A message from Anthropology Chair Krysta Ryzewski, fall 2024
Dear friends of Wayne State Anthropology,
The cool fall weather and the new semester are ushering in a refreshing new season in the Department of Anthropology. This fall’s newsletter is a big one! In this edition, we are excited to celebrate some of the many milestones, accomplishments and impacts our faculty, students and alumni are making in the discipline and in the communities where they work.
Upcoming projects and events
Within the department, we are looking forward to continuing our third year of the First Fridays in Anthropology Lecture Series. See our upcoming events for lectures by our faculty, alumni and other scholars. We are excited to welcome Dr. Jonathan Stillo aboard as our department’s new director of undergraduate studies after Dr. Andrew Newman completed a fantastic decade-long run in the position.
We are also beginning a new archaeology fieldwork project in Hamtramck as part of my Archaeological Field Methods class. This semester the students will be investigating the site of the site of the Immaculate Conception Ukrainian Catholic Church and a grocery store, bakery and outhouse associated with other Ukrainian immigrants who settled along Grayling Street at the turn of the 20th century. The best part of this project is that the sites were selected for our study by the local community and the research is being undertaken in partnership with our long-time collaborator, the Hamtramck Historical Museum and the Ukrainian American Archives & Museum of Detroit.
Come out and visit us at the Public Archaeology Open Day on Saturday, Oct. 26 from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Fundraising
Finally, we are launching a fundraising campaign this fall to support two priority areas of need in the department: student practicum, research and internship opportunities and part-time faculty professional development support.
The funds will allow undergraduate and graduate students to be compensated for otherwise unpaid internships, participate in practicum experiences with industry partners and conduct research or fieldwork without incurring financial burdens. The part-time faculty funds will support instructors by providing them with resources they need to advance their teaching and research needs, including computing technology and software, registration fees for conferences or offsetting the workshop and training opportunities.
To donate, make a gift and designate your donation to the Anthropology Research and Development Fund. Please also email Harmony Durden (harmonydurden@wayne.edu) to specify whether you would like your donation to be earmarked for the student research fund or part-time faculty development fund.
We look forward to welcoming you to the department at any of our upcoming events. Thank you for your continued support!
Krysta Ryzewski
Chair and professor of anthropology