Hailing from Maryville, Missouri, Clayton Powell received his undergraduate degree in Personal Financial Planning from the University of Missouri-Columbia. Clayton is broadly interested in 18th- to 19th-Century American religion, particularly as it relates to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormons) and American Catholicism. He also has a budding interest in the History of Medicine, particularly Veterinary Medicine.

Along with being an Atlantic History & Politics M.A. student, Clayton is also a first-year Veterinary student at the University of Missouri-Columbia’s College of Veterinary Medicine. In his spare time, Clayton enjoys anything outdoorsy—particularly road cycling, hiking, and kayaking—along with a series of leisurely activities like rooting for his favorite baseball team, the Milwaukee Brewers, reading anything interesting, collecting vinyl, and drinking way too much coffee.

Karlee Adler graduated from Mizzou in 2021 with a B.A. in History. She was involved in many Kinder programs, including Kinder Scholars and Kinder Fellows, which were the highlight of her time at Mizzou. She is excited to be returning to the fourth floor of Jesse as part of the 2022-23 M.A. Atlantic History and Politics cohort.

Hunter Gappmayer spent 2 years playing football at Montana Tech University while studying I.T. Business before transferring and graduating from Brigham Young University-Provo in 2021 with a B.A. in History Teaching. A Montana native, Hunter spends his time away from the classroom fly fishing, hiking, and just getting outdoors. Hunter is very much looking forward to taking what he learns from this program and his peers and applying it to his future classrooms of high school history and government students.

From Ashland, MO, Ethan Shumate graduated in 2022 from the University of Missouri-Columbia with a B.A. in Political Science, a B.A. in History, and certificates in Constitutional Democracy and Multiculturalism. Alongside the M.A. in Atlantic History and Politics, Ethan is also pursuing a Ph.D. in Political Science at MU, with a focus on American politics. He is interested in exploring the history of elections and what influences voter decision-making.

Antony Jackson is currently dual enrolled in the M.A. in Atlantic History and Politics and in the Political Science Ph.D. program at Mizzou. Antony graduated from Utah Valley University (UVU) with a B.A., majoring in Political Science and minoring in Constitutional Studies and Philosophy. During his undergraduate career, Antony was a Wood Research Assistant at UVU, working on The Quill Project in connection with Pembroke College, University of Oxford. The time he spent working on Quill greatly informed his research interest of looking at state constitutional conventions. He plans on building on this interest in both the M.A. and Ph.D. programs, focusing on the evolution of state constitutions in the early republic era.

From Sikeston, Missouri, Cooper Grant graduated from Mizzou with a B.A. in History and a minor in Ancient Mediterranean Studies. His academic interest lies in classical and neoclassical philosophical ideas and their impact on social and political policy. In the fall of 2021, Cooper organized a seminar hosted by the Department of Classics, Archeology, and Religion about Aristotelianism and its influence on the faith traditions of Islam, Judaism, and Christianity. Cooper plans on pursuing his Ph.D. after completing his M.A. Outside of academics, he has a passion for writing, cinema, and music.

Originally from Overland Park, Kansas, Nikita Joshi graduated with her B.A. in History and English from the University of Missouri-Kansas City in May 2022. As an undergraduate, she was awarded the UMKC Trustees’ Scholarship, the 2021 Frederick Douglass Global Fellowship, and the distinction as an Undergraduate Research Fellow. As a graduate student, she hopes to continue developing and refining her research abilities and interests, focusing specifically on food insecurity and famine relief policy in colonial and postcolonial India. After completing the M.A. in Atlantic History & Politics, she will be attending the University of Toronto to complete an M.A. in Contemporary International History.

Brendan Durbin graduated from Mizzou in December of 2021 with a B.S. in Philosophy, a B.A. in Political Science, and a minor in American Constitutional Democracy. Alongside the M.A., he is also pursuing a Ph.D. in Philosophy at Mizzou. His research interests primarily center upon the history of Anglo-American legal institutions, jurisprudence, political philosophy/theory, and historiography. Brendan is from St. Louis County and enjoys running, seafood, and discussing politics. After the program, Brendan plans on going to law school, with an interest in public service.

Katie Maloney studied History at Oxford University, where she primarily worked in the fields of British and European history, and she joins the M.A. in Atlantic History & Politics as the 2022-23 Oxford Fellow. Among the many research areas that interest her, Katie is keen to pursue gender studies in greater depth during her time in the M.A. program, specifically for how working on the Political Science side of this field will broaden her understanding of both contemporary political affairs and political history.

Samuel Spurgin graduated from Missouri Valley College in 2013 with a B.A. in History and Social Studies Education. He taught middle school social studies for a year and has since alternated between working in management for Sherwin Williams and continuing coursework in Japanese and History at the University of Missouri. His focus is on the British Empire and its involvement in East Asia. Samuel hopes to continue into a History Ph.D. program after finishing the Master’s in Atlantic History and Politics.