UGA Research article, "Pivoting during a pandemic: Fieldwork in the time of COVID" written by PhD student, Linda Kosen, features Dr. Julie Velásquez Runk and PhD student, David Hecht. The article discusses the obstacles and changes researchers have faced during the Covid-19 pandemic. 

Congratulations to Dr. Amanda Roberts Thompson on earning her Doctor of Philosophy in Archaeology from the University of York! Amanda recently successfully defended her dissertation titled, "People, Place, and Taskscapes of Enslavement: African American Life on the South End Plantation, Ossabaw Island, Georgia, 1849-1861." Amanda currently serves as the Operations Director at the Laboratory of Archaeology. 

Congratulations to PhD student, Suneel Kumar, on being awarded a Dissertation Fieldwork Grant by The Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research!

The U.S. Department of State and the Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board awarded PhD student, Christina Lee, a 2020-2021 Fulbright U.S. Student Program award to Ecuador. Christina will conduct her research at the Universidad del Azuay where she will take part in a project to understand the impact of globalization on adolescent physical activity preferences and behaviors in rural Ecuador. Read more about Christina's Fulbright Award here. Congratulations Christina!

My research focuses on utilizing multiple lines of evidence (including compositional, ceramic stylistic, and lithic analyses) to reconstruct interactive networks and model socio-cultural boundaries at various scales in the past.

My multi-scalar and multi-disciplinary research explores long-term social, cultural, and ecological dynamics during prehistory, with a specific focus on the transformative role of population aggregation and disintegration in early farming societies of Southeast Europe.

I obtained my BA in Anthropology and Classics (with emphasis in Classical Culture and Greek) from the University of Georgia in 2018. In my undergraduate studies, I specialized in archaeology with a focus in bioarchaeology. Through UGA I earned a Certificate in the Archaeological Sciences and I had the opportunity to attend a NSF-REU program based in Sicily where I studied human remains from the Greek colony of Himera. My research project there was focused on assessing locality status of 24 individuals, who were buried in two distinct traditions, using strontium isotope analysis.

I am originally from a rural town in South Dakota where the vast nature surrounding our home instilled within me a fascination with wildlife and the role that humans play in a natural landscape. Later, I sought a change of scenery and moved to California where I received my B.A. in Biological Anthropology in 2014 from the University of California, San Diego. As an undergrad I studied abroad in Kenya for a summer with the Rutger’s University Primate Behavior, Wildlife Ecology and Conservation Field School.

I received my M.A. in anthropology from The University of Southern Mississippi in 2012, with a focus on bioarchaeology.  My husband and I moved to Athens in 2015, and we have two daughters and many animals. I have been working with The UGA Laboratory of Archaeology since early 2019, primarily conducting NAGPRA-related research. 

With Fall semester right around the corner, we would like to extend a special congratulations to our Spring and Summer 2020 PhD graduates!

Dr. Justin Cramb successfully defended his dissertation,“Manihiki and Rakahanga: The Historical Ecology of a Dual-Atoll Cluster” this past spring. He is currently working with UGA's Center for Applied Isotope Studies, providing primary logistical design support, web design/management, outreach, and data management.