Please meet our brave adventurers who dare to research medieval history! It’s not easy to slay dragons (or heavy library books), but hey, it’s honest work.
Madison ’26 holds on to her MA roots.
She/Her, ’27 — Madison Julio is a senior studying history, with a minor in government and a concentration in archives. Her academic interests focus on interfaith interactions in the medieval Iberian Peninsula. In the lab, she’s currently working on the Arabic, Persian, and Turkish rare books project, but has also contributed to several other projects in the past. When she’s not in the archives, Madison is probably binging historical dramas (which Professor Birk insists on mislabeling as ‘bad TV’), visiting museums and animal sanctuaries, or digging into her family genealogy project.
Projects: Arabic, Turkish, Persian Rare Books Project
Madelyn Malgieri
Madelyn ’27 (and Mary) glow!
She/Her, ’27 —Madelyn is a junior double-majoring in English literature and religious studies with the intention of pursuing a Master of Arts in Library and Information Science (MLIS) after graduation. In her free time, she works as a library research mentor at Neilson Library, a Sunday school teacher in downtown Northampton, and as a student liaison in the religion department. She loves reading (essays, short stories, and 20th-century poetry), listening/playing music as a DJ for WOZQ 91.9fm, and collaging.
Projects: Touch
Eliza ’28 and her research assistant.
She/Her, ’28 — Eliza is a sophomore history major! She’s currently the project lead for the German archives project, and last semester, she worked on the anticlericalism in French fabliaux project. In her free time, Eliza loves playing ultimate frisbee (with Smith’s team Lunadisc), hiking, reading fantasy books, and drinking coffee.
Projects: German Archives
Mary ’28 gets festive!
She/Her, ’28 —Mary McGrath is a sophomore majoring in history. In CODEX, she is working on mapping the spread of Y. pestis collected from medieval plague victims. She is also working on the Dies Legibiles! In her spare time, she enjoys reading about current theater and the plays or musicals heading to New York City.
Projects: Plague geography, dies legibiles
Lucy ’26 chooses fright over flight.
She/Her, ’26 — Lucy is a data science and history double major concentrating in the history of science and medicine. In CODEX, she leads the Plague Geography project and hangs around as the token coder. Previously, she worked on the AHA Visualization project. In her free time, she enjoys talking at people about TV, playing Scrabble, and downloading journal articles she probably won’t read.
Projects: Plague geography; Arabic, Turkish, Persian Rare Books Project
Zoë ’27 gets immersed in ye olden architecture
She/They, ’27 — Zoë is a junior majoring in Art History and English Language & Literature, with a concentration in Museum Studies. Currently in her first year at CODEX, she is assisting on the Arabic, Persian and Turkish Rare Books project led by Madison Julio. Zoë is a lover of material culture and is passionate about the documentary power of art. In her free time, she enjoys reading, painting, and handcrafting.
Projects: Arabic, Turkish, Persian Rare Books Project
Beijia ’27 lights up the sky
She/Her, ’27J —Beijia is a junior double-majoring in Applied Math and Middle East studies. In the lab, she is currently working on the Persian, Arabic, and Turkish books project. She is also a language tutor at the Jacobson Center and a calculus grader. Her academic interests focus on Arabic-Chinese-English translation, the history of the Silk Road, as well as any interdisciplinary encounters about history and botany. In her free time, she loves dancing, drinking coffee, eating cinnamon rolls, and taking a walk around the paradise pond.
Projects: Arabic, Turkish, Persian Rare Books Project