Summer research sheds light on women’s hidden role in WWII U.S.-China relations

Randolph’s Summer Research Program is a competitive, paid program that pairs students with faculty members to conduct research in their areas of interest. This story is part of an ongoing series featuring their work on campus this summer.

History professor Selda Altan, Jack Bare ’27, and Westley Mendoza ’27 are collaborating together as part of Randolph’s Summer Research Program.

History professor Selda Altan is uncovering a forgotten chapter of World War II in her latest book project, which looks at the role women played in shaping United States-China relations.

These women—she calls them the Sisterhood to Save China—collaborated globally to support China’s resistance against Japanese occupation through mobile industrial collaboratives, fundraising, and advocacy. 

Altan has been working on the book for several years, and this summer, used the topic as a jumping off point for a research project with Westley Mendoza ’27 and Jack Bare ’27. 

Using archival materials, financial records, and personal narratives, they aim to continue telling the story of how women’s labor and leadership contributed to wartime resilience and postwar reconstruction.

They are sharing their findings on their own website, https://chinainww2.com, which features curated bibliographies, translated documents, infographics, and blog posts that explore various aspects of the movement. 

Mendoza, a computer science-turned-history major, created the site, and both he and Bare are contributing and compiling its content. 

“I was thinking of Westley and Jake when I designed the research,” Altan said. “I wanted to build on their skills. In the history department, we think a lot about how to prepare our students for their future careers. Designing a website and making research and data more engaging to a broader audience—those are important skills for today’s job market.”  

It was exactly the kind of challenge Mendoza was looking for. 

“Aside from the content, I was really interested in learning new skills and techniques that historians use, examining primary sources and finding a way to disseminate the information,” he said. 

Bare, a global studies major, wants to specialize in United States-China relations and thought it would be interesting to compare the past to the present. 

He’s also been taking Chinese at the College. 

“I thought it would be fun to use some of the skills I’ve been learning in Chinese,” he said. “I’ve done a lot of speaking, but not as much writing and reading. For a lot of the internships I’ve looked at, you need to be able to read Chinese.”

For Altan, it all comes back to those untold stories and unsung heroes. 

“There is an interest in U.S.-China history these days, but the story of these women is not highlighted or shared enough,” she said. “I try to find these unknown figures and make them more seen.” 

In 2023, she received an Early Career Fellowship in China Studies from the Henry Luce Foundation/American Council of Learned Societies in China Studies to support the Sisterhood to Save China book project. 

“I really enjoy sharing the information with a broader audience,” said Altan, who will continue working on the book while on sabbatical next year. “Of course, I do that in my academic work. But with a website, you can reach more people.”