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Curriculum Vitae |
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Profile Living and traveling throughout the United States, Britain, Europe, and Mexico through the course of my life has fostered my lifelong quest for cultural understanding. I have continually quested for an academic and professional path that would offer me the opportunity to discover and share the connections that exist between peoples by studying their stories, beliefs and symbolic expressions, rituals, and material culture in an effort to reveal the patterns of meaning that each contains. My teaching experience and dedication to education combined with a highly defined ability for self-directed research have brought me to this juncture where I am currently a Ph.D. student In Cultural Heritage Studies and Historical Anthropology at the University of Montana. Approaching the Cultural Heritage program from my folkloristic background, allows me to explore views that complement the anthropological perspective through interdisciplinary approaches to and interpretations of cultural experiences. Education Ph.D., Anthropology, University of Montana, current student Concentrations: Historical Archaeology, Folk Belief Systems (magic), Gender and Boundaries, Museology Working Dissertation: Archaeology, Magic, and Engendered Boundaries in 17th Century New England
M.A., Folklore, Greenwich University, 2002 Concentrations: Belief Systems and Material Culture Thesis: The Symbolic Significance of Doorways and Openings in Vernacular Architecture
B.A., English, University of Montana, 1992 Concentrations: British Literature, History, Secondary Education
Experience Adjunct Instructor University of Montana Course: Historical Archaeology
Flathead Valley Community College Courses: Comparative Mythology; Public Speaking; Interpersonal Communications
Secondary Teacher 11 years as a public school educator Courses: Mythology and Folklore; AP Literature and Composition; World Literature: Speech and Debate
Professional Organizations Societas Magica (Journal: Magic, Ritual, and Witchcraft) Scholarly organization for the interdisciplinary study of magic throughout history.
American Folklore Society (Journal: Journal of American Folklore)
Society for Historical Archaeology (Journal: Historical Archaeology)
Vernacular Architecture Forum (Journal: Buildings and Landscapes) Scholarly organization for the interdisciplinary study of vernacular architecture.
Mythopoeic Society (Journal: Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature)
Phi Kappa Phi International Multidisciplinary Honor Society
Golden Key International International Multidisciplinary Honor Society
Lambda Alpha National Collegiate Honors Society for Anthropology
Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society of History
National Education Association/Montana Education Association
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Research Interests Archaeology of Ritual and Magic (deposition of apotropaia and/or ritual objects) Doorway, window, and hearth symbolism and ritual “Sense of Place” studies (spatiality, geography, environment and identity) Role of gender in spatial constructs Role of boundaries in identity construction and maintenance Role of fear in cultural constructs Role of consumption in cultural constructs Literary use of passageways
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