Dr. Ellen Elizabeth Foley graduated from MSU in 2002 with a PhD in Anthropology and African Studies. Following graduation, she conducted a post-doc at University of Pennsylvania. In 2009 she received a Fulbright to study HIV and sexual politics in Senegal. She is currently a tenured professor at Clark University in International Development and Social Change, and is currently conducting action-research in Worcester, MA on urban youth and gang violence prevention. Most recently, Dr. Foley published “Your Pocket is What Cures You: The Politics of Health in Senegal”, a book that focuses on the implementation of global health policies, and how these are entangled with social and political inequalities in Senegal.

Dr. Marcy Hessling O’Neil received her PhD from the Department of Anthropology in December 2012, and her dissertation focused on the role that higher education plays in family relationships among students at the University of Abomey-Calavi in Cotonou, Benin. She is teaching courses for the Peace and Justice Specialization at MSU and advises undergraduate students. Dr. O’Neil is the Director of Monitoring and Evaluation for the Youth Entrepreneurs Partners (YEP), which won the Fulbright Alumni Innovation Fund. This helps young entrepreneurs in Benin to create business plans that will be funded by YEP’s microfinance partners. In September 2013, Dr. O’Neil was invited to the UN General Assembly for two meetings related to the Millennium Development goals, and plans to return to Benin next year.

Dr. Michael French Smith graduated from MSU in 1970. Thanks to the advice and support of Dr. Bernard Gallin and Dr. Ralph Nicholas, he went on to do a PhD in Cultural Anthropology at the University of California. While there, he had the  good fortune to fall in with Dr. Theodore Schwartz, and was taken as his research assistant in 1973. Dr. Smith went back to Papua New Guinea in 1975-76 to do dissertation research and continued his work there after he received his degree in 1978. The result has been three books on cultural and economic change in Kragur Village. Recently, he gave an Anthropology Brown Bag on his book: “A Faraway, Familiar Place: An Anthropologist Returns to Papua New Guinea”.

Kimya Massey  is an alumni of the Anthropology program, and is currently the Associate Athletic Director for Academic Services at the University of Central Florida. Massey works with student-athletes to determine what academic resources they need to be successful, including tutoring, mentoring and academic advising. She learned many lessons from her Anthropology classes and that training has served her well. Understanding the culture, language and customs of coaches, administration, students and parents is critical to communicating effectively and motivating others to be successful. Massey credits her success and love of Anthropology to Dr. Norman Sauer, Dr. Bill Derman and Dr. Todd Fenton. She is proud of her MSU education, and welcomes current students interested in collegiate athletics to contact her.

Joseph Podrasky graduated from the Department of Anthropology in 2011 and spent a year and a half studying in Morocco and Egypt, where he earned another degree in Arabic from MSU. After that, he travelled to Washington, DC and worked for an NGO focused on fostering democratic transitions in the Middle East. He received a 2013 Fulbright research grant to Egypt to study Nationalism in Popular music in Alexandria. Unfortunately, due to security issues, the Fulbright was cancelled. Joseph is still insistent on finding work with business associations in the Middle East as a way to understand the nexus of business and politics in the region and go on to grad school in order to research the role of business in the politics of Middle East.

Rebecca Richart graduated from MSU in 2012 with B.A. degrees in Anthropology, History, and Spanish, and a specialization in Latin American and Caribbean Studies.  After graduation, Rebecca served as an AmeriCorps VISTA for one year at the Backside Learning Center (BLC), which provides education, life skills development, and community activities for the equine workers of Churchill Downs. The Undergraduate Anthropology Club and mentoring from professors helped her grow intellectually, and her experience at BLC helped her explore her interests. In Fall 2013, Rebecca entered the Anthropology PhD program at the University of California, Irvine with numerous fellowships, and will study immigrant labor in the horse racing industry. Current undergraduates are welcome to contact her: rrichart@uci.edu.

[These articles are featured in the Winter 2014 Department of Anthropology Newsletter]

Students and faculty from the Department of Anthropology participate in numerous outreach events throughout the year. Here are some of the highlights.

On April 2013, MSU hosted its first ever Science Fest. The Department of Anthropology had three events including “Dig the Past” at Fenner Nature Center, “Hominid Evolution: What did our ancestors look like?”, and Campus Archaeology Program. Volunteers included Blair Zaid, Amy Michaels, Sylvia Deskaj, Katy Meyers, Sabrina Perlman, Kate Frederick, Julie Fleischman, Ashley Kendell, Nicole Geske, Emily Niespodziewanski, Jen Vollner and others.

At the end of July, MSU also hosted its annual Grandparents University, where grandparents and grandchildren get the chance to attend three days of classes and stay in a dorm. Over three days, the Department of Anthropology had two events including “Bones and the Law: Techniques of Forensic Anthropology” with volunteers Julie Fleischman, Ashley Kendell, Nicole Geske and Jen Vollner, and “Campus Archaeology Program” with volunteers Katy Meyers, Katie Scharra, Ryan Jelso, Josh Schnell, and Marie Schaefer.

On September 21, MSU Campus Archaeology hosted its first sessions of “Dig the Past” at the MSU Museum, and on October 26 for Michigan Archaeology day it held its second “Dig the Past”. “Dig the Past” is an education and engagement project created by Adrianne Daggett in which kids learn about archaeology. Visitors can dig, sift, and sort their way towards learning about how archaeology builds knowledge about the human past. The program involves hands-on activities for kids of all ages that occur once monthly during the academic year at the MSU Museum.

[This article is featured in the Winter 2014 Department of Anthropology Newsletter]

For senior undergraduate Bethany Slon, anthropology, and more specifically archaeology, has always been a passion.  For as long as she can remember, she was fascinated by ancient populations and what we can learn from archaeology. But it wasn’t until she began her freshman year at Michigan State University that she realized she could take that interest farther, turn it into a major and a career.

Bethany has taken advantage of opportunities to expand her knowledge of archaeology and help narrow down her interests.  During her junior year, she was an intern for the Campus Archaeology Program under the direction of Dr. Lynne Goldstein.  Bethany spent the fall semester in the archives, looking through old scrapbooks from the 1900s made by the female students of MSU, researching the history of Morrill Hall, and learning about the archaeological significance the building had on the campus.  She then presented her findings at the University Undergraduate Research and Arts Forum in the spring.  Additionally, she volunteered at archaeology events around campus, and helped to survey construction on campus to make sure nothing of significance was destroyed.

During Summer 2013, Bethany was a member of the Campus Archaeology Program summer archaeology crew. The team surveyed campus construction, excavated an old road outside of the MSU Museum, and conducted labwork to clean and catalog artifacts.

During June, she participated in a five week field school in Belize, during which she excavated within an ancient Maya burial cave and portions of a small Maya city. Under the direction of Dr. Gabriel Wrobel, she learned how to map caves, uncover delicate skeletons, identify pottery sherds, and properly set up an archaeological site. She spent her days hiking through the dense rainforest with  other Spartan peers and learning what it takes to become an archaeologist.

When Bethany got back to East Lansing, she began her funded undergraduate research project studying the teeth of the ancient Maya. In this study she is examining dental health in a Mayan population, in order to determine what kind of diet they ate, and how the population differs from others. In November she will present her findings at the Chacmool Conference for undergraduate and masters research in Calgary.

Bethany plans on attending graduate school next fall.  She wants to specialize in bioarchaeology, and hopes to continue her research on the ancient Maya.

[This article is featured in the Winter 2014 Department of Anthropology Newsletter]