University News

WIU Graduate Student to Pursue Doctorate at Princeton University this Fall

April 19, 2023

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MACOMB, IL – A Western Illinois University graduate student in History has received a full scholarship to pursue his doctoral studies at Princeton University in Fall 2023.

Emmanuel Ennin, of Ghana, will graduate with his master's degree in history from WIU May 13.

Before coming to WIU, he completed his bachelor's degree in history education, with a minor in political science from the University of Education in Winneba-Ghana, graduating with honors. He was then required to serve as a national service person in the University of Education's History department in Winneba, working as a teacher and research assistant.

"At Western, I have taken 33 credit-hour courses that have prepared me methodologically and honed my writing, speaking and research skills," said Ennin. "In my first semester, I took two research seminars, and one reading seminar, and I wrote two research papers, of which one was nominated for publication in the Western Illinois Historical Review (WIHR)—a peer-reviewed journal operated by the History department. I have also served on the WIHR as a co-editor and continue to do so."

Participation in the WIHR process has made Ennin more conscious of his writing content and processes.

During his time at Western, Ennin has been able to share his research findings with other academics, as well as presenting at the Phi Alpha Theta Illinois Regional Conference and the Annual Michael Gordon Memorial History Graduate Conference.

"These two conferences exposed me to my field's vast array of research, and the various methodologies historians employ," he said. "I recently visited Princeton, and in a conversation with a post-doctoral fellow in the History department, she expressed amazement at the depth of knowledge and breadth of course offerings at Western."

Ennin developed an interest in environmental history during his studies at WIU, which was sparked during his first semester when he took a world environmental history course and wrote his first research paper on Ghana's contemporary mining problem, which is closely related to the proposed research topic for his Ph.D. studies.

"According to the findings, the government has implemented several policies to promote gold mining while also reducing the environmental impact of mining. The research also revealed the agency of community members and external factors impeding the government's ability to take decisive action against illegal mining practices," said Ennin. "At Princeton, I will investigate how the British colonial government operated mining, particularly from the late nineteenth century to the mid-twentieth century, when high-level industrial machines were introduced into the Ghanaian mining industry. I will complicate this history by analyzing the indigenous people's reactions towards the new mining practices, the effect of the new mining practices on women, and health development at the mining sites."

This research will rely on archival materials from the United Kingdom and Ghana, Ennin added, as well as oral interviews of individuals who witnessed or participated in the mining at the time.

Ennin said he chose Princeton for his doctoral studies because they have two professors who specialize in African environmental history and he has a supervisor there who is interested in his proposed research.

"I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to all the history department professors, particularly Dr. Febe Pamonag, Dr. Peter Cole, Dr. Greg Hall, Dr. Ute Chamberlin and Dr. Tim Roberts," he said. "I also want to thank the University Writing Center directors Dr. Amy Mossman and Dr. Ashley Beardsley, where I was a writing tutor, and Dr. Randy Glean, director of the Office of Global Education and Outreach, for all their support."

For more information about WIU's History department, visit wiu.edu/history.


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