معرفی
Abigail Cooper is Assistant Professor of History and Affiliated Faculty in the Department of African and African American Studies at Brandeis University, located in Waltham, Massachusetts. Her academic work bridges history, race studies, and religious studies, with a particular focus on African American experiences during the Civil War and Reconstruction era.
Her research centers on the social and spiritual lives of Black refugees in Civil War-era 'contraband camps'—spaces where enslaved people sought freedom behind Union lines. She explores how religious rituals and revivals in these camps served as mechanisms for kinship building, political consciousness, and assertions of belonging amid statelessness and transition from slavery to freedom. Her interdisciplinary approach engages with themes of race, religion, emancipation, and marginalized social histories.
Dr. Cooper has been recognized with multiple competitive fellowships and grants from renowned institutions, including Yale University, the American Antiquarian Society, the Massachusetts Historical Society, and the Gilder Lehrman Center. These awards reflect the scholarly impact and innovation of her research in American history and the humanities.
She received her Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania, an M.A. from Yale University, and a B.A. from Barnard College. Her ongoing scholarship contributes to broader understandings of how religion functioned as a mediating force between enslaved communities and the state during the collapse of slavery.
- Digital Humanities Training Grant for MITH Winter Institute, University of Maryland (2013)
- Alumnae Association of Barnard College Fellowship (2013–2014)
- Mandel Faculty Grant in the Humanities, Brandeis University (2014–2015)
- Library & Technology Services Information Literacy Grant, Brandeis (2015)
- Provost Research Award, Brandeis University (2015–2016)
- Caleb Loring, Jr. Fellowship, Boston Athenaeum (2016)
- Gilder Lehrman Center Postdoctoral Fellowship, Yale University (2016)
- AAS-NEH Long-Term Fellowship, American Antiquarian Society (2016–2017)
- Andrew W. Mellon Fellowship, Massachusetts Historical Society (2018)
Dr. Cooper advises students through her roles in the Department of History and the Department of African and African American Studies at Brandeis University. While specific graduate advisees are not listed, her research mentorship is evident through her active grant-funded projects and fellowships. She has secured internal and external research funding, including the Mandel Faculty Grant, Provost Research Award, and multiple national fellowships, demonstrating a strong trajectory in sponsored scholarly work.
She is affiliated with research centers such as the Olin-Sang American Civilization Center at Brandeis, which supports interdisciplinary American studies scholarship. Her digital presence includes a personal website (abigailjcooper.com), where she shares information about her teaching, research, and media engagements.
