you to me, but if it's a fairly quick question, they'll be able to help right away. Fortunately, quite a few of the librarians have experience in historical research, so you're in great hands!
Email me at rmmikulski@wm.edu
Have a quick question or having difficulty accessing a document, database, etc? Always feel free to email me directly. If the question is overly complex I may ask you to set up an appointment (in person or via Zoom, whichever you want). Always glad to hear from history scholars!

Information about the Libraries
Services, events, hours, and access all vary throughout the year. For the most immediate information, consult the library homepage, which we update constantly.