Archaeology Program

The research foci of faculty reflect theoretical as well as applied aspects of the field and intersect with the Department's socio-cultural anthropologists through the museum studies program as well as the historical and socio-political role of archaeology in contemporary society. Nine archaeologists in the department regularly teach and conduct research with regional specialties that include Midwest/Great Lakes, Mesoamerica, Andean South America, and prehistoric Europe. Archaeologists in affiliated departments (Art History [Derek Counts], Classics [Elisabetta Cova]) conduct fieldwork in Cyprus.

Undergraduate students can participate in field schools in the Midwest and Peru. Fieldwork opportunities in Mexico are an option for advanced undergraduates while internship and employment opportunities for qualified students are available through HRMS, the Department's contract archaeology program. Students interested in museum studies may acquire experience in that field through lower and upper level undergraduate internships at the Milwaukee Public Museum.

Graduate students are drawn to our program by the opportunity to work with faculty who encourage interdisciplinary research both within the department and across disciplines. The museum studies graduate certificate attracts students interested in collections-based projects while the Milwaukee County Grounds skeletal assemblage provides an unprecedented opportunity for students interested in historical mortuary studies.

Faculty research encompasses a diverse array of methodological and theoretical approaches:

• ceramic analysis (J. Richards, Sherman, Villamil),
• compositional analysis (J. Richards, Sherman),
• faunal analysis (Hudson),
• Geographic Information Systems (Fredlund, Nicholls),
• lithic analysis (Jeske),
• pollen and phytolith analysis (Fredlund),
• complex societies and urbanization (Arnold, Sherman, Villamil),
• ecological adaptations (Hudson),
• gender configurations (Arnold, Villamil),
• historical archaeology (J. Richards, P. Richards),
• historic preservation (Nicholls, J. Richards, P. Richards),
• mortuary analysis (Arnold, Jeske, P. Richards),
• museology (Arnold, Villamil), and
• politics of archaeological practice (Arnold, Villamil).

Archaeology faculty are affiliated with the following programs and centers on the UWM campus:

• Art History
• Classics
• History
• Geosciences
• Geography
• Center for Celtic Studies
• Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies
• International Studies
• Center for 21st Century Studies
• Masters in Liberal Studies
• Conservation and Environmental Sciences
• Center for Women's Studies and
• Honor's College.