Faculty members of the Department of Anthropology have widely differing research interests in the study of the human condition, but all share a common bond in their commitment to teaching, field-based learning, and contributing new knowledge to their field. Their respective areas of scholarship span the major fields of the discipline, including archaeological, cultural, and linguistic anthropology.
Whether in our own neighborhoods or on the other side of the globe, the forces shaping our societies are in constant flux; the department’s approaches to teaching must respond to those complex changes, going beyond the boundaries of traditional scholarship while remaining committed to the comparative and holistic perspectives that make anthropology unique among the social sciences. Anthropologists in the department have developed reciprocal collaborations with community partners for the purpose of training students in the many facets of ethnographic and archaeological research while addressing local challenges.
A rich selection of regular anthropology course offerings draw on the research strengths of Connecticut College anthropology faculty, including sustainable food systems, modern material culture and discard studies, experimental archaeology, Indigenous knowledge, migration, social movements, the anthropology of landscapes, and images of race and “otherness” in art. The close connection between professors' scholarship and the anthropology curriculum energizes discussions and fosters impactful learning experiences.
In addition to receiving past research grants from agencies such as the National Endowment for the Humanities, the H. F. Guggenheim Foundation, the French Ministry of Culture, and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, several professors have earned the highest awards from the College in recognition of their excellence in teaching and academic scholarship. The department prides itself in engaging students in ongoing faculty research projects. Anthropology students are prepared and encouraged to present at professional conferences and to publish with anthropology faculty.
Acknowledgement of Land Occupation
The Department of Anthropology at Connecticut College is located on the ancestral and unceded lands of the Mashantucket Pequot, Western Nehântick, Eastern Pequot, Mohegan, and other nations who resided since time immemorial in Nameaug, now called New London, and adjacent coastal lands to the east and west. We pay respect to the elders of these communities, past and present, and acknowledge the centuries of violence stemming from European settler colonialism. As violence directed towards Indigenous, Native, First Nation, Aboriginal, and First Peoples persists, we are committed to revealing and understanding the structural inequalities, racism, and forms of oppression that perpetuate a colonial agenda in North America and beyond.
