Department Newsletter Fall 2024
Dig. Sift. Map.
Doctoral students lead research in labs and in the field around the world, including Tewabe Kessaw (left) holding a one-million-year-old handaxe at Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania, and Grace Ellis (foreground, above) surveying at Macurany port site on the Amazon River in Brazil.
Quicklinks
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Michael Pante
- Professor and Chair
Message From Our Chair
Dear Friends,
I am excited to greet you all as the new Chair of the Department of Anthropology and Geography as we kick off the 2024-25 academic year! In case we have not crossed paths, I am Dr. Michael Pante, a biological anthropologist in the department since 2013, and our most recent faculty member promoted to the rank of Full Professor. I am also a paleoanthropologist who studies the origin and evolution of human carnivory at the world-renowned heritage site, Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania. My more recent work has also taken me to Europe to investigate evidence of human cannibalism in the archaeological record. This past summer, I returned to Olduvai with two CSU doctoral students whose research is focused on the behavioral and technological transition associated with the appearance of a new human ancestor in the region 1.6 million years ago.
The start of my Chair term also marks the end of an era, as our previous Chair, Dr. Mica Glantz, returns to her role of Professor after 11 years leading the Department. Dr. Glantz had many accomplishments in her time as Chair, including a new Ph.D program in Anthropology and an undergraduate B.S. degree in Geography, the first and only program in the College of Liberal Arts to receive the B.S. designation. Along with our entire department, I am grateful for everything Dr. Glantz achieved, and I am happy she will enjoy a well-deserved and overdue sabbatical this year!
As chair, I am looking forward to building on our department’s track record and reputation for exceptional research productivity and high-impact student learning experiences. I am especially interested in offering new and exciting undergraduate programs and investing in our already successful graduate programs to elevate our department’s standing among our peer institutions.
My term coincides with a major transition for our department, as construction is underway on the new B-wing of the Andrew G. Clark Building. For the next few years, we are temporarily located in the General Services Building at 1251 Mason Street. We look forward to moving into our new classrooms and lab spaces once construction is complete and are thrilled that we will occupy highly trafficked areas in the new building increasing both our department’s visibility and footprint within the college.
The Department of Anthropology and Geography will also reach its 50th anniversary next year presenting an exciting opportunity to celebrate a long history of academic and scholarly achievements. It is also a time to look towards the future and define a strategic plan to carry us through the next 50 years. We will be announcing events for our alumni, current and emerita faculty, and students to commemorate the occasion, so please stay tuned!
I look forward to meeting many of you over the course of this year. Please feel free to drop by my office in Room 367 of the General Services Building or to reach out and say hello at michael.pante@colostate.edu.
Thank you all for your prior and continued commitment to our department,
Michael
Department Highlights
Van Buren Publishes Silver “Thieves,” Tin Barons, and Conquistadors
In her new book, Silver “Thieves,” Tin Barons, and Conquistadors (University of Arizona Press, 2024), Professor Mary Van Buren examines and writes on the cultural and economic consequences of artisanal and large-scale mining in Bolivia and the history of the country’s independent mine workers. Van Buren, who has completed long-term research on Bolivian mining through her career, highlights how mining relied on a historically forced labor system of Indigenous people that began under colonial regimes, with impacts on people’s livelihoods and the environment today.
READ more about Van Buren’s book and our 2020 story about her research
Chennault Named Engaged Humanities Faculty Fellow
Assistant Professor of Geography Carrie Chennault has been named a Faculty Fellow by the Joe Blake Center for Engaged Humanities. Chennault, whose research focuses on prison farming and agriculture systems and environmental and food justice, will collect stories from incarcerated and formerly incarcerated people about their experiences with prison food systems. Chennault also co-leads the CSU Prison Agriculture Lab, with Sociology Assistant Professor Joshua Sbicca.
READ more about the Blake Center and faculty fellows
End of an Era: Looking Back on the Glantz Years
After 11 years as chair, Professor Mica Glantz leaves a legacy of growth and adaptation for CSU Anthropology and Geography. During Glantz’s tenure, the department added a Ph.D. program, Geography major, and Museum Studies Certificate to grow its offerings and capacity while also weathering the pandemic and the first stages of the Clark Building move and reconstruction.
READ more about Glantz’s time as chair and accomplishments
Astute and Unafraid: Remembering Professor Emerita Ann Magennis
Professor Emerita Ann Magennis, an enduring and admired faculty member at Colorado State University Department of Anthropology and Geography, passed away on February 27, 2024, in Fort Collins, Colorado, following a brief illness. Magennis taught biological anthropology for CSU Anthropology from 1991 to 2017, including courses exploring human skeletal biology, human adaptation to disease and nutrition, and bioarchaeology. Through her career, she carried out fieldwork and research across Colorado and North America, Morocco, Tanzania, and Central and South America, supporting and collaborating with colleagues.
READ about Magennis’ life and legacy
Graduate Research Summer
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Katya Zhao: Summer 2024
Read More: Katya Zhao: Summer 2024Katya Zhao Summer 2024 Anthropology in the Temple People in the U.S. and other Western countries aren’t shy when it comes to borrowing Buddhist practices, like meditation and mindfulness practice, to find some inner peace. But what health benefits do Theravada, or Thai, Buddhists themselves get from their relationships to…
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Alex Pelissero: Summer 2024
Read More: Alex Pelissero: Summer 2024Alex Pelissero Summer 2024 Winning Awards and Droning to Study Early Humans Can drones help anthropologists look back in time to understand early humans’ migrations and encounters? Doctoral candidate Alex Pelissero is using drone technology to map sites of early human interactions at Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania — and earning…
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Grace Ellis: Summer 2024
Read More: Grace Ellis: Summer 2024Grace Ellis Summer 2024 Identifying Pre-contact Ports and Construction in the Amazon Doctoral candidate Grace Ellis is the lead author on a new archaeological study, published Spring 2024, that has identified the first known occurrence of pre-European-contact, constructed wharves at the port site, Macurany, located along the Middle Amazon River…
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Robert Madden: Summer 2024
Read More: Robert Madden: Summer 2024Robert Madden Summer 2024 How Past Cultures Rolled the Dice Master’s student Robert Madden studies and documents prehistoric, Indigenous North American games of chance, dice, and gambling. As part of that work, Madden visited archival repositories at the Smithsonian and the University of Wyoming during Summer 2024 to examine and…
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Aleah Kuhr: Summer 2024
Read More: Aleah Kuhr: Summer 2024Aleah Kuhr Summer 2024 Digging Into Porcupine Creek Nearly 45 years after Colorado State University faculty and students excavated at a Summit County archaeological site, Anthropology master’s student Aleah Kuhr and others are revisiting the area and findings. Kuhr and fellow students working with Professor Jason LaBelle and the CSU…
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Tewabe Negash Kessaw: Summer 2024
Read More: Tewabe Negash Kessaw: Summer 2024Tewabe Negash Kessaw Summer 2024 Bones to Pick about Surviving a Supervolcano A study published March 2024 in the journal Nature shares the discovery of a “trove” of 74,000-year-old stone points and fossil bones in Ethiopia that demonstrates the adaptability of early humans following a major disaster. Doctoral student Tewabe…
More News & Accomplishments
Welcome Dean Thorson!
Kjerstin Thorson has been appointed the next dean of the College of Liberal Arts, beginning this August. Thorson previously served as the Brandt Endowed Professor of Political Communication in the Department of Advertising & Public Relations and the School of Journalism at Michigan State University.
Yarrington: Wildfires Make Climate Refugees Too
Assistant Professor Jonna Yarrington, who studies climate impacts on human populations, shared her insights with Colorado Public Radio about the displacement and evacuations of Colorado residents amid the summer’s Front Range wildfires and the rise of climate-change-stoked, big burns in the state.
Clark B Bridge Demolished!
The B-wing of the Clark Building is no more! Construction crews demolished the bridge this summer, removing the long-time department offices of CSU Anthropology and Geography. A four-story building is scheduled to eventually replace it; for now, demolition and other work continues this fall.
READ MORE and do a virtual flyover of the revitalized Clark plans
Kwiatkowski: Investigating Domestic Abuse in Vietnam
Professor of Cultural Anthropology Lynn Kwiatkowski received a 2024 CSU College of Liberal Arts Ann Gill Faculty Development Award to support her research into the sociocultural dynamics affecting the well-being of Vietnamese women who are victims of domestic abuse. Kwiatkowski is continuing her research during a 2024-25 sabbatical.
More News & Notes
- Cheers to our Class of 2024 graduating students and a special shout out to Anthropology major Helen Obuna (’24) who was named an Outstanding Grad for Spring 2024 Commencement READ MORE
- Congratulations to our graduate students who defended their theses and proposals in 2024!
- Gregorius Afioma “Political Dimensions of Livelihood Transformation of the Indigenous Ata Modo People in Komodo National Park, Indonesia” | Advisor: Dr. Kathleen Galvin
- Kimberly Biela “Fingerprints in the Clay: A Comprehensive Analysis of Indigenous Ceramics from Rio Blanco County, Colorado“ | Advisor: Dr. Jason LaBelle
- Lia Kitteringham “Circles, Birds, and Soil: Experience Across the Itinerary of Pinson’s Eastern Enclosure” | Advisor: Dr. Edward Henry
- Spencer Little “Unbelievably Deep: A Chronological Assessment of the Hells Midden Site (5MF16), Castle Park, Colorado” | Advisor: Dr. Jason LaBelle
- Hope Radford “Seeds of Consciousness: Sowing Change from the Ecuadorian Highlands” | Advisor: Dr. Lynn Kwiatkowski
- Kayla Rohde “Historical Archaeology and Public History“ | Advisor: Dr. Mary Van Buren
- Zoe Shaw “Unpacking the Trunk: Pelvic-Thoracic Relationships in Modern Homo sapiens” | Advisor: Dr. Mica Glantz
- Congratulations to doctoral candidate Alex Pelissero who won a $17,000 dissertation fieldwork grant from the Leakey Foundation and an $8,000 National Science Foundation research grant to support his summer research at Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania! Outstanding recognition, Alex!
- Congratulations to Spring 2024 student presenters at the Multicultural Undergraduate Research Art and Leadership Symposium (MURALS) 2024 Symposium. including Victoria Silva (ANTH minor ’24) who won the Overall Award for their project, “A Mobile Home Community’s Struggle: 2024 Update,” and Rachel Winter (ANTH: Biological BA ’24) who won the Rams’ Choice Award in the STEMM category for the poster, “Haplorhine Nocturnality: Comparative Selection in Two Exceptional Primates.”
- Thanks to alumni and students who participated in our Spring 2024 Anthropology and Geography Alumni Career Panel on campus this past March! Much, much gratitude to alumni Michael Brydge (ANTH: Cultural BA 2010; ANTH MA 2012), Ben Hurt (GR BS 2021), Erin Leifeld (ANTH: Archaeology BA 2006, ANTH MA 2010), Morgan Lundy (ANTH MA 2022), Andrea Mader (ANTH: Cultural BA 2011, ANTH MA 2013), and Michael Wilson, M.D. (ANTH BA 1980) and to our student moderators Caiden Green (GR) and Madison Hylland (ANTH) for making this an excellent event and get together!
- Our summer field schools logged another successful season in 2024 for participating students! The Paleontology Field School, led by Associate Teaching Professor Kim Nichols and Dr. Thomas Bown, returned to the Wyoming badlands for fossil surveys and prospecting. The Archaeology Field School, led by Dr. Edward Henry, took place at Pinson Mounds State Archaeological Park in western Tennessee.
- The department’s Anthropology and Geography Trunk Show provided activities and programs to 15 different school and community groups in 2023-24 reaching more than 500 students! LEARN MORE
- KEEP UP with all faculty research, publications, grants, media appearances, and speaking engagements at our Department Scholarship page!
We’re Turning 50!
We are celebrating 50 years as a department and our even longer history on campus in 2025-26! Stay tuned for invites to Fall alumni and anniversary events as we recognize our evolution and achievements and set a course for our exciting next stage!
To kick things off, we hosted an Alumni & Friends reception this April during the Society for American Archaeology annual conference in Denver, with more than 120 alumni, friends, and colleagues coming out! Gratitude to the generations of alumni, faculty, and students who attended, especially emeritus faculty Dr. Calvin Jennings and Dr. Larry Todd! Thanks to our student volunteers and to our many partners on and off campus who made this event a success too!
Upcoming Events
- October 5 Rocky Mountain Biological Anthropology Association Annual Meeting, Springhill Suites Denver, Metro State University, Auraria Campus, Denver
- October 5 Trunk Show/ Gregory Allicar Museum Family Day, 10AM-Noon, 1400 Remington St.
- October 9 College of Liberal Arts All-College Meeting, 2-4:30PM, LSC Theatre
- October 16-20 Plains Anthropological Society Annual Meeting, Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada
- November 18-22 Geography Awareness Week
- November 20 Graduate Student Showcase
- November 20-23 American Anthropological Association Annual Meeting, Tampa, Florida
- November 25-29 Fall Break: University Closed
- December 4 Capstone Poster Symposium, 9-11AM LSC 302 (Longs Peak Room)
- December 9-13 Finals Week
- December 13 Fall 2024 Commencement
For more details and new events, visit our homepage
