Michigan State University Second Annual
Ethnographic Field School and Internship Program
Prescott, Arizona

The MSU Department of Anthropology’s Second Annual Undergraduate Ethnographic Field School In Spring Semester 2007, don’t just read about cultural anthropology or ethnographic research, do it! Develop practical skills that can be invaluable and marketable assets inside and outside academia Be part of the MSU Anthropology Department’s Second Annual Undergraduate Ethnographic Field School. Learn how to plan, conduct, and write about ethnographic research (e.g., participant observation, interviewing, designing and administering surveys, the art of writing research reports and ethnographic narratives).

See the brochure | See the presentation

FIELD SCHOOL PREREQUISTIES

Open to sophomores, juniors, or seniors with at least one course in Anthropology and the approval of the field school director. Applications are available at the Office of the Department of Anthropology – 354 Baker Hall.

CLASSES AND CREDITS

All Field School students are required to take Ethnographic Field School: Food and Culture (ANP 491). In addition, you may earn credits in any of the following MSU courses offered by the field school: Sociocultural Analysis (ANP 320), Religion and Culture (ANP 422), Ethnographic Field Methods (ANP 429), Culture, Resources, and Power (ANP 430), Food, Hunger, and Society (ANP 470), Organizational Anthropology (ANP 475), Fieldwork in Organizational Anthropology (ANP 476), Writing Culture (ANP 491), Independent Study (ANP 490), People and Environment (ISS 310).

LOCATION

MSU’s Undergraduate Ethnographic Field School is located in beautiful mile-high Prescott, Arizona. Centered on a vibrant, historic downtown, Prescott is surrounded by more than a million acres of national forest and within a day’s trip of the Grand Canyon, Sedona, Flagstaff, the Sonoran desert, as well as the Hopi and Navajo nations.

THE THEME

The theme of the ethnographic field school continues to be The Changing Food System of Prescott, Arizona. In simplest terms, a food system encompasses “how food is produced and reaches our mouths and why we eat what we do” Prescott, the first territorial capital of Arizona, is a fascinating locale in which to study food systems. Prescott represents a mixture of the Old and New West: Cattle ranches and the “World’s Oldest Rodeo” co-exist with a Community Supported Agriculture co-op and a Farmers Market that offers locally-grown organic fruits and vegetables. Meat and potato steakhouses mix with restaurants featuring nouvelle and vegetarian cuisines; a downtown anchored by locally-owned businesses competes with malls anchored by national chains and a pair of newly arrived Wal Marts.

YOUR TRAINING IN ETHNOGRAPHIC RESEARCH METHODS

You will learn ethnographic research and analysis by doing them. During the first half of the semester, you will employ in your field work research instruments (interview and observation protocols) that have already been developed by the field school director for an on-going study of Prescott’s Changing Food System. You will learn how to analyze data by working on materials collected by the field school director in Fall ‘06, as well as on those you will have gathered in the first half of Spring ’07. You will also participate in seminars that will provide you with the theoretical and substantive background necessary to conduct significant ethnographic research on food systems. In the second half of the semester you’ll conduct your own individual research projects within the Field School’s overall theme. Your research may examine any number of facets of Prescott’s food system (from production to wholesale to retail to consumption-- including management-labor, seller-buyer, and kinship relationships). Last year’s student research topics included: “Nutrition, Consumers, and Culture in a Western City”; “Raw Food in Prescott, Arizona” ; “Fair Trade and Organic Coffee in a Western City”; “Food, Risk, and Smoking among Prescott College Students” ; Coffee Shops and Culture in a Western City” ; Feeding Students: A Comparative Study of Two Colleges in a Western City; Latinos and Prescott’s Food System; Instituting a Local Farm to School Food Program in Prescott. Once you begin your own ethnographic research, all field school participants will meet together at least once a week to share their experiences, as well as provide advice and mutual support. The field school director will be available to meet with you whenever you need help or advice or feedback.

THE PRESCOTT COLLEGE CONNECTION

The field school is headquartered at Prescott College, an outstanding small liberal arts college emphasizing environmental studies. Its curriculum is characterized by “small class sizes, field-based courses, and real-life experiences.” The MSU Field School is affiliated with the recently established Southwestern Center for Food Studies at Prescott College.

INTERNSHIPS

This spring, qualified students also will be eligible for internships (SSC 493) at Prescott College’s Crossroads Café. Under the supervision of Food Director and Chef Molly Beverly, interns will have a unique opportunity to learn about the food system from the perspective of a cutting edge, working restaurant kitchen. Crossroads Café is dedicated to the ideals of the organic and local food movements and provides the Prescott College community with “a learning environment exploring the interrelationship between who we are, where we are and what we eat.”

HOUSING

You will live at Chapel Lofts, which is located within easy walking distance of the Prescott College campus and downtown Prescott. Chapel Lofts is a quasi-dormitory set-up (in what was once a church). Every room has a small refrigerator, and you will have access to a kitchen and other communal facilities (including parking).

THE COST

The tuition will be the same as on campus. The total housing costs for four months (including utilities) for a double is $1845 per person. The total housing costs for four months (including utilities) for a single (if available) is $2100. There is also a $300 per person refundable security deposit. The first $100 of the security deposit is due on October 31, and the rent plus the rest of the deposit are due on December 1.

Note: Last year, interested students were able to obtain part-time jobs in Prescott.

You can drive to Prescott (2000 miles, and 2-3 nights from East Lansing) or fly to Phoenix (96 miles from Prescott). There is a regular shuttle bus service between Prescott and Phoenix.

There will be a Prescott College Student Activity Fee of $85 per person. That will entitle you to attend all student activities, and use all students’ services— including the new (and beautiful) information commons (i.e., library). The information commons has hardwired and wireless access to the web. In addition, there will be a “lab” fee to pay for expenses like classroom and van rental (for researchrelated excursions). At this moment, this lab fee will be a minimum of $200.

Applications for the field school are due by October 24, and all accepted applicants are required to pay the lab fee/deposit of $200 by October 31.

Field School Faculty: The field school co-directors are Dr. Fred Roberts (MSU) and Dr. Tim Crews (PC), both of whom are founding members of the Southwestern Center for Food Studies at Prescott College. Dr. Roberts is an associate professor of anthropology at MSU, where his teaching focuses on research methods and writing ethnography. He recently published Be Not Afraid (2005), a study of the spiritual and organizational life of eight mainline Protestant congregations. Dr. Roberts is currently completing a book on research methods in cultural anthropology. He resides in Prescott, where his own research focuses on the city’s changing food system. Dr. Tim Crews is an agroecologist in the Environmental Studies Program at Prescott College. He also directs Wolfberry Farm, Prescott College’s experimental farm, where “students address the question: Can agriculture be more ecologically sustainable and economically viable?”

CONTACT

f you are interested in learning more about the spring 2007 MSU Undergraduate Ethnographic Field School, please contact Fred Roberts at robertsf@msu.edu; 928 776-1149). As Dr. Roberts will be in Prescott during Fall ’06, you may also obtain information about the field school (including applications) from the on-campus Assistant Director, James S. Bielo (bielojam@msu.edu; 353-4600; 324 Baker Hall). Applications and deposits should be given to Mr. Bielo. There will be a required on-campus orientation meeting of all field school students with Dr. Roberts during Finals Week of the Fall semester.