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Through an independent study, Kerry Cordova ’03 (Wantagh, N.Y.) is learning about the economy, treatment of Native Americans and African Americans, religion, and Revolutionary War circumstances of colonial Long Island.

“I have never done a project of this magnitude,” says Cordova, a Long Island resident. “I’m excited about this because it will be fun to learn about the place where I live in a historical context.”

“Studying local history allows a student to examine one geographic area in greater detail, to see how broader trends actually play out on the local level,” says project adviser Deborah Rosen, associate professor of history. “The Long Island region has a particularly interesting and distinctive history, so it provides a fascinating focus for an independent study.”

The British won the Battle of Long Island, notes Cordova, leading to seven years of occupation that shaped much of the area’s culture, boundaries, and treaties with Native Americans. Whaling, which settlers learned from Native Americans, was an important economic activity, along with cattle ranching on the east end of the island and agriculture. “This made Long Island economically diverse and a favorable place to settle,” she says.

Agriculture is still a major activity on the east end of Long Island, notes Cordova. Whaling museums and the country’s largest cattle ranch also bear testimony to the area’s history.

A double major in history and religion, Cordova gained background for the project through two classes taught by Rosen: Race and the Law in American History and Women in American History. She is glad to be working with the professor on an individual basis. “She is very qualified in this field of study and I feel that she is understanding and can adapt to my needs and my schedule,” says Cordova.

Cordova is a member of the varsity track team, Alpha Gamma Delta sorority, and Newman Association. She also is a DJ for WJRH.

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Her own roots in Long Island, N.Y., Kerry Cordova ’03 investigated colonial times there in an independent study with Deborah Rosen, associate professor of history.

Categorized in: Academic News