Research Assistant, University of Michigan
Leah Driehorst is a senior at the University of Michigan, graduating in May 2025 with a BA in Honors History and a minor in French. Leah has been working as a research assistant to Dr. Lorena Chambers since October 2022, and has worked with her through U-M’s Inclusive History Project since August 2023. She is thrilled to be a part of the First 100 project and to honor the legacies of these trailblazing women.
In addition to her work with Dr. Chambers and the First 100, Leah is finishing her senior honors thesis (tentatively) titled “Intersections of Oppression: American Slavery and the Carlisle Indian Industrial School, 1865-1924.” In her thesis, Leah studies the intersections of Indigenous and African American history surrounding the origins of federal off-reservation boarding schools and seeks to better understand the place of assimilation policies in the broader racial contexts of the postbellum United States.
Generally, Leah’s historical interests include Indigenous boarding schools, the impacts of historical memorialization/commemoration, and the making of race in U.S. history. She plans to apply for PhD programs in history in the near future.