Department of Anthropology

  • LEADR lab featured in the State News

    LEADR labThe Lab for the Education and Advancement in Digital Research (LEADR) was recently featured in the State News, highlighting Anthropology graduate and undergraduate students. This lab is a collaboration between the Department of History, Department of Anthropology, and MATRIX: The Center for Digital Humanities & Social Sciences to allow students to engage with digital tools and technologies and to learn new digital pedagogies. It is open to Anthropology and History majors and those who have a course hosted in the lab.

    LEADR, located in Old Horticulture Hall, is changing the way social sciences and humanities are traditionally researched, turning text-heavy publications into documentaries, turning podcasts, photographs and diagrams into 3-D models or interactive maps. Basically, the program veers away from traditional historical and anthropological research and switches to modern, digital, innovative platforms.

    “It’s given me the ability to be digitally literate,” anthropology senior Hannah Trevino, said. “In one of my classes I learned how to code, which allowed me to maybe not do it proficiently in my own setting, but I can at least speak the language.”  Trevino didn’t know how to utilize technology tools before her class as few have prior experience with these kinds of digital resources before utilizing the lab.

    “It’s not just a paper that is read by the student and the professor and then is thrown in the trash, but they’re projects that contribute to ongoing discussions about history, culture and heritage,” the director of the lab, Brandon Locke said of the projects created here.

    LEADR represents the Department of Anthropology’s commitment to thoughtful digitally inflected work in anthropology and cultural heritage.

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  • Congratulations Dr. Fayana Richards!

    The Department of Anthropology would like to congratulate our newest PhD. Dr. Fayana Richards!

    Dr. Fayana RichardsWe are very excited to see Fayana come to the completion of her graduate career here at MSU after the successful defense of her dissertation on November 21 and we wish her and her family all the best as she moves forward with her professional career.

    Fayana’s research recognizes the role of older African American women in providing care for their own grandchildren, nieces, nephews and even non-kin, crediting historical and structural factors that have shaped observed forms of African American kinship and caregiving patterns. Her dissertation explores African American grandmothers’ motivations for providing care and their associated caregiving practices. In identifying their motivations to care, her research focuses on how relatedness is constituted, as a form of sociality, between grandparents and kin, as well as between non-kin. Questions such as; How are ties of caregiving responsibility created and maintained among grandmothers caring for their grandchildren? How are perceptions of the good life and wellbeing related to transmitting values to their grandchildren? were examined.

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  • Congratulations Dr. Adam Haviland!

    The Department of Anthropology would like to congratulate our newest PhD., Dr. Adam Haviland!

    We are very excited to see him come to the completion of his graduate career here at MSU after the successful defense of his dissertation on November 13 and we wish him and his family all the best as he moves forward with his professional career.

    His research shows how Lansing, Michigan, Nkwejong (the place where the rivers come together) has a long history as an Indigenous intersection and space that challenges the local settler-colonial narratives of removal and erasure. Lansing has remained an Indigenous space through traditions of movement and migration that were driven by the auto industry and educational opportunities. Through these movements, Anishinabek from reservations in and around Manitoulin Island came here in the 1960s and 1970s who were fluent speakers of Anishinaabemowin. Anishinabek from Canada and local Anishinabek, who had lost the language, created community and belonging through educational programs. These spaces have become focal points where community comes together and, for many individuals, are the primary spaces where language, culture, and identity are reclaimed and passed on. However, these are also spaces of tension where gender roles, language ideologies, and linguistic practices concerning language as an ideological marker of identity and its role as a communicative system are challenged and reimagined.

     

     

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  • MSU alumna discusses volunteer tourism

    Dr. Andrea Freidus recently published a piece in The Conversation, an online not-for-profit media outlet. Her piece entitled “Volunteer tourism: what’s wrong with it and how can it be changed,” came out on November 8th.

    Here is a small excerpt from her piece: “Volunteer tourism, or voluntourism, is an emerging trend of travel linked to “doing good”. Yet these efforts to help people and the environment have come under heavy criticism – I believe for good reason.

    Voluntourists’ ability to change systems, alleviate poverty or provide support for vulnerable children is limited. They simply don’t have the skills. And they can inadvertently perpetuate patronising and unhelpful ideas about the places they visit.” To read the full article, click here.

    Dr. Andrea Freidus received her PhD. from the Department of Anthropology at MSU in 2011 entitled “Raising Malawi’s Children: AIDS Orphans and a Politics of Compassion” under the guidance of her chair, Dr. Anne Ferguson. Currently, Dr. Freidus is an Assistant Professor of Anthropology at University of North Carolina, Charlotte. She specializes in applied and medical anthropology. She also has an Masters of Public Health in global public health. She has worked in Latin America, Africa, and South Florida. Her research has looked at the rise of grassroots transnational organizations targeting aid to orphans in Malawi, southern Africa. She explores the emerging global connections among volunteers, donors, development workers, program organizers and the directors associated with these organizations and the children they serve.

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  • The Department of Anthropology Spring Newsletter is available here!

    The Department of Anthropology Spring Newsletter is available here!

    We are proud to release the latest addition of our biannual newsletter for Spring 2017. Click the links below to be taken to any one of our featured articles.

    Message from the Chair: Dr. Jodie O’Gorman

    CAP Recognized by Governor

    The Biomarker Laboratory for Anthropological Research

    2017 Fieldwork Photography Winners

    NEW Alumni & Friends Fund for Archaeology

    Featured Faculty: Dr. Beth Drexler

    Featured Graduate Student: Nerli Paredes

    Adjunct Feature: Dr. Terry Martin

    Alumnae Feature: Dr. Sue Schneider

    Bill Derman Enjoys a Productive Retirement

    Undergraduate Updates

    Graduate Students of Anthropology Update

     

    Download the entire newsletter here. Browse former newsletters here.

     

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  • Bill Derman Enjoys a Productive Retirement

    bill dermanDr. Bill Derman retired from MSU in 2006, but has hardly slowed down. In fact, since moving to Norway and joining the faculty at the Norwegian University of the Life Sciences (NMBU) in the Department of International Environment and Development Studies (Noragric), his academic life has flourished. He’s started new collaborative projects and published prolifically thanks to funding from the Research Council of Norway. In 2010 he even “retired” a second time (from NMBU which has a forced retirement age), but continues to teach. His research since he left MSU has taken four tracks: land reform and land restitution in South Africa, the migration from Zimbabwe of Zimbabweans to Mozambique, South Africa and Zambia, Integrated Water Resources Management and water governance in Zimbabwe, and water, gender and human rights in southern Africa. This research has led to new international collaborations and new publications. One edited volume entitled In the Shadow of a Conflict: Crisis in Zimbabwe and its effects in Mozambique, South Africa and Zambia co-edited with Randi Kaarhus Harare, came out in 2013. Another volume co-edited by Dr. Derman came out that same year, this one called World of Human Rights: The Ambiguities of Rights Claiming in Africa. This latter book project began with a symposium honoring him on the occasion of his MSU retirement, and features MSU alumni such as Kari Bergstrom Henquinet, Andrea Friedus, and Natalie J. Bourdon.

    Dr. Derman’s most recent publication is a special issue of Water Alternatives. He is co-author on five of the articles as well as a guest editor. Additionally, he has co-authored a book with a PhD student at NMBU (Shai Divon) analyzing US development assistance policy in Africa since WWII (Routledge 2017). Their historical analysis demonstrates how the development policy was based upon US strategic interests rather than the needs of people in Africa. At NMBU, Dr. Derman continues to teach on the topics he’s always loved including International Development Studies, human rights and political ecology. He fondly recalls working with CASID and the African Studies Center to teach capstone and graduate courses at MSU. He enjoyed fruitful collaborations at MSU as well, with colleagues such as Anne Ferguson and David Wiley. While at MSU, Dr. Derman served on around 20 dissertation commit-tees and has been gratified to see most of his former students get tenure track jobs.

    Dr. Derman’s research has always been driven by a commitment to the rights and well being of poor and disenfranchised Africans, but his optimism about social change is tempered by his understanding of the complexities of their world. While he consistently works for social justice during his research, the results have been partial. In the 1980s, he and colleagues helped halt a dam project in the Gambian Basin which would have had a disastrous human impact, but he notes that it was largely the economic analysis that convinced officials. He also tried promoting a human rights based approach to water in Zimbabwe, and although human rights language was eventually incorporated into the constitution, he questions whether it will be implemented. The customary rights to water he documented remain unrecognized. “Over time you realize you can’t change the power relationships where you work; it’s their lives, connections, and networks.” But the privilege of entering the lives of people has allowed him to observe human resilience, even in oppressive conditions. “In the places I have worked, I see a highly problematic future. But when you scratch the surface and view the lives that people lead it’s always much richer, less bleak, and filled with hidden potentials.”

    Click here to read the full newsletter.

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  • Alumnae Feature: Dr. Sue Schneider

    Sue SchneiderDr. Sue Schneider’s career as an applied anthropologist has brought her new opportunities to learn and allowed her to impact the lives and well being of the communities in which she has lived and worked. Her interests have always included community health, prevention and health promotion, and her
    dissertation research at MSU reflected those interests: she examined women’s grassroots health organizing in Mexico, and the strategies of health promoters as they merged different healing traditions within their communities. She published a book on this research, titled “Mexican Community Health and the Politics of Health Reform” (2010). Now, she works as an applied anthropologist with Larimer County Extension at Colorado State University (CSU) where she promotes community health and well-being herself! (Although the circumstances are much different from what she studied in Mexico.)
    After graduating from MSU, Dr. Schneider held a teaching postdoc at Moravian College, but came to the decision that she really wanted to do applied work with communities. She took a position at Duke University in the Division of Community Health, running a program called Durham Health Innovations. The focus was on addressing health disparities, and she was able to put her community organizing skills into action conducting neighborhood-level interventions in chronic disease prevention. While at Duke, she also pursued training and certification as an integrative health coach and began a private consulting practice working with physicians within the medical center. After stepping into the throes of motherhood, she adjusted her career more towards her private coaching practice in order to better maintain her own wellness.

    In 2015 she moved to Fort Collins, Colorado with her family and began working for CSU Extension, where she builds community programming and provides education in Larimer County. After conducting a needs assessment, she has focused her work largely on healthy aging and age-friendly communities. One grant she helped write funded a program called Senior Access Points, which is creating a county-wide network and outreach strategies to better connect individuals and their families with aging-related resources. Another grant funds work to support the self-care of grandparents raising their grandchildren. She also draws on her certification as a health coach to provide community-based training on topics such as behavior change and mindfulness.

    Fort Collins is a community full of motivated people, so the impacts of her work are gratifyingly easy to see. Dr. Schneider especially enjoys bringing practical strategies and resources to people who are struggling with stress and everyday life challenges. “Grandparents are suffering because the conditions that cause them to need to step in and raise their grandkids tend to be devastating,” she says. “It is powerful to see them get support.”
    Dr. Schneider identifies herself as a lifelong learner, and her career has in many ways been a
    “winding road” full of interesting surprises. For new anthropology graduates, Dr. Schneider suggests keeping your curiosity alive and pursuing what you find interesting and what makes you happy. “We can create new spaces for Anthropologists, but we have to be a little bit fearless about it and trust the value that we bring.” Dr. Schneider credits Dr. Linda Hunt for helping her understand and appreciate the value of applied anthropology, although all of her mentors offered unique and helpful lessons and supported her throughout her studies. She also appreciates the solid foundation in anthropological theory and training that she got through the department.
    This summer, Dr. Schneider will be stepping in as Interim Director of Larimer County Extension, and looks forward to getting a chance to see a larger horizon from that position.

    Click here to read the full newsletter.

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  • Update from the Graduate Students of Anthropology

    The Graduate Students in Anthropology (GSA) is a student-run organization with the goal of fostering community and academic opportunity among graduate students in the department. Caitlin Vogelsberg, GSA treasurer, summarizes the past year’s accomplishments.

    The GSA has continued to focus on providing academic support for anthropology graduate students. We awarded two more $100 Academic Enhancement Scholarships in the Fall of 2016 and just recently selected the recipients of the Spring 2017 awards. These small but helpful scholarships provide financial support for students for such things as travel funding and academic necessities (i.e., books, equipment, etc.). This January, we held the Second Annual Graduate Research Symposium with great success. We were able to continue the one-day event with student-led sessions in the morning and faculty presentations in the afternoon. Students and faculty from each subfield created a diverse and interesting program that we look forward to continuing in the future.

    We continued our fundraising traditions in order to support the student scholarships and symposium. The Chili Cook-off and Cornbread Bake-off were once again a great success with several faculty and student participants, all vying for the coveted best chili and cornbread trophies. In conjunction with the Cook-off, we collected nonperishable food to donate to the Greater Lansing Foodbank. We held our Spring Raffle and Bake Sale fundraiser on March 15th to support our organizational needs and to donate to charitable groups in the area.

    To help balance the lives of our graduate students, the GSA also held several events to have some fun and support our community. We held a “Yule Ball” for students in December, where we provided free food and a space for students to enjoy good bites and bits as well as getting a little fancy. The GSA was happy to assist newly-minted Ph.D., Dr. Amy Michael, in her organization of several charitable events such as the collection of bras and donations for local women’s shelters in the Fall, and the Book Drive for Prisoners collection this Spring. Several GSA members represented MSU and the GSA by volunteering at the Refugee Development Center in Lansing this spring. We embrace these opportunities to give back and support our community, especially in our current political climate.

    The past year we have been glad to see new and returning students join our meetings and help us create a fulfilling experience, not only for us, but also the department. We hope that we can keep the momentum rolling in future years and expand our impact.

    For more information about the GSA, click here.

    Click here to read the full newsletter.

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  • Undergraduate Updates

    Undergraduates Present Research

    Anthropology undergraduates presented their excellent research in the form of poster presentations at the 2017 University Undergraduate Research and Arts Forum (UURAF). This is a university-wide event focused on highlighting unique and creative research endeavors of undergraduates across disciplines. Students at UURAF are mentored by faculty, and have the opportunity to present a poster or paper (oral presentation). Thirteen MSU students mentored by Anthropology faculty participated, covering topics as diverse as the racialization of Arab Americans post 9/11 (Breanna Escamilla, mentored by Najib Hourani), the analysis of carbonized food residue on ceramics (Rebecca Albert, mentored by William Lovis), and the limitations of race categories in skeletal remains identification (Erik Rose, mentored by Joseph Hefner). We are delighted to congratulate Funmi Odumosu for winning first place in the Poster Competition for her category. Her poster is titled “Race, Risk and Responsibility in a Diabetes Clinic” and she was mentored by Dr. Linda Hunt. To read more about all those who presented, click here.

     

    Rebecca K. Albert Wins Paper Award

    Undergraduate student Becca Albert was honored at the 2017 Society for American Archaeology (SAA) meeting for her paper on pre-contact maize in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Becca was awarded the “Best Undergraduate Student Paper Award” jointly by the Institute for Field Research (IFR) and the SAA. This award, which includes a $1,000 cash prize, acknowledges exceptional scholarly work among undergraduate archaeology students. In Becca’s case, the award committee wrote that “[Rebecca’s paper] employs a methodologically rigorous microbotanical analysis to demonstrate that carbonized residue on pottery from the Winter Site, AMS dated to 100 cal B.C., contains maize phytoliths. This finding pushes back the earliest date for maize in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan 800 years earlier than existing dates.” Rebecca is mentored by Dr. William Lovis.

     

    Update from the Undergraduate Anthropology Club

    “Our Club has been very engaged in activities over the past year. Our primary focus is to facilitate undergraduate engagement so that students can further develop their knowledge across anthropological topics, explore opportunities within the department and socialize with fellow Anthropology majors and minors. The continued support of the faculty, many of whom have joined us for our biweekly meetings, is greatly appreciated. The club had several professors speak about field school opportunities, including the Art and Archaeology Field School, the Maya Cultural History Field School in Belize and the Campus Archaeology Program. We also held a Graduate Student Panel where current graduate students in Anthropology answered questions about the application process and graduate school in general. We are also preparing to announce the winner of our annual paper competition and Professor of the Year. The winners are announced at the annual student vs. faculty jeopardy game. Besides our regular meetings, we have gone on several field trips, including a visit to Uncle John’s Cider Mill, as well as to the Kelsey Museum of Archaeology and the Natural History Museum in Ann Arbor. We also held several socials throughout the year, including coffee hours, board game nights, crafting parties, study nights and more on a biweekly basis. These events give students the opportunity to network and make friends with other students in the club.” -The Officers, 2017

    For more information on our undergraduate club, click here.

    Click here to read the full newsletter.

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  • Adjunct Feature: Dr. Terry Martin

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    Dr. Martin instructing MSU undergraduate Yiru Gao (Photo courtesy Doug Carr)

    Dr. Terry J. Martin joined the MSU Department of Anthropology as an Adjunct Professor in 2016 shortly after his retirement from the Illinois State Museum where he had been a Curator for 31 years. He completed his PhD. in archaeology from MSU in 1986 under the direction of Dr. Charles Cleland. A Michigan native, Dr. Martin’s interest in archaeology was sparked in junior high school when he visited his first archaeological excavation at a plantation over summer break. The interest that would one day become his career continued through high school, his undergraduate years at Grand Valley State University, and his graduate years at Western Michigan University. The opportunities afforded him at Michigan State University gave him the methods and museum experience that formed the foundation for his diverse career in anthropological archaeology and archaeozoology.

    Although he has worked at many sites around the Midwest, Dr. Martin considers his most important work to be the years spent working on the archaeology of African-American sites in Illinois, some of which functioned in the Underground Railroad. He was co-director of the New Philadelphia project in Pike County, Illinois from 2002-2011; the principle investigator for the Jameson Jenkins Lot in the Lincoln Home National Historic Site in Springfield, Illinois from 2013-2015; and currently works on the Springfield Railroad Relocation Project examining city lots of African American homes destroyed in the Springfield Race Riot of 1908. He and his wife Clair enjoy sharing these projects with the public at venues such as The Springfield and Central Illinois African American History Museum and the National Museum of American History at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington D. C.

    Over the past thirty years as a zooarchaeologist, Dr. Martin has focused on the historic uses of animals throughout the Midwest, particularly late prehistoric and early historic Native American and eighteenth-century French colonial archaeological sites. These sites provide unique perspectives on diverse topics such as the history of Lake Sturgeon within cultures of the Great Lakes people. This fish’s common appearance in prehistoric sites ignited his curiosity about the current conservation status of these ancient fish as well as their economic and spiritual significance to Native American populations around the Upper Great Lakes. While this work sparked his interest in the natural history of sturgeon, his interdisciplinary methods allowed him to work with fisheries biologists in the Muskegon River to learn firsthand about these magnificent, endangered, ancient creatures.

    Now, as Curator Emeritus for Illinois State Museum and Adjunct in Anthropology at MSU, Terry has a great deal more flexibility when establishing his own priorities, such as traveling. He is currently enjoying working with Dr. O’Gorman and graduate students at the Morton Village Archeological project in central Illinois and working once again with the MSU Museum to re-establish and expand their zooarchaeological reference collection. Currently, he is working on three manuscripts and a book about the importance of zooarchaeology within anthropological archaeology. We look forward to the continued and expanding relationship between Dr. Terry Martin and the department.

    Click here to read the full newsletter.

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