MSU anthropologist integrates research and best practices to create safer, more inclusive field schools
by Sam Kealhofer, Intern on the A&S Research Support Team
Preventing sexual harassment during undergraduate archaeology field studies is the focus of a National Science Foundation collaborative grant awarded to Shawn Lambert, an assistant professor in Mississippi State University’s Department of Anthropology and Middle Eastern Cultures.
Now receiving national attention, Lambert’s work has been featured in Science Magazine in an article, “Fed-up archeologists aim to fix ‘frat party’ atmosphere at field schools,” which investigates the “cowboy culture” permeating the field as well as the current methods faculty use to create more inclusive environments.
Lambert said recent research in STEM fields has demonstrated “significantly high rates” of sexual harassment in academic field schools across the U.S., potentially a contributing factor to the lack of diversity in the fields.
Many students experience harassment and/or assault during their first field school experience in their undergraduate years, the research suggests, primarily because it occurs outside of traditional classroom settings.
Partnering with Lambert are Emily Beahm, research station archeologist with the Arkansas Archeological Survey, University of Arkansas-Winthrop Institute Station; Carol Colaninno, research assistant professor in the Southern Illinois University Edwardsville STEM Center; and Carl Drexler, research assistant professor with the University of Arkansas and station archeologist with Arkansas Archeological Survey–Southern Arkansas University Research Station.
During their four-year grant period, the team will determine the best practices that field school directors can administer to create the safest environment possible. They will conduct a landscape analysis, work with field directors and students, develop recommended practices and help implement those practices while also documenting their methods along the way.
As many traditional field schools are on hold this year due to pandemic restrictions, the work comes at a crucial moment giving researchers an opportunity to step up as leaders and reform the field in a positive way.
Lambert’s passion for public archaeology, collaborating with descendant communities and making archaeology accessible to all people make him well equipped for the task. He bridges the past and present with 21st century technologies that include 3D printing, laser-scanning and virtual and augmented realities.
Lambert’s primary research focuses on the early Mississippian period (ca. A.D. 800–1200). Lambert specializes in remote sensing and the analysis of ceramics, including design style, trace elemental analysis, and iconography to seek detailed histories of development, transformation, ritual integration and movement of communities and interaction networks.
His geographic area of interest is the southeastern United States, particularly the Arkansas River Basin and Lower Mississippi Valley. His primary field projects are the famous Spiro Mound site in eastern Oklahoma and other mound centers in the Trans-Mississippi South.
Lambert’s integration of archeological research and education help create an exciting and inclusive environment for all students. Such collaborative spirit and involvement of underrepresented groups will lead to a growth in diverse intellectual thought in archeology and related fields.
In an effort to contribute insight and solutions to the various challenges facing the nation, the College of Arts & Sciences will continue to highlight faculty research in our “Research in the Headlines” series each Monday and Wednesday. For more research in the headlines, visit https://www.cas.msstate.edu/research/researchintheheadlines/; and for information about the College of Arts & Sciences or the Department of Anthropology and Middle Eastern Cultures visit https://www.cas.msstate.edu/ or https://www.amec.msstate.edu/.