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Access Champion: Nicolas Gisholt
Nicolas Gisholt is a Senior Specialist Academic Advisor for the College of Social Science at the Center for Integrative Studies and the Department of Anthropology, former Specialist representative for the Chicanx Latinx Association, and advises the Chicano Latino Studies minor. Gisholt is passionate about advocacy for the Latino community, equitable distribution of resources for students;
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Exploring Medical Anthropology with Dr. Heather Howard
Recently, we had the opportunity to visit a medical anthropology class taught by Dr. Heather Howard. During this visit, students explored how Indigenous peoples’ health is defined, understood, and researched from multiple perspectives. We spoke with Dr. Howard about her favorite part of teaching the course, how it prepares students for their future careers, and
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Michigan State welcomes Dr. Phyllis Johnson to launch its first cultural resource management lab
With cultural resource management (CRM) accounting for up to 90% of archaeology jobs in the United States, Michigan State University (MSU) has taken a major step forward by hiring Dr. Phyllis Johnson, a new assistant professor of anthropology, to launch the university’s first CRM lab and training program. The CRM Lab, currently in development, hopes
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Anthropology grad wins grand prize award for innovative archaeology research
With more than 1,100 students participating in the University Undergraduate Research and Arts Forum (UURAF), only three grand prize winners were named. Among them was 19-year-old recent anthropology graduate Sasha Franklin whose nontraditional project has already gained attention. Franklin’s research project, Archaeology Education in the Digital Age: Sharing History Through ArcGIS StoryMaps, won the UURAF grand prize in
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Graduate voice: My archaeology journey excavating Fort Michilimackinac
Kelly Sullivan graduated in 2024 with a degree in biology from Lyman Briggs College and in anthropology from the College of Social Science. This summer, Sullivan is working as an archaeologist at Michigan’s Colonial Michilimackinac, an 18th-century fort and fur trading village located in Mackinaw City. Growing up, my family has always made it a point
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Field Notes from Tuscany: A Student’s Perspective on Archaeology Abroad
Senior anthropology major Paige Topping recently spent a month in Tuscany, Italy, working with the IMPERO Project at the Monteverdi Field School. In this Q&A, she shares her firsthand experiences of living abroad, working on an active archaeological site, and how this experience deepened her appreciation for the field of archaeology. What interested you in participating in this
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New study reveals how breastfeeding mothers adapt to environmental stress
Can a mother’s body protect her breast milk even if she is malnourished? Yes. In her new study, Dual Behavioral–Physiological Buffering of Mothers’ Milk Facilitates Drought Adaptability of Pastoralists and Agropastoralists in Northern Kenya, Dr. Masako Fujita examines how environmental challenges—like drought—affect the nutrition and health of 221 breastfeeding mothers living in northern Kenya. “During a severe drought,
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MSU helps advance efforts to reduce ligament injury in dog knee replacements
An unexpected collaboration between forensic anthropologists and veterinarians could help reduce ligament injuries during total knee replacement (TKR) surgeries in dogs. Dr. Joe Hefner, a forensic anthropologist, and Savannah Holcombe, a doctoral student at Michigan State University (MSU), partnered with researchers from MSU’s College of Veterinary Medicine and Cambridge Veterinary School to improve the accuracy
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Anthropology researchers examine COVID-19’s ongoing impact on families and nations
A new open-access publication features the work of Dr. Heather Howard, associate professor of anthropology at Michigan State University, and MSU doctoral candidate Priyanka Jayakodi. The book, titled Covid’s Chronicities: From Urgency to Stasis in a Pandemic Era, examines how the COVID-19 pandemic has evolved from a global emergency to a state of chronic unpredictability. Drawing on
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Discovery of ancient wolf mandibles links the Illinois Hopewell to Michigan
The discovery of two 2,000-year-old modified wolf mandibles has provided new insight linking the Illinois Hopewell to southern Michigan. Professor Emeritus Dr. William Lovis of the Department of Anthropology at Michigan State University and the late Maurice O. Haag published an article in Illinois Archaeology, “Cut and Polished Wolf Mandible Segments from the Quanicassee River Drainage,