Meet the HGSA Officers: Dragana Zivkovic, Secretary

Thu, 02/17/22
Dragana Zikovic

Dragana Zivkovic is a PhD student in the History department and is working under the supervision of Dr. Cathy McClive.

Tell us about your major area of research!

I focus on women and the spaces they occupy in 17th-18th century Southeastern Europe. My interest in the topic stems from a class I took during my MA on women and gender in the Mediterranean. Most of what I was learning, and reading was focused on western Europe and there wasn’t much literature on gender in Southeastern Europe. That made me look at women in markets in the travel journals of European diplomats that were traveling through the region.

What minor fields did you chose?

My minor fields are Public History, Early America, and Slavic Studies. Prior to starting my PhD at FSU, I worked at the Museum of Florida History where I got to work in the archives. That really opened my perspective on Public History and made me want to learn more about the field.

I chose Early America as another minor field because I have always been fascinated with Native American history and how little we are taught in school. I find the debates within the field interesting, and they make me approach my own research differently.

And finally, Slavic Studies because it directly relates to my area of focus, but also allows me to take courses in other departments with professors who focus on the precise region and time period of my research.

How did your interest in history start more generally? What do you do for "fun" history nowadays?

Growing up, my dad was the one person in my family who loved history and was always telling me stories about our family in Europe and events that led up to how we came to America. As I grew up and started taking history classes in high school, I found myself enjoying those classes because they gave me an understanding of how and why things are the way they are today.

These days, I watch period dramas for fun history. I also enjoy Drunk History for some comedic entertainment.

What do you do as an HGSA officer? What does your job entail?

I am the secretary of the HGSA, and my main role is to attend all meetings for the organization and take notes on what was discussed.

How do you see HGSA making a difference to grad student life?

The HGSA not only allows graduate students to get to know each other and have fun away from academics, but it is also a support system. Grad school is challenging and having the HGSA there hosting both social and academic events makes the journey less stressful. The HGSA is also there to give grad students a voice in the department which I think is important and makes us feel like our concerns are heard.