Kristina McLaughlin, UI alumna and winner of a Global Grant to Dublin

Kristina McLaughlin (B.S. political science and B.A. economics ’11), native of Marion, Iowa, is the winner of a Rotary Global Grant scholarship to Dublin.  

McLaughlin will be earning her Masters (M.Phil) in public history and cultural heritage at Trinity College Dublin in Dublin, Ireland, where she will study the role of historical sites, museums, and monuments in building and maintaining peace. Specifically, she will study how Ireland commemorates different periods of history, including the Troubles from recent decades.

McLaughlin seeks to understand how the Irish honor the past without destabilizing the future and how this can be applied globally to conflict-ridden countries, or closer to home as we debate the place of statues honoring Confederate soldiers in the U.S.

McLaughlin's interest in her field of study was derived from a lifelong love of history and a combination of experiences studying abroad as a student at the University of Iowa.

Interest in this field was derived from a lifelong love of history and a combination of experiences studying abroad in Ghana and Antarctica as a student at the University of Iowa and as a teaching assistant in France last year. Following her Global Grant, she hopes to work for the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) or earn her Ph.D. She currently works for Brucemore and the National Czech and Slovak Museum and Library in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.