A Natural Builder Presents "Earth, Art, and Fire: Reviving Traditions for Post-Industrial Dilemmas"

Kiko Denzer with one of his mud ovens.

CHESTERTOWN, MD—The Center for Environment & Society (CES) at Washington College will present “Earth, Art, and Fire: Reviving Traditions for Post-Industrial Dilemmas” by Kiko Denzer at Litrenta Lecture Hall in the Toll Science Center at Washington College on Tuesday, October 30 at 7 p.m. This talk is free and open to the public.

A leading proponent of natural building, Kiko Denzer has worked with earth as a building material since 1994. His work has included low-cost, friendly structures for schools, playgrounds, gardens, and community events. The goals of his work are two-fold: “to bring the art and beauty of life and nature into spaces where we work and live, and to inspire people to create what they need with the materials they have on land.” In order to accomplish these things, Denzer begins with primary tools such as our hands and bodies.

Since 1994 Denzer has been involved in numerous projects involving mud – constructing mud ovens, stoves, fireplaces, and sculptures. His other interests include stone- and wood-carving, teaching and writing.

Based in Oregon, he self-publishes how-to books on natural building methods through his company Hand Print Press. His first book, Build your own Earth Oven, is widely regarded as the authority on the construction of traditional earth ovens. He also has written and published Dig Your Hands in the Dirt: A Manual for Making Art out of Earth, and Make a Simple Sundial.

Denzer’s talk at Washington College is sponsored by the Center for Environment and Society, the Student Environmental Alliance, the Anthropology Department, and the Anthropology Club. For more information, visit http://www.ces.washcoll.edu or call 410-810-7161.

Separating the Girls from the Boys—Author Explores How Consumer Culture Defines Identities

CHESTERTOWN, MD—Just who decided girls should wear pink, boys blue? In a talk at Washington College, author and scholar Jo Paoletti will share answers to that question and more. Based on research from her recently published book, Pink and Blue: Telling the Boys from the Girls in America, Paoletti’s presentation will examine how consumer culture—from cartoons to fashion—shapes and defines the sexes in the United States, and how changing concepts of sexual identity, in turn, shape the culture.

The talk, which is free and open to the public, will take place Wednesday, September 26, at 5 p.m. in Hynson Lounge of Hodson Hall on the Washington College campus, 300 Washington Avenue.  A reception with the author will follow. The event is sponsored by the Department of Sociology and Anthropology, the Department of History, the Gender Studies Program, and Phi Beta Kappa.  

Paoletti, an Associate Professor in the American Studies Department at the University of Maryland, holds degrees in apparel design and textiles and has tracked the changes in children’s clothing—and the meaning behind those changes—for three decades.  “It’s really a story of what happened to neutral clothing,” she explained in an article in Smithsonian in 2011, noting that both girls and boys once wore dainty white dresses up to age 6. “What was once a matter of practicality—you dress your baby in white dresses and diapers; white cotton can be bleached—became a matter of ‘Oh my God, if I dress my baby in the wrong thing, they’ll grow up perverted.’ ”

For more on the speaker: http://terpconnect.umd.edu/~jpaol/.

Social Historian Coontz Revisits and Updates The Feminine Mystique in Sept. 13 Visit to Campus

CHESTERTOWN, MD—Would Don and Betty Draper’s marriage have had a better chance today than in the decidedly unliberated 1960s depicted in the hit TV series Mad Men? The nation’s preeminent expert on the state of marital bliss in America, social historian Stephanie Coontz, will be on the Washington College campus Tuesday, September 13 to argue an emphatic “Yes.” A fan of Mad Men, Coontz recommends it as “a much-needed lesson on the devastating costs of a way of life that still evokes misplaced nostalgia.”

In a talk titled “Mad Men, Working Girls, and Desperate Housewives: Women, Men, and Marriage in the Early 1960s,” Coontz will discuss why social changes since the 60s have been good for families and good for the institution of marriage. Her presentation will begin at 5:30 p.m. in Hynson Lounge, inside Hodson Hall on the College campus, 300 Washington Avenue. A book signing will follow.

Coontz’s recently published A Strange Stirring: The Feminine Mystique and American Women at the Dawn of the 1960s (Basic Books, 2011) pulls author Betty Friedan “down from heaven and up from hell,” in the words of the New York Times, challenging both conservative and liberal myths about the impact of her controversial book The Feminine Mystique. Described as “an inventive biography of a book,” A Strange Stirring is based on interviews with some 200 men and women (mostly women) who read Friedan's book when it was first published in 1963, and found their lives changed in response. Dubbed “better than the original” by the Huffington Post, Coontz’s book reveals how a generation of women came to realize their dissatisfaction with domestic life reflected not a personal inadequacy but rather a social and political injustice.

In addition, Coontz examines women’s changing status from the 1920s through the 1950s, compares the dilemmas of working-class and middle-class women, white and black, in the early 1960s, and illuminates the new mystiques and new possibilities facing men and women today. “We still haven’t fully figured out how to combine a loving family life with a rewarding work life,” Coontz writes in A Strange Stirring. “But The Feminine Mystique reminds us of the price women pay when we retreat from trying to resolve these dilemmas or fail to involve men in our attempts.”

Coontz, who teaches history and family studies at Evergreen State College in Olympia, Wa., has devoted her career to the study of gender relations, families, and child development. She is Co-Chair and Director of Public Education at the nonpartisan Council on Contemporary Families, which is based at the University of Illinois, Chicago, and has testified about her research before the House Select Committee on Children, Youth and Families. Her previous book, Marriage: A History (Viking), was named one of the best books of 2005 by the Washington Post.

A former “marriage consultant” to Ladies Home Journal, she also has written for countless other publications, including the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, Salon, the Washington Post, and Newsweek. Recent national TV and radio appearances include interviews on NPR’s “Fresh Air”, C-SPAN, Oprah, the Today Show, and The Colbert Report.

Coontz’s talk is cosponsored by the Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Department of History, Gender Studies Program, C.V. Starr Center for the Study of the American Experience, and the William James Forum. For more information, visit www.washcoll.edu.

Visiting Author to Recount her Work with Mali's Starving Children

CHESTERTOWN, MD—Biocultural anthropologist Katherine Dettwyler will visit Washington College on Monday, April 11 to give a personal account of her fieldwork among malnourished children in West Africa. The talk, “Dancing Skeletons: Twenty Years Later,” will be held at 6:30 p.m. in Litrenta Lecture Hall, the John S. Toll Science Center, on the College campus, 300 Washington Avenue. A book signing will follow.

Dettwyler’s 1993 book, Dancing Skeletons: Life and Death in West Africa, won a Margaret Mead Award for its portrayal of the harsh realities the author faced in researching the hungry children of Mali and how she struggled as an objective observer, a friend, and a mother to deal with the emotional strain. Her lecture will expand on the experiences she has written about, focusing on the importance of global nutrition and health.

An Associate Professor in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Delaware, Dettwyler has been teaching the subject since 1973. She also has spoken at conferences around the globe as an advocate for breastfeeding.

Her talk at Washington College is sponsored by the Lambda Alpha honor society, the Department of Anthropology and Sociology, and the Center for Environment and Society.

For more information, visit http://www.washcoll.edu.

Maryland Crime Mapping and Analysis Grant Goes to Washington College

Chestertown, MD — Washington College's Department of Sociology and Anthropology has received a grant award of $100,000 under the Maryland Crime Mapping and Analysis Program, a part of the State of Maryland's Governor's Office of Crime Control and Prevention.

The year-long project will produce a broad array of maps utilizing data from state and local police and criminal justice agencies and will aid officials in developing a long-range strategy for statewide analysis and mapping.

April 25, 2008

Governor's Office of Crime Control and Prevention Awards Regional Crime-Mapping Grant to Washington College

Chestertown, MD — The Maryland Governor's Office of Crime Control (GOCCP) has awarded a grant of more than $95,000 to the Washington College Department of Sociology and Anthropology. The grant is being received through GOCCP's Maryland Statistical Analysis Center (MdSAC) Research Program, to assess regional crime mapping across Caroline, Cecil, Kent, Talbot and Queen Anne's counties and their municipalities and towns.

Since 2003, Washington College has operated a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) laboratory, which has completed a broad array of state, county and local mapping projects. This is the first criminal justice-related award for Washington College from GOCCP, and it places the College among an elite group of other Maryland research institutions working on law enforcement and crime issues.

Over the next year, the project will evaluate current crime data collection methods and will conduct a pilot project that explores the benefits of regionalization of mapping resources. Recommendations for future mapping will be provided to the state next November.

The project kick-off meeting, attended by more than 40 representatives including the state police, county sheriffs, local police chiefs, county GIS coordinators, GOCCP representatives and College project faculty, was held at the College in mid-January.

Crime mapping, widely used by big-city police forces, has helped them develop policing strategies to allocate resources at the right time to decrease community crime rates. This initiative is among the first to offer these techniques to rural and small-town law enforcement agencies on a regional basis.

"We've had some experience with crime mapping in Baltimore County, and we found it to be very useful," said Chestertown Police Chief Walter Coryell, formerly of the Baltimore County Police Department. "It's valuable in allowing you to see what's happening not only in a historical sense, but also has value in a sense of predicting where to allocate resources. It will be an interesting project, and we look forward to seeing how it goes."

"This grant is a wonderful example of collaboration for an important cause: collaboration between the disciplines of criminology and GIS, between Washington College and area law enforcement, and among the different Eastern Shore jurisdictions themselves," said Christopher Ames, Provost and Dean of Washington College. "We are proud to be a part of this effort to harness new technology in the service of crime prevention."

January 18, 2008

Screening of "Estamos Aquí: We Are Here," with Filmmaker, November 14

Chestertown, MD — The Washington College Department of Sociology and Anthropology, theC.V. Starr Center for the Study of the American Experience, the Goldstein Program in Public Affairs and the League of Women Voters of Kent County will present a screening of "Estamos Aquí: We Are Here," with an introduction by filmmaker Sharon Baker, at the Norman James Theatre on Wednesday, November 14, at 6:30 p.m.

"Estamos Aquí" reveals the humanity behind the headlines of one of the most important issues facing the United States. The story of one community in a changing nation, this poignant documentary film explores the evolving social, political and economic landscape of Georgetown, Delaware. This small, traditionally white community is home to the largest poultry-producing county in the nation, and is in need of a growing labor force.

As the United States experiences the largest immigration wave in its history, this rural farming community becomes home to thousands of predominantly Guatemalan immigrants, fleeing from the aftermath of a brutal civil war and escalating poverty in their homeland in search of opportunity and employment. Their struggles, and those of the community at large, shed light on the challenges facing millions of Latin Americans who have come to this country in search of the American Dream. An intimate portrait develops of a close-knit community united by faith, endurance, and hope for the future.

Norman James Theatre is located in William Smith Hall. A question-and-answer session with "Estamos Aquí" director Baker will follow the screening. Admission is free and open to the public.

November 13, 2007

Summer Field School Offers Forays Into Native American And Early Colonial Archaeology, May 21-June 29

Chestertown, MD, March 9, 2007 — Washington College's Department of Sociology and Anthropology will again offer a Summer Field School in Archaeology from May 21 to June 29, 2007. Taught by archaeologist Darrin Lowery, Dr. John Seidel and staff from the Washington College Public Archaeology Laboratory, the course provides practical experience in all phases of field archaeology. This summer's work will continue the search for Indian sites in Kent County, moving to the Eastern Neck and Rock Hall area. In addition, archaeologists will be searching for some of the earliest colonial sites in the area, dating to the second half of the 1600s. Last year's efforts revealed sites with Indian trade beads and pipes dated to the late 1600s, and deed research has suggested the location of several additional early colonial sites.

The eight-credit program—open to both college students and adults—will teach excavation and lab techniques; remote sensing; artifact identification, dating and analysis; and mapping and surveying of archaeological sites using both theodolite and GPS. Hands-on fieldwork will be augmented by lectures and special presentations, laboratory work, and trips to regional sites and museums.

"This year's Field School will give students the chance to explore Native American and colonial archaeology," said Seidel, associate professor of anthropology and environmental studies and Interim Director of the College's Center for Environment & Society. "Over the past two years, we have found more than 40 unrecorded archaeological sites in the county, up along the Sassafras River. We'd like to take a closer look at several of those through excavations, while shifting our search for new sites to a new area, around Eastern Neck. This is exciting work—these are completely unknown sites, including some of the very first colonial settlements in the area."

Interested students are encouraged to apply early, as space in the class is limited. Limited housing on the Washington College campus may be provided on a first-come, first-served basis. The class runs for six weeks, meeting five days a week from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. The base of operations is the Washington College Public Archaeology Laboratory in the Custom House. Vans will take students to field sites outside of Chestertown. Tuition is $2,700. Students will register for ANT 296 Sections 10 and 11.

For more information and to register, contact Dr. John Seidel at 410-778-7756, or via e-mail: jseidel2@washcoll.edu.

Search for Lost Tockwogh during Washington College's Summer Field School in Archaeology, May 22-June 30

Chestertown, MD, April 7, 2006 — Washington College's Department of Sociology and Anthropology will again hold a six-week summer archaeological field school from May 22 to June 30, 2006. The eight-credit program—open to both college students and adults—will focus on survey techniques, including survey design, mapping, surface collection techniques, remote sensing, and data management.

In addition, students will search for the site of Tockwogh, a palisaded Indian village visited by Capt. John Smith on his 1608 exploration of the Chesapeake Bay, while participating in all phases of an ongoing survey effort in Kent County, Maryland, to ground-truth and refine a GIS-based predictive model for site locations on the Eastern Shore.

"The field school will give students in-depth, hands-on experience in archaeology," said program director John Seidel, associate professor of anthropology and environmental studies at Washington College and an expert on Maryland archaeology, underwater archaeology, and historic preservation. "The lessons will be practical and applied, not only through our search for Tockwogh, but through other excavations at 17th century sites in Anne Arundel County, through the Lost Towns Project."

The course will be taught by Darrin Lowery, lecturer in anthropology and staff archaeologist, Professor Seidel, and other staff of the Washington College Public Archaeology Laboratory. The course meets five full days a week, Monday through Friday. No previous course work or experience in field archaeology is necessary.

Interested students are encouraged to apply early. Limited housing on the Washington College campus may be provided on a first-come, first-served basis. Students must enroll in ANT 296 Sections 10 and 11 Archaeological Field Study. Each section carries four credits. Tuition for the eight-credit program is $2,500, excluding housing costs. For more information and registration forms, contact Professor Seidel at 410-778-7756 or jseidel2@washcoll.edu. Information can be found at Washington College's archaeology web page,http://archaeology.washcoll.edu.

Washington College is a private, independent liberal arts and sciences college located in historic Chestertown on Maryland's Eastern Shore. Founded in 1782 under the patronage of George Washington, it is the first college chartered in the new nation.

Forensic Anthropology in the Service of Human Rights, Talk February 8

Chestertown, MD, January 30, 2006 — Washington College's Department of Sociology and Anthropology and the Goldstein Program in Public Affairs present "Forensic Anthropology and Human Rights in Peru," a lecture by Professor Elsa Tomasto, Wednesday, February 8, at 7:30 p.m. in the Litrenta Lecture Hall of the Toll Science Center.

Tomasto teaches Andean archaeology and biological anthropology at the Pontifical University in Lima, Peru, with which Washington College maintains a study-abroad exchange program.

A specialist in the analysis of human bone remains, Tomasto has performed valuable forensic work for Peru's Truth and Reconciliation Commission, examining the remains from clandestine burials sites in the district of Lucanamarca where members of the Maoist guerilla group Shining Path massacred 62 local villagers in 1983.

The event is free and open to the public.

Leading Expert in Native American Culture Examines Tensions during Jamestown's Settlement, October 27

Chestertown, MD, October 11, 2005 — Washington College's C.V. Starr Center for the American Experience, the Departments of Sociology and Anthropology, and Sultana Projects, Inc., present "Not Entirely Welcome: Indian Responses to English Arrival in the Chesapeake," a lecture by Helen Rountree, author of Pocahontas, Powhatan, Opechancanough: Three Indian Lives Changed by Jamestown,Thursday, October 27, at 7:30 p.m. in the College's Hynson Lounge. The free event is open to the public and will be followed by a book signing.

A nationally recognized expert on East Coast Indian tribes, Rountree will discuss the turbulent relationship between Algonquians who inhabited the Chesapeake Bay region and the English settlers of Jamestown who established their foothold in 1607, and explore the cultural misunderstandings and differences that led to tremendous bloodshed on both sides. Rountree served as a consultant for the Time-Life series on American Indians and for the PBS series, Land of the Eagles.

When Disney Studios released the 1995 movie, Pocahantas, Rountree subsequently devoted many interviews to debunking the myths surrounding the young girl who, today, plays such a pivotal role in the American imagination. After 31 years of teaching, Rountree is now Professor Emerita of Anthropology at Old Dominion University and is one of the principal contributors to John Smith's Chesapeake Voyages, 1607-1609, a forthcoming book to be published by the Chesapeake Bay Gateways Network. Due to her work on behalf of Native Americans of the Chesapeake, she was made an honorary member of the Nansemond and Upper Mattaponi tribes.

The lecture is co-sponsored by the C. V. Starr Center for the Study of the American Experience, the Washington College Department of Sociology and Anthropology, and Chestertown's Sultana Projects, Inc., which operates the reproduction 1768 Schooner Sultana and conducts educational cruises and outreach programs to promote and foster a greater appreciation for the Chesapeake Bay's history and environment.

Washington College's C. V. Starr Center—drawing on the special historical strengths of Washington College and Chestertown—is dedicated to exploring the early republic, the rise of democracy, and the manifold ways in which the founding era continues to shape American culture.

Information about upcoming events is available online at http://starrcenter.washcoll.edu/, or by calling Program Manager Kees de Mooy at 410-810-7156.

Summer Field School Offers Forays Into Native American And African-American Archaeology, June 6-July 15

Chestertown, MD, April 14, 2005 — Washington College's Department of Sociology and Anthropology will again offer a Summer Field School in Archaeology from June 6 to July 15, 2005. Taught by archaeologist Dr. John Seidel and staff from the Washington College Public Archaeology Laboratory, the course provides practical experience in field archaeology and will focus on two local projects: the search for Tockwogh, a palisaded Indian village on the Sassafras River, and the excavation of the Charles Sumner Post, a Grand Army of the Republic Lodge established by African-American Civil War veterans in Chestertown.

The eight-credit program—open to both college students and adults—will teach excavation and lab techniques; remote sensing; artifact identification, dating and analysis; and mapping and surveying of archaeological sites using both theodolite and GPS. Hands-on fieldwork will be augmented by lectures and special presentations, laboratory work, and trips to regional sites and museums. “This year's Field School will give students the chance to explore Native American and African-American archaeology,” said Seidel, associate professor of anthropology and environmental studies. “Our first site will be the Charles Sumner Post, a Grand Army of the Republic lodge that served as a focal point for the African-American community in Kent County in the post-Civil War era. Our second objective is to search for the site of Tockwogh, an Indian village described by Captain John Smith on his 1608 voyage of exploration on the Chesapeake Bay.”

Smith described the village as palisaded—or fortified—and was surprised to find that the inhabitants had iron and brass tools, apparently obtained in trade with the Susquehannock Indians to the north, noted Seidel. Students will also have the opportunity to collaborate with a field school run by the University of Maryland on Wye Island. The multiple projects will offer training in a wide variety of activities and techniques.

Interested students are encouraged to apply early. Limited housing on the Washington College campus may be provided on a first-come, first-served basis. The class runs for six weeks, meeting five days a week from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. The base of operations is the Washington College Public Archaeology Laboratory in the Custom House. Vans will take students to field sites outside of Chestertown. Tuition is $2,375. Students will register for ANT 296 Sections 10 and 11.

For more information and registration forms, contact Dr. John Seidel at 410-778-7756.

The Ancient Art Of Hunting: Anthropology Club Hosts Second Annual Atl Atl Throw, April 18

Chestertown, MD, April 9, 2004 — Long before the Atkins Diet was the craze, ancient humans stalked “big game” to keep family and village supplied with their daily requirement of protein. With the invention more than 40,000 years ago of a small but ingenious device—the Atlatl—our ancestors vastly improved their chances of survival in their life-or-death, hunt-or-die existence. Washington College's Anthropology Club, in celebration of Archaeology Month, will exhibit this early advance in hunting technology with a free public demonstration of Atlatl spear throwing, Sunday, April 18, 1-3 p.m. on the Campus Lawn. Tours of the College's Archaeology Laboratory will be held 4-6 p.m. the same day at the Custom House on High and Water Streets in Chestertown.

The Atlatl (from the Aztec word for “spear thrower”) is a device that imparted incredible mechanical and technical advantage to prehistoric humans. Increasing spear velocity 15 times and striking power 200 times, Atlatls were used worldwide prior to the advent of the bow and arrow. The oldest known Atlatl artifact is more than 19,000 years old, although it is believed that the Atlatl was in common use more than 40,000 years ago. An example of how human technology directly affects the natural environment, the Atlatl provided a tremendous hunting advantage and, conversely, might have contributed to the extinction of many large mammals throughout the world. The power that the Atlatl imparted to the spear was so great that the Aztecs readopted the technology for its armor-piercing ability against Spanish Conquistadors in the Sixteenth Century. The Atlatl is now attracting thousands of enthusiasts around the world for sport and competition throwing.

As part of the demonstration, participants will have a hands-on chance to test their ability and accuracy of throwing using the Atlatl by spearing a seven-foot tall straw target, “Murray, the Mastodon,” constructed by the Washington College Anthropology Club. Instruction will be provided and safety precautions maintained. For more information, contact Liz Seidel, staff archaeologist, at 410-810-7164.

Where The Past Meets The Present In Maryland's Suburban Landscape, Talk October 7

Chestertown, MD, September 29, 2003 — Washington College's Anthropology Club and campus chapter of the Lambda Alpha Anthropology Honor Society present “The Suburban Landscape: Where Past Meets Present,” a talk by Julie Ernstein, lecturer in anthropology, Tuesday, October 7 at 7:30 p.m. in the College's Hynson Lounge. The lecture is free and the public is invited to attend.
A specialist in landscape archaeology, Ernstein will address the question “What's so interesting about the mid-century suburban landscape of Maryland?” In an illustrated update on her ongoing research into the Levitt-built suburbs of Maryland, Ernstein will connect the dots between the eighteenth-century, Colonial Revival, Populuxe, and late twentieth-century components associated with Belair Mansion in Bowie, MD. Come and learn why the suburban landscape is a whole lot more interesting than you think and what the integration of historical archaeology, oral history, and documentary research reveals about the suburban landscape as the deliberately fuzzy—but no less real—border between past and present.

Atlatl: Anthropology Club To Demonstrate The Ancient Art Of Spear Throwing April 12

Chestertown, MD, April 3, 2003 — Long before fast food and microwave dinners, ensuring daily meals was a labor-intensive activity that required stalking the big game that kept you, your family, village and tribe alive. Washington College's Anthropology Club will demonstrate one of the earliest advances in hunting technology, the Atlatl, in a free public demonstration Saturday, April 12, from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. on the College's Athletic Field. All are invited to attend.

The Atlatl (from the Aztec word for “spear thrower”) is device that imparted incredible mechanical and technical advantage to our prehistoric ancestors. Increasing the spear velocity by 15 times and striking power by 200 times, Atlatls were used worldwide prior to the advent of the bow and arrow. The oldest known Atlatl artifact is more than 19,000 years old, although it is believed that the Atlatl was in common use more than 40,000 years ago. An example of how human technology directly affects the natural environment, the Atlatl provided a tremendous hunting advantage and, conversely, might have contributed to the extinction of many large mammals throughout the world. The power that the Atlatl imparts to the spear is so great that the Aztecs readopted the technology for its armor-piercing ability against the Spanish Conquistadors in the Sixteenth Century. As part of the demonstration, the Washington College Anthropology Club has constructed a seven-foot tall Mastodon to use as a target for the spear throwing demonstrations. As part of this Saturday program, the Anthropology Club also will teach the ancient art of flint knapping, breaking and shaping stones into arrow and spearheads. For more information, contact Lisa Holly, president of the Anthropology Club, at 410-810-8310.

Primate Planet: Conservationist To Discuss The World Of The Orangutan April 24

Chestertown, MD, March 21, 2003 — The Washington College Department of Sociology and Anthropology and the McLain Program in Environmental Studies present “ORANGUTANS IN BORNEO: THE STATE OF THEIR WORLD 2003,” a lecture by Dr. Biruté M. F. Galdikas, president of the Orangutan Foundation International. The talk will be held Thursday, April 24 at 5 p.m. in the College's Hynson Lounge. The event is free and the public is invited to attend.

A world-renowned conservationist and orangutan researcher, Dr. Galdikas left the comforts of modern civilization in 1971 to venture into one of the earth's last wild places, the Tanjung Putting Reserve in Borneo, Indonesia, to study and help save orangutans and their endangered habitat. Through the support of her mentor, the famed anthropologist Dr. Louis Leakey, Dr. Galdikas undertook the first comprehensive study of the wild orangutan, and, by giving 30 years of her life to research and conservation, has helped create one of the last safe havens for orangutans in Borneo.

Featured twice on the cover of National Geographic and author of two books and over 50 scientific articles, Dr. Galdikas is recognized as one of the most important conservation and field researchers of this century. She has been featured in Life magazine, The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and The Washington Post and on numerous television documentaries. Her autobiography, Reflections of Eden: My Years with the Orangutans of Borneo, was published in 1995.

In 1986, Dr. Galdikas co-founded the Orangutan Foundation International (OFI) in order to support her research and work in Borneo. Based in Los Angeles, OFI has established chapters in Australia, Indonesia, and the United Kingdom. Since 1971, she has lectured around the world, disseminating information and educational materials about the orangutan and its rainforest environment. Dr. Galdikas is extremely devoted to the Indonesian people and their culture, as well as to the protection of the rainforest and the welfare of orangutans everywhere, and she serves as the director of the Orangutan Care Center and Quarantine Facility in Borneo.

Dr. Galdikas holds a Ph.D. from the University of California and has received numerous honors and awards for her work, including the prestigious “Kalpataru” award, the highest honor given by the Republic of Indonesia for outstanding environmental leadership and activity, as well as the Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement, the United Nations Global 500 Environmental Award, the Sierra Club Chico Mendes Award, and the PETA Humanitarian Award.

When Bones Talk: Bioarchaeology And The African Diaspora

Chestertown, MD, October 8, 2002 — The Washington College Department of Sociology and Anthropology, the Anthropology Club, the Black Student Alliance, the C.V. Starr Center for the Study of the American Experience, and the Gamma Chapter of Maryland of Lambda Alpha present BIOARCHAEOLOGY AND THE AFRICAN DIASPORA, a lecture by Michael L. Blakey, National Endowment for the Humanities Professor of Anthropology at the College of William and Mary. This free talk will be held Thursday, October 17, 2002, at 7:30 p.m. in the Casey Academic Center Forum. The public is invited to attend.
With a crossdisciplinary background in human anatomy and anthropology, Dr. Blakey will discuss how archaeology works with such disciplines to discover how humans lived in the past and were affected by their living conditions. An Adjunct Professor in Anatomy at Howard University College of Medicine where he had for many years been Curator of the W. Montague Cobb Human Skeletal Collection, Dr. Blakey currently directs the New York African Burial Ground Project involving interdisciplinary study of 400 skeletons of Africans enslaved in 18th century New York City. In addition to his field work, he has taught at Spelman College, the University of Rome, Columbia University, and Brown University, and has served as a Research Associate in Physical Anthropology in the National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution. He is a past President of the Association of Black Anthropologists, a member of the Executive Council of the Society for Medical Anthropology, United States Representative to the Council of the Fourth World Archaeological Congress in Cape Town, and Permanent Representative to Washington for the African Bureau of Education Sciences in Kinshasa and Geneva. Dr. Blakey earned his B.A. at Howard University and the M.A. and Ph.D. degrees at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst.

Washington College Offers Summer Field School In Archaeology For Students And Adults

Fieldwork To Focus On Eastern Shore Birthplace Of Harriet Tubman

Chestertown, MD, April 5, 2002 — The Washington College Department of Sociology and Anthropology is offering a six-week summer archaeological field school from June 3 to July 12, 2002. The eight-credit program is open to both college students and adults and will teach excavation and lab techniques, remote sensing, and mapping and surveying of archaeological sites using both theodolite and GPS. Hands-on fieldwork will be augmented by lectures, laboratory work and trips to local sites and museums.

The course will be taught by Dr. John Seidel, assistant professor of anthropology and environmental studies and an expert on Maryland archaeology and historic preservation, and Bonnie Ryan, Jessie Ball DuPont Scholar in sociology and anthropology at the College. Fieldwork will focus on one of the most significant African-American historical sites in Maryland—the birthplace of Harriet Tubman in Dorchester County on the Eastern Shore.Chestertown, MD, April 5, 2002 — The Washington College Department of Sociology and Anthropology is offering a six-week summer archaeological field school from June 3 to July 12, 2002. The eight-credit program is open to both college students and adults and will teach excavation and lab techniques, remote sensing, and mapping and surveying of archaeological sites using both theodolite and GPS. Hands-on fieldwork will be augmented by lectures, laboratory work and trips to local sites and museums.

"This is a hands-on course," said Dr. Seidel. "Much work remains to be done to record and document African-American history in Maryland. Students participating in this course will have a direct role in this process."

There is no formal deadline, but interested students are encouraged to apply early. Limited housing on the Washington College campus will be provided to enrollees on a first-come, first-served basis. Students must enroll in ANT 296 Section 10 and 11, Archaeological Field School. Each section carries four credits. Tuition for the eight-credit program is $1,950, excluding housing costs.

For more information and registration forms, contact Dr. John Seidel at 410-778-7756, or via e-mail john.seidel@washcoll.edu; or Bonnie Ryan, 410-810-7493.

March 28th Student Conference To Address Ethnic Diversity And The American Identity

Chestertown, MD, March 25, 2002 — Washington College and Goucher College are proud to present "Redefining the American Identity: A Student Conference on Ethnic Diversity," Thursday, March 28, 2002, at 4 p.m. in the College's Casey Academic Center Forum. The conference will open with keynote speaker Dr. Seble Dawit, a former human and women's rights consultant in Africa and now director of the peace studies program and visiting assistant professor at Goucher College, Towson, MD. All members of the community are encouraged to attend.

Twelve students will present papers addressing the complex issue of ethnic diversity and national unity in the United States. The presentations will tackle such issues as civil rights, religious freedom and identity, and the variety of and change in people's political and social worldviews since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2002.

Session I will begin at 4:30 p.m., addressing the issue "Where Self-Identity and National Identity Meet: Looking at Solutions to Conflict." Session II will begin at 7:30 p.m. and address the issue of "E Pluribus Unum: Making it Work." Keynote speaker, Dr. Dawit, will conclude the conference at 9:30 p.m.

"The goal of the conference is to make students really think deeply about the complexities of these questions and to offer their analysis and potential solutions to these pressing issues of our society," says Bonnie Ryan, organizer of the conference and Jessie Ball Dupont Scholar in sociology and anthropology at the College. "After the tragedy of September 11, the question of our nation's diversity and unity really came to the fore. The attacks affected thousands of people of different backgrounds, nations, races and creeds, while others acted out in anger against innocent Arab-Americans. This conference will serve as a forum for our students to explore and to discuss these issues that support or challenge the diversity of the United States and the unifying forces of democracy that hold our nation together."

This student conference is sponsored by the Goldstein Program for Public Affairs, Goucher College, the Campus Events Office, the Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Lambda Alpha, the Anthropology Honors Society-Gamma Chapter, and the Black Student Union.

Washington College Hosts Four-Part Series on the Challenges of the War on Terrorism

Chestertown, MD, February 22, 2002 — During the month of March, the Washington College Department of Sociology and Anthropology is sponsoring a four-part speaker series on the history, context, policies and challenges of America's war on terrorism. The talks are free and the public is invited to attend these timely and important discussions.

On Monday, March 4, 2002, Ralph Begleiter, Distinguished Professor in Journalism at the University of Delaware and former CNN world affairs correspondent, will present the first lecture in the series, "WHOSE MEDIA?: MEDIA ETHICS AND NEWS COVERAGE OF THE TERRORIST ATTACKS AGAINST AMERICA." Prof. Begleiter will discuss issues of government and media relationships during the war on terrorism.

On Wednesday, March 6, 2002, Dr. Daniel L. Premo, Goldstein Professor in Public Affairs in the Department of Political Science at Washington College, will discuss the historical context of the war on terrorism in a lecture titled "THE U.S. WAR ON TERRORISM: OLD WINE IN A NEW BOTTLE?"

On Monday, March 18, 2002, Joe Miller, Assistant Director of Occupational Safety at the University of Delaware, will present "THE NBCS: AN OVERVIEW OF A FEW AGENTS OF TERRORISM. ARE WE READY?" Mr. Miller will discuss the threat of and response to nuclear, biological and chemical weapons attacks.

The series will conclude on Wednesday, March 20, 2002, with the lecture "U.S. FOREIGN POLICY AND THE WAR ON TERRORISM," presented by Dr. Tahir Shad, Chair of the Department of International Studies at Washington College.

All talks in the series begin at 7:30 p.m. in the College's Litrenta Lecture Hall, Dunning Room 113.