Courses Taught
AN/AA 287: Slavery and the In-Between
This course examines the space between freedom and enslavement known as recaptivity. Course discussions will focus on historical and social conceptions of freedom, and how these concepts informed the “in-between” of recaptive status. Course assigned readings and discussions will explore recaptivity in a range of diaspora contexts and compare recaptive status to other forms of tenuous freedom. The course will also examine the theme of returns to the African continent in historical and modern contexts. This course complements anthropological training in topics of race/racism and identity and coursework in African American & Black Diaspora Studies.
Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
● Explore political and personal ideas of how freedom is defined
● Gain an understanding of the slave trade routes of the African diaspora
● Describe the history of 19th century slave trading and abolition
● Gain an understanding of the social status of recaptivity
● Gain an understanding of racialization in a range of diaspora contexts
● Grasp and implement critical storytelling in enslavement contexts
AN/AR 550: Human Osteology
This course introduces the concepts and methods used in the analysis of human skeletal remains from forensic and archaeological contexts. The skills learned and practiced in this course provide a foundation for more advanced studies in comparative anatomy, bioarchaeology, forensic anthropology, paleoanthropology, and paleopathology. This course includes lectures, in-class activities and discussions, online resources, and significant independent laboratory study time. The course fulfills the following BU Hub areas: Scientific Inquiry I, and Ethical Reasoning.
Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
- Understand and engage in debates related to ethics in human osteology
- Identify whole and fragmentary human skeletal elements
- Distinguish between human and non-human bone
- Gain foundational understanding of the biological profile
- Evaluate osteological applications in fields such as bioarchaeology, forensic anthropology, paleoanthropology, and paleopathology.
AN/AA/AR 301: African Diaspora Archaeology
This course provides an introduction to the themes, material evidence, and debates found in the archaeological study of the slave trade and its legacies. Course discussions will focus on methodology, findings, and theory surrounding key African diaspora archaeological contexts. The course covers archaeological research spanning the breadth of the African diaspora (e.g., Africa, North America, the Caribbean and Latin America, the Indian and South Atlantic Oceans). Themes addressed in the course include topics such as space, status, kinship, religion, agency, recaptivity, and ethics in the archaeological record. The course also emphasizes the ways in which diasporic archaeological frameworks have been instrumental in modern dialogues on community engagement, human remains stewardship, and notions of return and reburial. This course complements training in anthropology, archaeology, history, and diaspora studies but is open to undergraduate students in any field.
APY101: Introduction to Anthropology
Introduction to Anthropology provides a broad overview of the four subfields of anthropology: archaeology, cultural anthropology, biological anthropology, and linguistics. This course aims to provide a series of vignettes that will provide insight into anthropology’s approach to understanding the complicated layers of human existence.
Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
• Define and understand the aims of each anthropological subfield
• Articulate the foundational concepts that underlie anthropological practice
• Relate anthropological understandings of culture, history, and biology to contemporary events