Professor Rebecca Miller Davis is a historian of modern American history who teaches American history surveys; courses in the UMKC Essentials General Education curriculum; upper-level and graduate history courses in her areas of expertise; and the graduate readings colloquium. She is the history department’s Major Academic Path (MAP)/Faculty Mentor and works with the High School College Partnership (HSCP) program to facilitate dual-credit courses taught in partnering high schools. As a certified teacher herself, Dr. Davis is the department contact for School of Education students interested in a history major/minor as they pursue a career as a social studies teacher.
Her teaching focuses on student-based learning, digital literacy, critical thinking, primary source analysis, oral and written communication, data analysis, and other skills useful to not only History majors and minors, but students from all disciplines in pursuit of wide-ranging degrees and career paths.
Dr. Davis earned her Ph.D. from the University of South Carolina in 2011 and came to UMKC in 2012. She was awarded the UMKC Online Course of the Year in 2015, the College of Arts and Sciences' Outstanding Teaching Award for NTT Faculty in 2016, Faculty Ally of the Year in 2016, and the Provost’s Award for Excellence in Teaching in 2020. She is the co-editor of a digital project on local Kansas City history and various articles and essays. Dr. Davis is working on her first book with the University of Georgia Press.
B.A. History (Minor in Secondary Education), James Madison University (2001)
M.A. History, James Madison University (2003)
Ph.D. History, University of South Carolina (2011)