2017-2018 Undergraduate Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]
Anthropology, Cultural
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Anthropology Core Faculty:
Bambi Chapin, Associate Professor and Director
Sarah Chard, Associate Professor
J. Kevin Eckert, Professor
Robert Rubinstein, Professor
Department Faculty (Sociology, Anthropology, and Health Administration and Policy)
Chair
J. Kevin Eckert
B.A., Ursinus College, 1969; M.A., Northwestern University, 1973; Ph.D., Northwestern University 1978
Associate Chair
Sarah Chard
B.A., Bryn Mawr College, 1991; M.A., Case Western Reserve University, 1995; Ph.D., Case Western Reserve University, 2001
Professors
Marina Adler
B.A., University of Tennessee, Knoxville, 1981; M.A., University of Tennessee, Knoxville, 1984; Ph.D., University of Maryland, College Park, 1990
J. Kevin Eckert
B.A., Ursinus College, 1969; M.A., Northwestern University, 1973; Ph.D., Northwestern University 1978
Robert L. Rubinstein
B.A., Case Western Reserve University, 1968; M.A., Bryn Mawr College, 1972; Ph.D., Bryn Mawr College, 1978
Mary E. Stuart
B.A., The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 1971; M.A., University of Maryland, Baltimore, 1974; Sc.D., The Johns Hopkins University, 1989
Associate Professors
Bambi L. Chapin
B.A., University of Virginia, 1988; M.A., University of California, San Diego, 1998; Ph.D., University of California, San Diego, 2003
Sarah Chard
B.A., Bryn Mawr College, 1991; M.A., Case Western Reserve University, 1995; Ph.D., Case Western Reserve University, 2001
Brandy Harris-Wallace
B.S., University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, 1998; M.A., University of Alabama, 2001; M.S., Florida State University, Tallahassee, 2003; Ph.D., Florida State University, Tallahassee, 2006
Andrea L. Kalfoglou
B.A., University of Virginia, 1991; Ph.D., The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 1999
Christine A. Mair
B.A., University of Florida, 2005; M.S., North Carolina State University, 2007; Ph.D., North Carolina State University, 2011
John G. Schumacher
B.S., John Carroll University, 1986; M.A., Bowling Green State University, 1994; M.A., Case Western Reserve University, 1997; Ph.D., 2000
Takashi Yamashita
B.A., Tokyo Gakugei University, 2002; M.A., Ball State University, 2007; M.A., Ball State University, 2007; Ph.D., Miami University, 2011
Assistant Professors
Jennifer A. Callaghan-Koru
B.A. University of Virginia, 2002; M.H.S. Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 2008; Ph.D. Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 2011
Loren Henderson
B.A., Northwestern University, 2006; M.A., University of Illinois at Chicago, 2008; Ph.D., University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2014
Dena T. Smith
B.A., Goucher College 2003; MA Rutgers University 2006; PhD Rutgers University 2011
Jamie L. Trevitt
B.A., Duke University, 2003; M.P.P., Georgetown University, 2006; Ph.D., The Johns Hopkins University, 2010
Research Faculty
Senior Research Scientist
Ann Christine Frankowski
B.A., Alfred University, 1965; M.A., Binghamton University, 1970; Ph.D., Indiana University, 1983
Assistant Research Scientist
Laura M. Girling
B.S., Clemson University, 2007; M.S., Loyola University, 2010; Ph.D., University of Maryland, Baltimore County, 2015
Senior Lecturer
Nicole M. Cousin-Gossett
B.S., Towson University, 1999; M.A., Temple University, 2001; Ph.D., Temple University, 2010
Lecturers
Katie K. Birger
B.A., Virginia Commonwealth University, 1994; M.A., University of Maryland, Baltimore County, 2013
Meryl Damasiewicz
B.S. Morgan State University, 1995; M.A. University of Maryland, Baltimore County, 1996
Courses in this program are listed under ANTH.
The Department of Sociology, Anthropology and Health Administration and Policy offers undergraduate majors in Sociology, Cultural Anthropology, and Health Administration and Policy, as well as minors in Sociology and Cultural Anthropology. Information on the Cultural Anthropology major and minor are presented here. For information on Sociology and the Health Administration and Policy majors, refer to the corresponding sections in this catalog. For more detailed information, see the department’s website.
ANTHROPOLOGY is the worldwide comparative study of humankind, present and past. The subfield of Cultural Anthropology examines the relationship of culture, human meaning, and the social, political, and economic forces that affect our worlds. Our Cultural Anthropology major provides students with an understanding of cultural diversity, human social organization and social structure, and social research methods.
Anthropology courses help students gain an understanding of the complexity of current events within the U.S. and internationally. These courses offer students training in anthropological theory and research methods, with opportunities to apply these in practice. Students have the opportunity to explore critical contemporary problems, globalization, urban life, family, gender, and health, to name just a few topic areas, through the lens of Anthropology. We also offer a three course sequence on physical and forensic anthropology. Cultural Anthropology majors complete their own independent research projects as part of their capstone methods course.
Cultural Anthropology majors learn to gather and analyze complex material, communicate across difference, and recognize how cultural perspectives shape understandings of events and interactions. Upon graduation our majors are well prepared to obtain employment in our increasingly multicultural workforce, pursue graduate and professional training, and engage effectively in a complex world.
Career and Academic Paths
Cultural Anthropology majors gain knowledge, skills, and conceptual tools that prepare them for a wide range of careers, professional training programs, and graduate studies.
After graduation, our majors have found employment in government, non-profit, and private sector settings. They are especially well-suited for positions that involve human interaction, problem solving, and communication, and where an understanding of diversity is beneficial. This includes employment at social support and development organizations, private marketing firms, and companies involved in international business.
An anthropology major also provides a strong foundation for those intending to pursue graduate studies and professional training in fields such as medicine and public health, psychology and social work, education, business, international studies, public policy, and human services. Students who plan to engage in anthropology professionally generally continue to graduate school, entering M.A. and Ph.D. programs in anthropology around the country.
Academic Advising
Students majoring in Cultural Anthropology must meet with their Anthropology advisor each semester during advanced registration to review their progress toward fulfilling major and university requirements but are also encouraged to meet with their advisor at any point during the semester.
Advisors are available to assist students in developing an academic pathway towards graduation, as well as to discuss post graduate education and career options. A student’s post-baccalaureate plans for either graduate education or immediate employment are important influences on his or her overall academic program and course selections. With these considerations in mind, early and continuous contact should be established with a program advisor. Anthropology majors with another primary major are still strongly encouraged to meet each semester with their Anthropology advisor.
Students can declare a Cultural Anthropology major by filling out the Declaration of Major Form, located on the Registrar’s website, and returning it to the Registrar’s office. Once the student has declared a Cultural Anthropology major, he/she should contact the department to be assigned a faculty advisor and will receive updates regarding the major via email.
For more information about the program’s advising process or for general questions regarding the Cultural Anthropology program, please refer to the Department’s website.
Double Major
The Department offers a double major in Sociology and Anthropology. Information about this double major can be obtained from the department website.
Honors Program
The Anthropology program offers a major with honors in Cultural Anthropology to students. This is designed for students with a strong academic record who want to conduct a substantial independent research project in anthropology, culminating in a thesis, during their final year in the major. Information describing the requirements for the major with honors is available on the Department website. Students considering graduate school in Anthropology are particularly encouraged to pursue this option. Interested students should discuss this with their Anthropology Advisor as early as possible.
M.A. and Accelerated Bachelor’s/Master’s Programs in Applied Sociology
The Master of Arts degree in Applied Sociology and the Accelerated Bachelor’s/Master’s in Applied Sociology focus on the sociology of health; aging; selected aspects of diversity, gender, and culture; and applied research methods. The Accelerated Bachelor’s/Master’s program permits undergraduates with any major to take up to 9 credits of graduate sociology courses in their senior year with the approval of the Graduate Program Director. These courses count for both the bachelor’s and the master’s degrees. The student receives a bachelor’s degree after completing 120 credits and the graduate courses taken during the senior year reduce the number of courses required for the master’s degree. The two programs are open to students in all majors. SOCY 101 is required for admission into the Accelerated Bachelor’s/Master’s program, and applicants must have also completed at least one upper-level course in a substantive area of sociology (at UMBC). All courses are offered at 4:30pm or 7:10pm, one evening per week. For admission requirements and deadlines please consult the Department website. A normal course load for full-time graduate students is 9 credits a semester. Students interested in applying to either program should email Marina Adler, Graduate Program Director, at adler@umbc.edu or Faith Dinh, Graduate Program Coordinator, fdinh1@umbc.edu.
Evening and Part Time Options
The Department offers various advanced courses in the evening every semester but does not offer an evening major. Students who are able to take some courses during the day can complete the degree on a part-time basis.
Student Organizations
Council of Majors
The Council of Majors sponsors the Anthropology Club, which is open to majors and non-majors. Club activities have included a brown-bag lunch film series and discussion, field trips to local museums and events, sessions on the graduate school application process and internship opportunities, and potlucks that showcase food traditions from around the world. Interested students should contact the Anthropology Council of Majors faculty advisor, Bambi Chapin, bchapin@umbc.edu for more information.
Lambda Alpha
Lambda Alpha is the national collegiate honor society for Anthropology. To become a member, an undergraduate student must:
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Be an officially declared anthropology major
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Be a junior (60-89 total credits) or a senior (90 or more total credits)
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Have an overall UMBC GPA of 2.5 or better
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Have a GPA in all UMBC anthropology courses of 3.0 or better
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Have completed no less than twelve credits in Anthropology
Further details please consult the department website. The induction ceremony is held in May each year.
Undergraduate Research Opportunities
Undergraduate anthropology students are encouraged to practice and pursue original research through their course work in independent study classes (ANTH 399) and in honors projects. In addition, the Department faculty members at times have external grants and contracts on which undergraduates may work as research assistants. Such arrangements are made individually with faculty members.
ProgramsBachelor of ArtsNon-DegreeCoursesAnthropology
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