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Starr Center for the


Study of the American Experience

Washington College’s Starr Center for the Study of the American Experience explores the American experience in all its diversity and complexity, seeks creative approaches to illuminating the past, and inspires thoughtful conversation informed by history. Through educational programs, scholarship and public outreach, and a special focus on written history, the Starr Center seeks to bridge the divide between the academic world and the public at large.

Starr Center Stories

  • Julie Wills’ “Radical Geometry”
    Honors for Art

    From among a statewide field of nearly 700 artists, the Maryland State Arts Council has conferred Individual Artist Awards for 2019 to three from WC working in creative nonfiction, works on paper, and media.

  • Maria Betancur Cardona ’20
    Summer in Paris

    With scholarship funding from Pi Delta Phi, the national French honor society, Maria Betancur Cardona ’20 has been selected to study at the American University in Paris this summer.

  • Born in England in 1891, Kathleen Carpenter began her biological studies by examining the environmental impact of mining o...
    The Mother of Freshwater Ecology

    In honor of Women’s History Month, we pay tribute to a former biology professor who pioneered freshwater ecology. We asked student historian Andrew Darlington ’19 to investigate the WC teacher and environmental groundbreaker Kathleen Carpenter.

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    Welcoming Bryan Fair

    PHOTO GALLERY: Bryan Fair came to visit Washington College to accept the honorary degree of Doctor of Laws. Fair is a Constitutional scholar, law professor at the University of Alabama, and an advocate for social justice and...

  • Sen. Birch Bayh at his most recent Washington College visit, with Jack Bohrer ’06.
    In Memoriam: Birch Bayh

    Birch Bayh, a Senior Fellow at the Starr Center, an American hero of historic stature, and an extraordinary mentor and friend to many Washington College students, faculty, and staff, died in the early morning hours of March 14.

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    Insights into Frederick Douglass

    PHOTO GALLERY: We welcomed acclaimed historian David Blight to campus to share stories from his recent biography of Eastern Shore native and famed abolitionist Frederick Douglass. While in conversation with The Starr Center’s Adam Goodheart,...