This is Anthropology

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I'm Margeaux Chavez, and I work for the Alliance for Applied Research in Education and Anthropology (AAREA) at USF. We collaborate with the Florida Department of Education, United States Department of Education, various Florida school districts, and the National Science Foundation. We use anthropology, especially qualitative and quantitative scientific methodology, to evaluate the impact of the educational reforms paid for by tax dollars. We use science to help solve the problems facing our communities. The statistics/ data used by Rick Scott to extol the virtues of STEM education at the expense of other disciplines are brought to you by anthropologists.

I'm Melissa Pope, and I'm a biological anthropologist who helps to reconstruct events surrounding unexpected deaths. This is critical in cases of homicide, where the time of death is essential to establishing investigative leads and helping solve a crime.

I'm Elizabeth McCoy, and I work with Florida State Parks to design strategies to increase park visitation and revenues, decrease park operating costs, and improve the visitor experience for all Floridians.

I'm Gina Larsen, and I am working on a large-scale grant focusing on how the redistribution of groundwater from rural areas of the Tampa Bay region to urban areas affects both humans and the environment, such as lakes and wetlands.

I'm Nolan Kline, and I have collaborated with faith-based organizations to understand how they aid needy populations, such as agricultural farmworkers, that have few primary care options available to them. These aid agencies save the Florida health system money by treating people before they go to an emergency room.

I'm Robert Cowherd, and I have done research with a Florida-based agency that has helped improve access to healthcare for Farmworkers in the state of Florida.

I'm Carylanna Taylor, and I have worked with an interdisciplinary team through the USF Sustainable Communities field school to assess hurricane preparedness among mobile home and immigrant populations in Ruskin (Hillsborough County).

I'm Annette Doying, and utlizing my anthropological training, I am better able to facilitate multi-disciplinary approaches to disaster management and to help fellow civil servants, private, and not for profit sector representatives derive deeper understanding of the human nature of disaster preparedness, response, and recovery. Anthropology allows me to act as a translator and interpreter on behalf of the many diverse segments of the "whole community" engaged in disaster management

I'm Janelle Christensen, and my research is on improving hurricane preparedness for families who are caring for someone with dementia in Florida. I am collaborating with a Florida based agency, Alzheimer’s Community Care, to help caregivers improve their disaster plans.

I'm Maressa Dixon, and I work with the Alliance for Applied Research in Education and Anthropology [AAREA]. For nearly a decade, anthropologists at the University of South Florida have been awarded millions of research dollars from the National Science Foundation to conduct research on the reasons students enter and stay in rigorous STEM fields. If STEM education is important, knowing what draws students to these fields and makes them successful is even more-so. We have dedicated our work to improving the very STEM education programs that have only recently become a priority to policymakers in the state.

I'm Elizabeth Danforth, and currently working to create effective services for people with disabilities who have experienced sexual abuse. I am currently conducting an ethnographic needs assessment, based in part on methods pioneered by anthropology faculty at the University of South Florida. The programs developed from this anthropological needs assessment will serve as a national model for disability support organizations and trauma services.

I'm Charlotte Noble, and I am currently working on a nationally funded project that is evaluating a Positive Youth Development (PYD) program that seeks to reduce the incidence of teen pregancies, suspensions and dropout rates in a number of rural counties in Florida. I have also participated in research with breast cancer support groups and worked to better understand stigma related to tuberculosis and how that stigma affects treatment-seeking.

I'm Rebecca Campbell and my research looks at the ways that students speak (like their language, dialect, or accent) as well as the ideas about how students should speak and how that influences their school experiences. This research will help inform teachers and researchers of better ways to educate to ensure that schools teach better for all students no matter what subject is being taught.

I'm Wendy Hathaway, and my current research is on improving health care delivery for veterans at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. This is anthropology because I use anthropological theories and methods to find out what is going on in veteran health care systems from multiple points of view--veterans, health care providers, and key administrators. I use both qualitative and quantitative methods to help policy makers and health care professionals provide the best care to Florida's veterans.

I’m Aimee Eden and I work with The Hillsborough County Breastfeeding Taskforce, a collaborative of individuals representing the Health Department, local hospitals, USF, and community-based organizations. To improve the health of mothers and babies, I work directly with community members to understand the cultural and institutional issues that make it difficult for women to successfully breastfeed and that make it difficult for health care providers to effectively support women.

My name is Stewart Allen and I work as an ethnographic researcher for Intel, Ireland. The benefits and uniqueness of an ethnographic and anthropological approach are increasingly being recognized by industry. I work within an interdisciplinary team of engineers and designers providing ethnographic insight into the design, usability and content creation of various new technologies. The contribution that anthropology can make within emerging technologies in the future can only get stronger as industry moves to more integrated solutions to everyday problems.

I'm Jason Miller, and my research helps Floridians tell their own stories using photos and video. Anthropologists are uniquely suited to do this because we understand people and the social systems in which they live. I facilitate conversations between diverse community members to build a stronger community.

I'm Ashley Meredith and my colleagues, Mackenzie Rapp, Phil McNabb and myself, developed a project for understanding transportation behavior because Tampa is one of the most dangerous cities in the United States for pedestrians and bicyclists, among alternative modes of transportation to automobiles.

I'm Robert Bowers, and I research poverty, race and homelessness. As an applied anthropologist, I am an advocate for the poor and I work to expose and fight racism. I also have training as an archaeologist and I am currently helping to do bone chemistry analysis on cold-case skeletons found in Hillsborough County.

I'm Ashley Gallentine, and I work with a National Positive Youth Development Sport Program (PYDS) aimed at preventing and decreasing eating disorders among adolescent girls in America and increasing their self-confidence and self-esteem. There are a multitude of causes for the prevalence of eating disorders among adolescent girls this interdisciplinary program attempts to prevent and rectify these causes.

I'm John Trainor, and my current research focuses on reducing childhood obesity in urban Tampa. By applying community knowledge and bringing together non-profits working in the community, real changes to improve the food environment, the built environment and ultimately health status can be made.

I'm David Godfrey and I do research on college student eating behaviors and how the environment impacts these and other aspects of daily life. This research is important for developing college campuses and communities that are best suited to serve their residents. This research is integrated with STEM fields as it incorporates high tech geographic analysis software (GIS) to reach objective conclusions about the geographic areas in question.

Lance Arney and Mabel Sabogal: We are the Executive Director and the Associate Director, respectively, of Moses House, a community arts organization in Tampa. At Moses House we use culturally responsive pedagogy to enhance the social, emotional, and psychological well-being of urban children and youth living in a high poverty neighborhood with many stressors. Anthropology helps us to understand the everyday lives of the kids themselves, as well as to design meaningful programs with the kids and their families based on their own needs and interests.

Governor Scott, with all due respect, Florida needs more anthropologists ... not fewer.

I'm Kara McGinnis, and I work with refugee resettlement agencies and ethnic community-based organizations (ECBOs) to assess the health needs of new refugee populations, especially the Burmese. Using vigorous research designs and quantitative and qualitative methods, I provide resettlement agencies and local organizations information to help them recognize refugee health needs they might not have been aware of.

My name is Ethel Saryee and I am an anthropologist. I work with Florida refugees to understand what is driving the increased chronic disease in these communities. Through collaboration with the state department of health, local non-governmental institutions, and the University of South Florida I am working to understand explanatory models of health in multiple displaced ethnic communities. We are also in the process of developing an epidemiological profile related to chronic disease, a first of its kind in this cohort. These efforts will inform future policy and interventions.

I'm Marc K. Hébert, and I research how to improve people's experiences in public libraries and community organizations when they interact with the design of Florida's online application process for food, medical and temporary cash assistance. This user-experience research, also known as "Design Anthropology," is widely employed in design, marketing, consulting and technology companies to create better products, services and built environments around people's behaviors, values and histories.

I'm Nikki Demetriou and I am a nurse-anthropologist. I’m currently investigating how pregnant women that receive Medicaid coverage in Florida navigate more cost-effective care options, such as homebirth. Anthropological methods give voice to these women in order to advocate for policies that positively impact their lives as well as the State’s financial bottom line. This is anthropology, and I’m proud to participate!

I am Jennifer Avery, and I am the Senior Vice President of Shopper Insights for SmartRevenue, Inc., I oversee and design research on behalf of retailers and Fortune 500 manufacturers aimed at understanding how shoppers make their decisions at the shelf. Our goal is to provide insights that will help our clients modify the in store environment in such a way as to increase sales and contribute to category growth. Our company is proud to employ hundreds of anthropologists in the collection of our data in the field.

I'm Edgar Amador, and I have used my training in scientific and descriptive methodologies to contribute to wide range of projects. These include assessments of economic development and tourism in Costa Rica and development and implementation of new safety measures and equipment for citrus farmworkers in Florida. I am currently working on an assessment of local food insecurity in households with children with the aim to help alleviate child hunger in Tampa and the US.

I'm Ashley Meredith and I work with oncologists at a local cancer center to understand patients' illness experiences and how they are dependent on the economic recession.

Jeff Moates and Rae Harper work for the Florida Public Archaeology Network (FPAN). Their regional office is hosted by USF and promotes the preservation of cultural resources through education in their nine county region. Preserving the past for the future has an economic impact, Historic Preservation in Florida accounts for 111,509 jobs and 6.6 billion dollars annually.

I'm Sean Norman, and as an environmental archaeologist I examine how people and their environment have become intertwined over time. By looking at the history of the relationship between humans and ecosystems I help address modern problems that range from wild fires to coastal degradation.

I'm Danielle O’Connor, and I have conducted research that provided diabetes education to English and Spanish-speaking people in rural areas of Florida where access to health care and education is limited or non-existent. I am currently employed by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs on a project that provides spinal cord injured veterans the opportunity to go back to work in a meaningful way and contribute to Florida’s economy.

I'm John Trainor, and I am employed by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to work on a project to improve employment opportunities for veterans with spinal cord injuries. By applying anthropological knowledge and skills in a clinical setting evidence-based practices for improving employment of individuals with spinal cord injuries can be created and implemented across the U.S.

I'm Jason Simms, and I examine ways in which American and international communities allocate and use natural resources, particularly water, and the consequences of these choices on personal and environmental health. Water and other resources are growing increasingly scarce in areas with increasing dependency, whether the result of increasing population, development, climatic changes, or so on. Ensuring that their use promotes healthy populations and a sustainable environment saves not just money, but ultimately, lives, and contributes to economic, political, and social stability.

I'm Stefan Krause and I have done research to understand the impacts of tourism on coastal communities in developing countries so that they can be better prepared culturally, economically and environmentally. Recently, I have been involved with two projects helping a local Tampa community protect and preserve its unique heritage. Understanding the importance and dynamics of culture is vital to a society’s health and progress.

I'm Juan Pablo Arroyo, and I am committed to uncovering of the origins of diabetes and related illnesses. I study social and environmental factors that promote disease by affecting the expression of genes during fetal development. My research is particularly relevant for states with a high prevalence of low birth weight and diabetes, as Florida.

I'm Cassandra L. Workman, and I am currently conducting research on the impact of water issues on the daily lives of people living in Lesotho, Africa. My work, and the work of other anthropologists living and working in southern Africa, contributes to designing and implementing more relevant and sustainable development programs.

I'm Ryan Harke and I study prehistoric and modern shellfish in northwest Florida to determine their season of collection and environmental sustainability. My research is used to understand the interaction between humans and the natural environment over hundreds or thousands of years to help make better decisions in the environmental and social management of our waterways. In doing so, I'm helping to protect Florida’s natural resources for future generations.

I'm Beth Blankenship and I am an archaeologist researching Florida State Parks in order to update museum displays with new information for the public as well as locate and preserve Florida's cultural resources for future generations.

I’m Francisco Alejandro Montiel-Ishino, and I explore how human behavior and the environment affect health and disease. In Florida I work with many state, county and local health agencies and various cancer centers, both local and national, to improve healthcare, health services and health outcomes for all individuals. I work in collaborations with public/private entities, healthcare providers and researchers to bring health and research monies to Florida while stimulating positive health outcomes and innovative research.

I'm Joe Evans, a technoarchaeologist and researcher at USF's Alliance for Integrated Spatial Technologies (AIST). As a center started by USF anthropologists, AIST has created new jobs as well as funding and working with industry (in the technology sector) for paid internships, experience with the latest technology (3D laser and otherwise), and job placements for students--many of whom are anthropology majors.

I'm Danielle Rosen, and my research seeks to understand the causes of the obesity epidemic in the U.S. This is important because of the alarming rates of obesity, especially in children. The findings from this research help to not only reduce the rates of obesity, but to reduce diabetes and heart disease and help control skyrocketing health care costs.

I'm Ginger Johnson, and my research is on how Southern Sudanese refugees in Cairo, Egypt use education as a mechanism for peace and a weapon against political violence. I am collaborating with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to assist in developing more insightful pre-conflict preventive measures and more effective post-conflict rehabilitative measures.

I’m Margaret Allsopp, and I help evaluate Florida high school STEM programs, examining reasons students choose STEM programs and their future career pathways. I also apply my anthropological training to engage youth in using technology to promote heritage preservation. I am currently working with the Sulphur Springs Museum and Heritage Center to develop a youth program using digital technologies to foster community awareness and to provide community residents access to a wide range of resources.

I'm Maryann Cairns, and I'm a cultural anthropologist who works with engineers to make sure that international development projects, such as fresh water systems, are beneficial for communities in the long-term. It is important to make sure that communities have the organization, training, and financial management skills they need to keep up with repairs so that the infrastructure put in place by engineers works for many years to come.

Join us. Spread the word. This is Anthropology!

A presentation by Charlotte A. Noble, with vignettes contributed by students at the University of South Florida Department of Anthropology. Special thanks to Janelle Christensen for collecting these stories.

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This is Anthropology