Ayla Schwartz has contributed greatly to research activities in the MSU Bioarchaeology Laboratory directed by Dr. Gabriel Wrobel. With majors in Anthropology and Neuroscience and a minor in Environment and Health, Schwartz’s interests within bioarchaeology include skeletal indicators of stress, and digital imaging and 3D modeling of artifacts and human skeletal remains.

During her undergraduate career, Schwartz was engaged in several projects in the MSU Bioarchaeology Laboratory under the mentorship of Dr. Wrobel. Her primary research endeavors have focused on investigating lines of increased bone density, referred to as Harris lines, seen in the ends of long bones with computed tomography (CT). Visible only in CTs and X-rays, Harris lines are traditionally considered to be signs of growth interruption and interpreted as signs of stress from juvenile malnutrition, disease, or trauma. In collaboration with the MSU Institute for Quantitative Health Science and Engineering, Schwartz learned how to work with CTs and explored the three-dimensional topography of Harris lines within long bones. By better understanding the morphology and manifestation of Harris lines, Schwartz seeks to contribute to how they are analyzed and interpreted when observed in skeletal remains. Schwartz received a College of Social Science Provost Undergraduate Research Initiative (PURI) Grant for this project, presented her research at several research symposia on campus, and is currently publishing her findings.

After graduating with high honors this past spring, Schwartz will focus on several pursuits this year as she continues working with Dr. Wrobel in the MSU Bioarchaeology Laboratory. In addition to furthering her research, she will obtain her Geographic Information Systems (GIS) certification and prepare for graduate school with the aim of earning a graduate degree in bioarchaeology.

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Lulu Nestor discovered her passion for peace and justice work at MSU through her focus on sociocultural anthropology and peace and justice studies. During her first year, Nestor learned about the work of the Lansing violence de-escalation and unarmed civilian accompaniment nonprofit, Meta Peace Team (MPT), in Dr. Elizabeth Drexler’s Peace and Justice Studies class. This organization trains people in violence de-escalation and sends out teams of trained civilians to keep peace at potentially violent situations, such as protests. Nestor interned with MPT, serving as a board member and part of several committees including MPT’s international committee, which places unarmed civilian accompaniment internationally. During the pandemic, she was also involved in developing the MPT de-escalation training for MSU students and staff tasked with upholding Covid prevention protocols.

Nestor’s interests in social justice issues have guided her research activities. Working with Dr. Stephen Gasteyer of the Sociology Department, Nestor was engaged in a research project that examined the ways in which communities are currently using alternatives to policing. In this research, she worked with community leaders and carried out interviews, participant observation, and an extensive literature review. Nestor has conducted several additional research projects over her undergraduate career at MSU, including an ethnography of a sanctuary church.

Nestor received the College of Social Science’s Outstanding Senior Award for Anthropology, which is an honor presented to graduating seniors who have demonstrated exemplary academic and extracurricular successes, and a strong sense of leadership, commitment, and dedication to MSU. After graduating this past spring with her major in Anthropology and minors in Peace and Justice Studies and Leadership of Organizations, she accepted a fulltime position managing fundraising at Meta Peace Team. She is excited to continue furthering this organization’s efforts in teaching methods of nonviolence for a more peaceful world.

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When she first learned about forensic anthropology, Savannah Holcombe found that the field instantly resonated with her. At MSU, Holcombe followed her interests in forensic anthropology and became actively engaged in the MSU Forensic Anthropology Laboratory (MSUFAL) working with Dr. Joseph Hefner. In addition to her anthropology classes and experiences in the MSUFAL, Holcombe highly valued her coursework for her minor in African American and African Studies.

As an undergraduate research assistant, Holcombe worked with Dr. Hefner in the MSU Macromorphoscopic Laboratory on several projects. She received a College of Social Science Dean’s Assistantship to support a study that investigated sexual dimorphism in the human shoulder girdle through geometric morphometric analysis of the scapula. Holcombe’s research on quantifying sexual dimorphism in the morphology of the scapula contributes to efforts of estimating biological sex from the skeleton, which can aid in the identification of unknown human remains. Under the mentorship of Dr. Hefner and PhD student Micayla Spiros, Holcombe compared two methods of measurement to investigate which had the lowest error rates for sex estimation of the human scapula. She presented her research at the annual University Undergraduate Research and Arts Forum (UURAF) and is preparing an article for publication.

In the fall, Holcombe will begin the master’s program in Forensic and Biological Anthropology at Mercyhurst University, where she is looking forward to expanding her knowledge, gaining more hands-on experience, and delving further into her research interests. After earning her master’s degree, she intends to pursue a PhD and ultimately teach at a university while dually consulting on forensic casework.

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Underlying Isabel Hershey’s educational pursuits has been her dedication for human rights and intersectional social justice. Hershey earned dual degrees in Anthropology and the Arts and Humanities, as well as three minors in Peace and Justice Studies, Human Behavior and Social Services, and Latin American and Caribbean Studies. Drawing on her multifaceted interests, Hershey worked with Dr. Elizabeth Drexler on two related research projects both supported by College of Social Science Provost’s Undergraduate Research Initiative (PURI) awards. One study focused on how art moves audiences affectively in terms of human rights and justice projects, and the other examined representations of structural violence through a photovoice project.

The latter study was conducted this past year during the pandemic, which propelled an increasing awareness of the structural violence that persists nationally and internationally. As artists have continued to expose systemic inequity through their creative work, Hershey’s and Dr. Drexler’s research project explored the relationship between artistic activism and structural violence during this global pandemic. Using the photovoice method, Hershey engaged with community members who took photos in response to prompts about structural violence. She then analyzed certain themes and their connections to the photographs. Hershey presented her findings at the University Undergraduate Research and Arts Forum (URAF) and created an exhibit of these images representing community voices.

This coming school year, Hershey will be working in Flint, MI with the Crim Fitness Center as a FoodCorps Service Member. While teaching students about nutrition, she will also be studying for the LSAT and applying to law schools with human rights/civil rights programs. With a J.D., she hopes to be an advocate for her community and promote access to education for all.

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Dr. Sabrina Perlman’s dissertation research took place over fourteen months in Kumasi, Ghana, where she was a participant observer, carried out interviews, and collected biomarker data from medical records in an urban public hospital’s diabetes clinic. Under the mentorship of Drs. Heather Howard and Masako Fujita, she produced a dissertation titled “Diabetes, Gender, and Poverty in Ghana”. Her dissertation tells the story of diabetes in Ghana through the voices of the clinic’s patients and healthcare providers contending with the challenges of self-management in a context of gender inequality and intersectionality of multiple disadvantages.

Dr. Perlman’s work significantly contributes to understanding the escalation of non-communicable disease in West Africa and globally through the anthropological lens of chronicity theory, which views systems of disadvantage as chronic conditions that exacerbate negative health outcomes. Her research provides perspective on the impacts of diabetes on patients’ ability to fulfill gendered expectations in the areas of sexuality and physical work, revealing how these result in distress and worsened economic states. Her focus on women’s experiences broadens understanding of female sexual dysfunction resulting from diabetic illness, and fills a gap in the literature which is almost exclusively focused on male complications and impacts on masculinities. Dr. Perlman’s research has important policy implications for chronic illness management in resource-poor environments.

Since graduating in 2020, Dr. Perlman has taken a position as Research Project Manager at Kaiser Permanente Bernard J. Tyson School of Medicine. In this role, she works with students and physician faculty members to develop research projects, encouraging their thinking about gender, race, class, disability, and other human conditions that intersect with health outcomes.

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Dr. Jeffrey Painter has played a key role in the Morton Village Project, led by his former advisor Dr. Jodie O’Gorman, throughout his graduate career. His dissertation, “Cooking and Coalescence: Exploring the Construction of Community and Cuisine at Morton Village,” investigates foodways practices at this site located in the central Illinois River valley. Dr. Painter developed his research to explore the role cooking plays in local and immigrant communities in post-migration contexts of the ancient past. Using a broad foodways perspective, he examined residue patterns on pottery to identify cooking techniques. His analyses of the pottery’s physical and symbolic attributes and spatial considerations significantly contribute to understanding the role of cooking in inter-cultural negotiations, as well as the larger process of coalescence.

Dr. Painter’s case study at the Morton Village archaeological site supports the interpretation that, while actively using material culture and foodways to build solidarity and create shared traditions, neither group adopted the cooking traditions of the other wholesale. Additionally, he discusses how foodways may have also served as one avenue through which migrants could partake in local social and political dynamics of the region. His dissertation demonstrates the benefits of an approach to coalescence focusing on foodways and other everyday behaviors in addition to more large-scale practices. 

As a graduate student, Dr. Painter was active in the Campus Archaeology Program conducting field and lab work and public outreach. He was also a Cultural Heritage Informatics Fellow and co-created Archaeology 101, an interactive educational website for elementary and middle school students. Upon earning his PhD in 2021, Dr. Painter has recently accepted a federal position as the archaeologist for the Natural Resources Conservation Service branch of the USDA in New Hampshire.

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Dr. Jessica Ott came to MSU with a background in public health focused on HIV and gender-based violence prevention. From her first course to the completion of her dissertation in 2020, she expanded her theoretical analysis as she engaged with new perspectives on anthropological analysis of violence and rights, as well as with questions of history and memory. Drawing on this knowledge, Dr. Ott articulated incisive questions and considered what they would mean on the ground in terms of gender and rights in Tanzania.

Dr. Ott’s dissertation, titled “Women’s rights in repetition: nation building, solidarity, and Islam in Zanzibar”, is a theoretically innovative examination of the historical continuities and discontinuities between three women’s rights movements in Zanzibar, extending from the late 1960s to the mid-late 2010s. Through her ethnographic and archival research, Dr. Ott’s work provides an empirically rich perspective on contemporary women’s rights and political advocacy. She suggests that contemporary women’s rights advocates are not translators, but rather strategists selecting among various perspectives and arguments that have roots in different historical periods. In praising Dr. Ott as a gifted writer, her mentor, Dr. Elizabeth Drexler, commends her ability to transform archival and ethnographic data into rich narratives filled with complex scenes and compelling individuals.

Currently, Dr. Ott is an Assistant Scientist within the Health Systems Program in the Department of International Health at Johns Hopkins University where she is continuing her analysis of social, political, historical, and cultural aspects of health.

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Dr. Jessica McLeod’s dissertation, “Living in Limbo: Western Immigrants’ Experiences in Japan as a Product of Japaneseness”, is described by her dissertation chair, Dr. Andrea Louie, as an important contribution to the existing literature on migration, Japaneseness, and intersectional identities. Dr. McLeod combined her experience as a foreigner who has lived in Japan with her expansive knowledge of the anthropology of Japanese and in-depth fieldwork to create a complex, nuanced ethnography.

Focusing on an understudied migrant population—Westerners who immigrate to and settle in Japan—Dr. McLeod used ethnographic interviews and participant observation to explore the ways Western immigrants’ obvious foreignnessbenefits them in the context of Japanese society. While roles and expectations are rigidly prescribed for Japanese people, she found that Westerners’ non-Japaneseness often exempts them from these norms, and functions as a “get out of jail free card” for behavioral faux pas (inadvertent and intentional). Dr. McLeod described Western immigrants in Japan as living in a permanently liminal space, never being able to fully belong due to restrictive immigration policies and race-based definitions of Japaneseness, but never able to fully disengage from the community they live in. However, despite this limbo state, many Westerners who settled in Japan ultimately found a welcome sense of freedom in this liminality.

After completing her PhD in 2021, Dr. McLeod is continuing her work as an editor and enjoying finally having the time to finish settling into her new apartment with her new husband, Ben, and their new kittens. Dr. McLeod is excited for future possibilities on the horizon, although whether they will be in editing, anthropology, or something else entirely will depend on her luck with the non-academic job market.

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Dr. Anna Martínez-Hume’s dissertation research, titled “Refractions of ‘Doing Good’: The State, Subjectivity, and NGO Health Workers in Maya Guatemala”, is described as innovative and compelling by her advisor, Dr. Linda Hunt. Based on interviews, observations, and document review conducted over five years, Dr. Martínez-Hume examines the shifting position and commitment of Mayan NGO healthcare workers in the context of a radically fluctuating socio-political environment. In this setting, perspectives of NGOs have transmuted from relying on them for healthcare delivery of underserved communities, to withdrawing support from these NGOs and viewing them as corrupt and exploitive.

Using subjectivity theory to examine the complex interplay between personal identity, organizational context, and changing political-economic conditions, Dr. Martínez-Hume provides intimate insight into evolving personal commitment, revised agendas, and adaptive strategies behind the continued engagement of Indigenous NGO workers. These insights extend well beyond Guatemala to other contexts where public support for healthcare is waning, and where healthcare delivery is increasingly reliant on the ability of local actors to remain engaged and effectively strategize around shrinking public support. Dr. Martínez-Hume’s creative use of the subjectivity framework pushes this approach to illuminate specifically how large shifts in socio-political context may manifest in on-the-ground actions, perceptions, and experiences of actors striving to address needs of the communities they serve.

Dr. Martínez-Hume recently won the 2021 Rita S. Gallin Award for Best Graduate Paper on Women and Gender in Global Perspective for her paper entitled, “‘I’ve Lived It in My Own Flesh’: Empowerment, Feminist Solidarity and NGO Worker Subjectivity in Maya Guatemala.” Dr. Martínez-Hume is currently a Research Associate within the Center for Healthy Communities at Michigan Public Health Institute where she works on multiple public health research projects as an applied medical anthropologist, particularly in the area of Native American health and wellness.

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