Dr. Sarah Lynch of the Angelo State University history faculty has been elected a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society (RHS), the United Kingdom’s foremost society for historians, based at University College London.
RHS Fellowships are awarded on merit to historians, university faculty and other individuals who have made an original contribution to historical scholarship, typically through the authorship of a book, a body of scholarly work similar in scale and impact to a book, the organization of exhibitions and conferences, the editing of journals, and other works of diffusion and dissemination grounded in historical research.
Individuals applying for a Fellowship must be supported by an existing RHS Fellow, and applications are reviewed by existing Fellows for approval and election.
Dr. Sarah Lynch “It’s a huge honor for me to be named a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society,” Lynch said. “It’s even more meaningful because I realize how far I’ve come as a first-generation college student who worked three jobs while getting my Ph.D. I am so very grateful to my family, friends and colleagues who helped me get here.”
A native of Ireland and an assistant professor of history, Lynch joined the ASU faculty in 2016. A specialist in medieval history and education, she teaches undergraduate courses in European history and culture, medieval Europe, history of education, magic and the supernatural, and climate history.
A prolific researcher and author, Lynch has published two books, “Medieval Pedagogical Writings: An Epitome” (2018) and “Elementary and Grammar Education in Late Medieval France: Lyon, 1285-1530” (2017), as well as numerous articles in historical journals, including History of Education Quarterly, Bulletin of International Medieval Research, and Espacio, Tiempo y Educación. She has also contributed chapters to several essay collections on history, and she has presented her research at over 30 professional conferences in the U.S., Canada, the U.K. and Ireland.
In 2021, Lynch was selected to the inaugural class of ASU Provost’s Scholars, who are awarded a course release to conduct research and other scholarly activities. She is using the time to continue preparation of two new books for publication, “Medieval Education: An Epitome” and “The Medieval Year.” She also has a forthcoming essay on education and work in “A Cultural History of Youth in the Medieval Age,” expected to be published later this year.
Dr. Jason Pierce “Since coming to Angelo State, Dr. Sarah Lynch has been no stranger to awards and honors,” said Dr. Jason Pierce, chair of ASU’s Dr. Arnoldo De León Department of History. “Her election as a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society shows that her work has attracted wide critical acclaim. Her research also informs her classes on medieval history, which are among the most popular in the department. She is truly as asset to our students and to the Ram Family as a whole.”
Lynch has been nominated for an ASU President’s Award for Faculty Excellence in Research and an ASU Gary and Pat Rodgers Distinguished Faculty Award, and she received a 2018 Olivia Remie Constable Award from the Medieval Academy of America. She earned her bachelor’s degree from University College Dublin, her master’s degree from Trinity College Dublin and her Ph.D. from the University of Leeds in England.
