Anthropology

Faculty-Student Research

Participating in research under the guidance of an Eckerd professor allows students to refine their interests and career goals while building valuable skills.

Many majors undertake collaborative field or lab research with Eckerd faculty. Participating in research under the guidance of an Eckerd professor allows students to refine their interests and career goals while building valuable skills. These experiences, which often involve international travel and intercultural engagement, provide an important foundation for future employment or postgraduate studies. The subfields below reflect the specialties of faculty in the anthropology program.

Select an anthropology subfield to see examples of faculty-student research projects.

Students at Eckerd find a variety of opportunities for joining faculty-led research on campus or abroad. Aside from independent projects and senior theses within the discipline, college-wide programs such as Ford Apprentice Scholars and Freshman Research Associateships exist to support undergraduate research.

Student Professional Conference

Presentations

Publications

Allison S. Harvey and Sarah A. Levithol (co-author, Prof. Allan Meyers)
2008 Houselot Refuse Disposal and Geochemistry at a Late 19th Century Hacienda Village in Yucatan, Mexico. Journal of Field Archaeology 33(4):371-388.

Anna Shaw ’16 (co-author Prof. Allan Meyers)
2015 Cat Island Heritage Project. Society for Historical Archaeology Newsletter 48(1):26-28.

Ford Scholars

The Ford Apprentice Scholars Program in Eckerd College was launched by a grant from the Ford Foundation in 1987, sustained by a second Ford grant in 1991 and is now supported by the College. Each year up to twenty rising Juniors are given the opportunity to participate in a two year course of study designed to prepare them for graduate school and to pursue a career in college or university teaching. Faculty select and sponsor the participants on the basis of academic achievement, intellectual promise, and a willingness to explore college teaching as career. The program involves special coursework, summer research in collaboration with a faculty sponsor, a major project during the Senior year, and supervised teaching experience.

Laura Winters ’16 of Rochester, Minnesota, is an Anthropology major with a minor in Biology. Laura took classes abroad at Eckerd’s London Study Centre in Fall 2013, and she participated in service learning during winter 2014. As Ford Scholar, she anticipates undertaking a research project related to medical anthropology or biological anthropology. Her faculty sponsor is Professor Allan Meyers.

Cecily Bacon ’15 of Cincinnati, Ohio, is an Anthropology and International Studies double major with a minor in Spanish. Cecily is works at the college writing center, and she is a member of both the Eckerd College Homeless Outreach program (ECHO) and Student Voices for Planned Parenthood. She participated in archaeological field research in The Bahamas during winter 2013, and she plans to study abroad in Peru in spring 2014. Her faculty sponsor in the Ford program is Professor Allan Meyers.

Dustin Smith ’15 of Rocky River, Ohio, is an Anthropology and International Business double major, with a minor in Spanish. As an Eckerd student, Dustin has studied abroad in Europe and Southeast Asia, and she plans to study abroad in Peru in spring 2014. As Ford Scholar, she intends to undertake a research project on business policy and practice in Latin America. Her faculty sponsor in the Ford program is Professor Morris Shapero.

Ellie Finkenaur ’15 of Phoenixville, Pennsylvania, is an Anthropology and Spanish double major. She is an active performance artist on campus and she volunteers at a local high school. She studied Spanish language intensively in Spain during the 2013 winter term, and she plans to undertake an ethnographic research project in Mexico or another Latin American country as a Ford Scholar. Her faculty sponsor in the Ford program is Professor Yolanda Molina-Gavilan.

Karyn Paradis ’14
A native of New Hartford, Connecticut, Karyn is an Anthropology major and a French minor. Karyn’s Ford Scholar research explores nautical iconography on the ruins of several British colonial plantation sites in The Bahamas. She conducted archaeological field research in summer 201 3 to map a ruined settlement and document all extant drawings of period sailing ships, including sloops and schooners. Her senior thesis involves developing a classification scheme of the nautical images, which are largely unique to slave sites in the Bahamian archipelago. Her faculty sponsor in the Ford program is Professor Scot Burnett.

Lorel Schmitzberger ’14
Hailing from Lakeland, Florida, Lorel is an Anthropology and International Studies double major with a minor in German. Lorel’s Ford Scholar project explores the integration of Middle-Eastern immigrants in German society. She conducted survey research among immigrant communities in the city of Trier, Germany, during summer 2013. Her faculty sponsor in the Ford program is Professor Allan Meyers.

Miranda Watrous ’14
A native of Concord, New Hampshire, Miranda is an Anthropology and French double major with a minor in Human Development. Miranda’s research explores traditional farming practices and coastal subsistence adaptations in The Bahamas. She conducted ethnographic fieldwork with farmers on Cat Island during summer 2013. Her faculty sponsor in the Ford program is Professor Allan Meyers.

Rachel Chamberlain ’11
Rachel’s Ford Scholar research explored public health policies in Brazil. She is currently a doctoral student in medical anthropology at the University of Pittsburgh. Her faculty sponsor in the Ford program was Professor Scott Burnett.

Whitney Neugebauer ’09
Whitney graduated with an Anthropology and Geosciences double major. Her project explored geochemical signatures at an archaeological site in Yucatan, Mexico. Whitney recently completed a master’s degree in Marine and Environmental Affairs at the University of Washington. Her faculty sponsor in the Ford program was Professor Allan Meyers.

Grace Gair ’08
Grace graduated with a double major in Anthropology and International Relations, with a minor in Spanish. Her Ford Scholar project assessed the implementation of university honor codes. After departing Eckerd, Grace held a Fulbright teaching fellowship in Korea, and she completed graduate studies at the Hertie School in Berlin, Germany.

Sarah Levithol ’08
Sarah, an Anthropology major, conducted an archaeological survey of an historic hacienda in Yucatan, Mexico, as a Ford Scholar. She is currently a doctoral candidate, specializing in the archaeology of the ancient Maya, at Vanderbilt University. Her faculty sponsor in the Ford program was Professor Allan Meyers.