Since 2018, the AHA has offered an in-person workshop for history department chairs each summer. This interactive two-day workshop provides a productive space for new and experienced chairs to hold thoughtful discussions and share insights about the issues and challenges facing historians and history departments. The workshop is an opportunity for chairs to share resources, learn from one another, and build a cohort The workshop is an opportunity for chairs to share resources, learn from one another, and build a cohort to support their professional development,

What past attendees have said:

  • "I have been a chair for eight years at two different institutions, and I did not realize how much I would learn just from talking with other chairs at a workshop such as this."
  • "This was an extremely useful workshop for me as a new chair. It gave me answers to questions that I didn't even know that I should be asking. It was very timely. I loved learning from other chairs."
  • "Experiencing the degree to which almost all of us are 'in the same boat' with regard to departmental culture, issues of equity and climate, funding, enrollments, and institutional mandates was so very affirming for me. I came away with a tremendous esprit de corps and with renewed energy and new ideas to bring home to my department. These pressures can seem so very daunting and the job feel isolating; this workshop defuses those feelings in a very constructive manner."

2025 Workshop

The 2025 Department Chairs’ Workshop will be held June 23-24  at the Virginia Tech Innovation Campus (E Glebe Rd, Alexandria, VA 22305). Registration included two nights' accommodation (June 22 and 13) and an all-participants' workshop dinner on Monday evening.

Programming is scheduled to begin the morning of  Monday, June 23 and end around 3 pm on Tuesday, June 24. The agenda is available in the Past Meetings section below.

Registration & Fees

The 2025 registration fees will be announced shortly.

Register for the workshop by signing in at historians.org/myaha. Select "Register for Chairs' Workshop" under Events. You may pay either a deposit or the full payment. If you would like to be invoiced instead, contact ltownsend@historians.org. Refunds are available through May 31, 2025. Final payment is due June 7, 2025.

Any questions about the workshop can be directed to Rachel Wheatley at rwheatley@historians.org.

Online Programs for Department Chairs

Since 2020, AHA has hosted a regular series of online webinars to support the work of history department chairs. The webinars are small group discussions facilitated by experienced department chairs on topics related to the faculty-facing, student-facing, and administrative-facing work of chairs. Department chairs are encouraged to attend as many webinars as are of interest.

Academic Department Resources

History department chairs are on the front lines of the discipline, defending historians’ work and supporting their professional lives at all stages of their academic careers. The AHA strives to strengthen this work and provide resources and opportunities that make chairs’ work easier and valued.

The AHA provides resources and hosts a variety of events and opportunities to benefit department chairs and build community, including webinars, sessions at the annual meeting, and an in-person workshop.

Institutional & Student Memberships

The AHA is committed to helping leaders navigate the challenges facing the discipline of history at colleges and universities, as well as in libraries, archives, and K-12 schools. Institutional membership provides critical support for these efforts. Institutional members can purchase discounted student memberships for only $30 each, a discount of nearly 30% off the regular rate. Help your students enjoy all the benefits of AHA membership in an easy, affordable way.

Past Workshops