NIU History Graduate Student Association (HGSA) and the NIU Libraries Regional History Center (RHC) are pleased to announce the first-ever NIU History-Con on April 18-19, 2025, at NIU's Swen Parson Hall in DeKalb. This two-day event combines the HGSA’s Graduate Student Conference (now in its 17th year) with the Northern Illinois Regional History Conference (now in its third year) to feature dozens of history scholars and students presenting on a variety of regional, national, and global history topics.

Day one of NIU History-Con (Friday, April 18) highlights original research of graduate students from NIU and beyond with panels featuring original research on a multitude of periods, locations, topics, and themes. Mary Hicks, Associate Professor of History from the University of Chicago and author of “Captive Cosmopolitans: Black Mariners and the World of South Atlantic Slavery, 1721-1835” (University of North Carolina Press, 2024), will give the keynote address titled “Researching in the Para-Archives of Slavery: Methods for History from Below.” Professor Hicks’ research focuses on transnational histories of race, slavery, capitalism, migration and the making of the early modern world. Concurrent panel sessions run from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. followed by Professor Hicks’ keynote address. Afterwards, attendees are welcome to stay for an all-conference reception in Swen Parson Gallery from 6 to 8 p.m.

NIU History-Con is free and open to the public and participants may attend all or any part of both conference days. Doors open each day at 8 a.m., with lunch breaks from noon to 1 p.m. Light refreshments will be provided. No registration is required but attendees are encouraged to RSVP by April 16, 2025. To RSVP, please fill out this webform. The program schedule and details will be posted on the conference webpage by March 15, 2025. Please forward all other NIU History-Con inquiries to Bradley J. Wiles at bwiles@niu.edu or 815-753-9392.