Alumni Spotlight: Amy Krull

Amy Krull earned two degrees in anthropology from Wayne State University, a B.A. in 2011 and an M.A. in 2014, the latter completed under the supervision of Dr. Tamara Bray. As a student, she was a regular volunteer at the Grosscup Museum. Her first experience in archaeological fieldwork was as a member of the Corktown Workers Row House Archaeological Field School led by Dr. Thomas Killion in 2008. After that, she joined Dr. Bray for two field seasons in Ecuador, where she assisted with excavations and artifact analysis at the site of Inca-Caranqui.

Her master’s thesis, Smashed: Ceremonial Intoxicants & Intentional Tool Destruction, completed in 2014, was based on the analysis of the variety of groundstone tools recovered at the site. In another course with Dr. Bray, Krull more deeply explored the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA), the Native Americans Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) and other laws relating to archaeological sites and historical resources. These experiences at Wayne State shaped Krull’s interests in archaeological research, preservation and cultural resource management, which eventually led to her current professional position.   

For nearly a decade, Amy was a member of the Commonwealth Heritage Group, working her way up the ladder from Field Tech to Project Archaeologist. Last month, Krull joined the Michigan State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) in Lansing as the federal projects archaeologist. She was one of a trio of new hires at the agency, including a senior archaeologist and a cultural resources protection manager. All three new archaeology staff members will be involved with the administration of Section 106 policies of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA), Traditional Cultural Properties and other issues related to protecting cultural resources. 

In her new position, Krull will be responsible for the analysis and review of federal historic preservation projects and undertakings as required by the NHPA and other federal and state regulations. This includes evaluating the eligibility of archaeological sites for listing in the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). For a site to be added to the NRHP, the SHPO staff evaluates the documentation submitted to its office and weighs it against NRHP criteria. During the review process, Krull collaborates with other state archaeologists and architectural historians to ensure that it results in a timely and appropriate response. She is also responsible for maintaining databases as a primary means of storing, organizing and analyzing information about artifacts – a skill she honed in Dr. Killion’s archaeology laboratory methods course. 

Krull is especially excited to work alongside the new State Historic Preservation Officer, Mark Rodman, she said “he is very forward-thinking and seems to facilitate advancement, like the hiring of new professionals to the SHPO.”