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Dr. Stacey Camp edited a special edition of The SAA Archaeological Record featuring articles from current and graduated Ph.D. students
MSU Department of Anthropology Associate Professor and MSU Campus Archaeology Program Director, Dr. Stacey Camp edited a special edition of The Society of American Archaeology Archaeological Record that features many different US-based Campus Archaeology Programs, including the MSU Campus Archaeology Program. There are several articles in this volume that include our current and graduated Ph.D. students, and the cover of the publication features MSU’s campus, our students, and our MSU Campus Archaeology Program staff. Dr. Camp wrote the introduction; Jack Biggs, Jeff Burnett, Rhian Dunn, Emily Milton, and Amber Plemons wrote an article titled: “The Campus Archaeology Program at Michigan State University:…
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Dr. Mara Leichtman publishes in The Muslim World
MSU Department of Anthropology Associate Professor Dr. Mara Leichtman recently published an article in a special issue of The Muslim World, titled “Centering Muslims in Global Humanitarianism and Development”. Dr. Leichtman’s article, “Da‘wa as Development: Kuwaiti Islamic Charity in East and West Africa” examines the work of one transnational Islamic charity headquartered in Kuwait in two very different African countries. Read the full article at: DOI:10.1111/muwo.12423 Abstract: “Direct Aid (formerly Africa Muslims Agency), Kuwait’s largest charity focused on Africa, carefully mediates between Gulf donor wishes, aid recipient needs, Kuwaiti and African government regulations, and various development priorities. Since the 1980s, Direct Aid…
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Dr. Kurt Rademaker publishes in Ñawpa Pacha (Journal of the Institute of Andean Studies) on “Sayrosa, a Minor Obsidian Source in the Puna of Arequipa”
MSU Department of Anthropology Assistant Professor Dr. Kurt Rademaker and co-authors Dr. Richard Burger (Yale University), Eisei Tsurumi (University of Tokyo), Matthew Boulanger (Southern Methodist University), Véronique Bélisle (Millsaps College), and Michael D. Glascock (University of Missouri) report the discovery and geochemical characterization of a new source of obsidian in southern Peru. The team tracks the transfer of this obsidian across the Andes to multiple archaeological sites in the valley of Cusco. This research provides new information on past use of geologic resources and reveals ancient social connections across the Andean highlands. Read the full article at: https://doi.org/10.1080/00776297.2022.2029157 Abstract: “This…
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Graduate Students in Anthropology organization (GSA) hosts 6th Annual GSA Symposium.
Each spring, the Graduate Students in Anthropology organization (GSA) hosts the GSA Annual Symposium. This year, the 6th installment of the GSA symposium was held as a virtual/in-person hybrid event on February 11, 2022. The GSA Annual Symposium is not only an exciting showcase of current research within the department, but also a chance for faculty and students across the sub-fields to connect and share their work, promoting invaluable discussion and collaboration. This year, the symposium featured 14 faculty members and graduate students from sociocultural anthropology, archaeology, medical anthropology, forensic anthropology, and physical anthropology. The presentations highlighted the variety of…
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Dr. Heather Howard and doctoral student Livy Drexler awarded Spencer Foundation Grant
Department of Anthropology Associate Professor Heather Howard and doctoral student Livy Drexler have been awarded a grant from the Spencer Foundation to carry out research for the project, “Special Education in Indian Country: Challenges and Insights from Applying Indigenous Models of Disability in Schools.” Indigenous children are overrepresented in special education programs and are 15% more likely than other groups to be tracked into special education programs. Yet, there has been little examination of the experiences of Indigenous students in special education nor of the intersection of Indigenous and disability identities. The research will explore this intersectionality by examining if…
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Dr. Carolyn Isaac, doctoral student Clara Devota, and MSU Anthropology alumni publish in the International Journal of Legal Medicine on an online database for skeletal injuries
Department of Anthropology Assistant Professor Dr. Carolyn Isaac, doctoral student Clara Devota, and MSU Anthropology alumni Dr. Jered Cornelison and Erica Christensen, M.S., recently published an article in the International Journal of Legal Medicine entitled: “The Repository of Antemortem Injury Response (REPAIR): an online database for skeletal injuries of known ages”. The article discusses the importance of The Repository of Antemortem Injury Response (REPAIR) as a reference for forensic casework, an educational tool, and database for research on dating fractures and healing rates. Read the full article at: https://rdcu.be/cEyZy Abstract: “An accurate assessment of time since fracture is an essential component of abuse and…
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Dr. Gabriel Wrobel publishes two articles in Ancient Mesoamerica on Maya Skeletal Remains
Department of Anthropology Associate Professor Gabriel Wrobel recently published two co-authored articles in Ancient Mesoamerica as part of a special issue called “The Preceramic and Early Ceramic Periods in Belize and the Central Maya Lowlands.” Ancient Mesoamerica is a flagship journal for Mesoamerican archaeology published by Cambridge Press, and both articles are open access, through an agreement between the MSU Library and Cambridge Press. The first article is titled “Life And Death Among The Earliest Maya: A Review Of Early And Middle Preclassic Burials From The Maya World”, and is co-authored by Dr. Raúl Alejandro López Pérez (Universidad Autónoma de…
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The MSU Forensic Anthropology Lab moves to Giltner Hall
During the summer of 2021, the Michigan State University Forensic Anthropology Lab (MSUFAL), moved from its longtime home in East Fee Hall to a new laboratory and teaching space in Giltner Hall. The move has been bittersweet, due to the history of groundbreaking research and fruitful collaborations that were forged in East Fee Hall, but the new lab in Giltner offers the opportunity to expand the consulting, training, and research for which MSUFAL is known. The MSUFAL has been an integral part of the MSU landscape since the 1970s, providing a variety of forensic services including forensic archaeological recovery, decedent…
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Dr. Heather Howard-Bobiwash team awarded Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Public Policy Research to Advance Racial Equity and Racial Justice grant.
MSU investigators Claire Margerison (Department of Epidemiology & Biostatistics), Danielle Gartner (Department of Epidemiology & Biostatistics, Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians) and Heather Howard-Bobiwash (Department of Anthropology) were recently awarded a grant under the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Public Policy Research to Advance Racial Equity and Racial Justice program for their proposal entitled “Assessing whether Indigenous women of reproductive age had equitable access to and use of health care under the Affordable Care Act.” As a group, Indigenous pregnant and birthing persons experience high rates of morbidity and mortality while they also often hold citizenship in sovereign Indigenous…
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Dr. Kurt Rademaker publishes in Quaternary International on the Alca obsidian source (Peru)
Department of Anthropology Assistant Professor Kurt Rademaker recently published an article in Quaternary International. The article is titled “Comprehensive mapping and compositional analysis of the Alca obsidian source, Peru.” The article discusses the extent and composition of the Alca obsidian source as well as behavioral information about the humans who interacted with this obsidian source over a 12,000 year span. Read the full article at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2021.11.029 Abstract: “The Alca obsidian source in southern Peru is one of the largest and most geochemically complex sources of volcanic glass in South America. Hunter-gatherers first discovered and used Alca obsidian for stone tools…