Today’s What We’re Reading features a roundtable on Raymond J. Haberksi Jr.’s God and War, a new report on contingent faculty, and the ghosts and ghouls of an academic department revealed!

History in the News

Roundtables on Raymond J. Haberski Jr.’s God and War
The United States Intellectual History blog is running an online forum on Haberski’s God and War, and currently have reviews posted from Andrew Hartman, Arthur Remillard, and David Sehat. In addition, the author has produced a response to the reviewers in the forum.

Retelling History, 140 Characters at a Time
From C-NET, accounts of historians and enthusiasts re-telling events like the Cuban Missile Crisis and the Second World War via their Twitter accounts.

Higher Education News

“Holistic” Controversy
Scott Jaschik for Inside Higher Education discusses the battle brewing on the University of California, Los Angeles campus over the admissions office’s “holistic” approach to applicant review. The holistic approach includes considering not only an applicant’s test scores and grades, but also their socioeconomic status.

Non-Tenure-Track Faculty in Our Department
The Delphi Project offers helpful primer/checklist for departments assessing their use of contingent faculty.

Letting the Flagship Steer
The embattled Louisiana State University System has merged the position of president and chancellor.

Fun and Frivolous Links

Open Access Explained!
From PhD Comics, a video explaining (and advocating for) open access to journals.

Ghosts and Goblins of Grad School
Katy Meyers for Inside Higher Education identifies the ghosts and goblins in an academic department. One could argue that the mummy (a researcher who is too “wrapped up” in his or her own work) is almost anyone in academia.

This post first appeared on AHA Today.