GVSU Archaeology and Ethnography Field Schools
50 Years of Archaeology
Upcoming Field Schools
Summer 2022 |
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Anthropologists have studied festivals since the discipline's very early days, from Mardi Gras and Carnaval to Holi, el Día de los Muertos, Burning Man and Coachella. This spring semester we'll be conducting research at a festival that has been an essential part of the Grand Rapids community for over 50 years, the Festival of the Arts. The Festival of the Arts is held downtown in early June each year and combines visual arts, live music, literature and multicultural food booths in an annual event that the Library of Congress has recognized as the largest all-volunteer arts festival in the United States. Students will conduct ethnographic fieldwork, including surveys, focus groups, interviews and participant-observation, to enhance Festival organizers' own understandings of the makeup and motivations of the volunteers who make Festival happen. This is a rare opportunity to explore and contribute to one of Grand Rapids' signature annual events while earning GVSU credits and gaining experience in the field. This field school, which fulfills the field experience requirement for the Anthropology major, is open to all GVSU majors and may be particularly beneficial to fine arts, sociology, hospitality and tourism management, integrative studies and film majors. During Spring 2022, ANT 307 will meet on Tuesdays and Thursdays, 12:00-3:20pm in LMH 249 on the Allendale campus. There will be additional required hours outside of class meetings devoted to independent and group research activities, including data gathering, processing, and analysis in on-campus and off-campus settings in Allendale and Grand Rapids. Students enrolled in both the 3-credit section (Section 101) and 6-credit section (Section 102) will be expected to be present during all class meetings and involved in research activities. Students in the 6-credit section will be expected to commit to additional weekly contact hours devoted to research activities on- and off-campus. |
Grand Rapids Festival of the Arts

2018-2021 Field Schools |
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2021 Archaeological Field School |
The 2021 Archaeological Field School will explore the history of the Eastmanville Farms Park. Now an Ottawa County Park, this property was once home to the Ottawa County Poor Farm. The Poor Farm was established in 1866 with the goal of providing needy residents a home while they aided in working the land. The farm provided social services to residents in various capacities until 2000. If you have any questions please email Gwyn Madden ([email protected]) or Heather Van Wormer ([email protected]) |
The Anthropology summer ethnographic field school 2019 will explore patterns of substance use among GVSU students. The field school is designed to provide training in the application of research methods. Students will learn participant observation, ethnographic survey, open-ended interviews, social mapping, and focus group discussion. The final product of the field school will be a working paper with recommendation for administration and ACES program to understand and improve services for students. Instructor: Dr. Kristin Hedges ([email protected]) |
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West Michigan Archaeological Field School Dates: First 6 weeks Spring term May 7-June 19 |
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Borshchiv, Ukraine — The study abroad program in Ukraine is designed to educate students about the relationship between the environment and human beings. The courses will focus on how human activity has been shaped by the environment, as well as how humans have re-shaped the environment. Ukraine is a place where human and environmental interaction has experienced dramatic change several times throughout history, from the first farmers in the region to the 1986 tragedy at the Chernobyl nuclear power station. Courses in the program will highlight the crucial parameters of our interaction with nature, which shape both our biological and social development. The “Culture and Environment” course (part of the Man and Environment theme requirement) will be devoted to the study of human impacts, variability of experience in different environments, and environmental determinants of human cultures. Dates: June 30th-August 3rd |