USC.edu
Van Hunnick History Department

Grace Shaffer

Ph.D. Student
Grace Shaffer
Pronouns She / Her / Hers Email gashaffe@usc.edu

Biography

Grace Shaffer is a second year Doctoral Student at the University of Southern California in the Van Hunnick History Department. Her research interests include Holocaust and Genocide Studies, queer persecution under both Nazi Germany and Italian fascism and its lasting legacy, as well as the commemoration of the Holocaust. She has written for many public facing outlets, including the Pink Triangle Legacies Project, the Post and Courier newspaper, and the Jewish Historical Society of South Carolina. 

Education

  • BA Coll Charleston

  • Other Employment

    • Research Assistant, Zucker/Goldberg Center for Holocaust Studies, 07/2022 – 08/2024
    • Fall 2023 Intern, Pink Triangle Legacies Project, 08/2023 – 12/2023

  • Research Specialties

    Modern Europe / Queer History / Gender and Sexuality / Public History / Holocaust and Genocide Studies

  • Conference Presentations

    • The National Socialist League and the ‘Gay Nazis’, 1974-1990 Queer and Trans History Conference , 2025-2026
    • Queer History for Queer Liberation: Workshop on LGBTQ+ Digital History , 2024-2025

  • Journal Article

    • “Tear Open All the Gates and Save Us as Quickly as Possible”: Localizing History and Teaching Inquiry with Holocaust-Era Letters. Social Educationno. 4(2025): 231-237.

    Magazine/Trade Publication

    • “Damnedest of the Damned”: Nazi Persecution of Homosexuals. The Post and Courier.pp. S12-13. Full Text
    • Returned, Redacted, and Refused: Postal Censorship in Nazi Germany. Jewish Historical Society of South Carolina. Full Text
    • Ralph and Jean Hovel Endowed Fellowship, 2024-2025

  • Committees

    • Member, 2024-2025

    Professional Memberships

    • Eta Sigma Phi, 08/01/2022 –
    • Phi Alpha Theta, 08/01/2021 –

    Other Service to the Profession

    • History Graduate Students Association Social Chair, 2025-2026