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Alicia Ebbitt

Alicia Ebbitt (2003 -- present) PhD track in Archaeology and Social Context, outside minor in Comparative and International Education.  Interests: Archaeology education, community empowerment projects, heritage tourism, Latino education, ethnic and national identity, public outreach, and heritage education in Central America

Background:

After I received my BA in Classical and Near Eastern Archaeology from Bryn Mawr College in 2001 I spent two years in CRM archaeology at Archaeological Services, Indiana University of Pennsylvania.  At IUP, I conducted field and lab work in addition to participating in public outreach and education projects.  I became interested in public archaeology through various educational experiences in Honduras, Pennsylvania, Cyprus, and Crow Canyon Archaeology Center.  I came to IU to pursue interests in community partnerships and public outreach in Belize with Dr. Anne Pyburn.

Current Research:

I am interested in youth culture, ethnic and national identity, and heritage and multicultural education.  My current research interests are in the ways that children and teachers construct ideas and interpretations of history, archaeology, and heritage and what role archaeological resources play in education.  Many public archaeology programs have focused on teaching students and tourists about what archaeologists study.  There has been a limited amount of research conducted on the ways that people are already thinking about history and archaeology. 

For my dissertation I want to conduct a critical, applied, ethnography of heritage education in Belize.  Archaeologists need to familiarize themselves with these efforts and try to answer questions like: How can we create more culturally sensitive and interactive educational materials that will interdigitate with curricular materials and national examinations? How can we gain a better understanding of how students and teachers are appropriating and interpreting curriculum and constructing their own ideas about the past and national and ethnic identity? 

I hope to combine the research of the Chau Hiix project with the “alternative histories” of Belizean curriculum designers, teachers, and students to create a forum for information exchange and interactive learning about the past.  Community collaboration is integral to successful, ethical, and responsible archaeological research for many reasons.  As Belizeans become more involved in developing their own multicultural and heritage education programs it is important for archaeologists to work with them and exchange information and ideas for successful education and research projects.

Current Research Projects and Outreach at Indiana University:

• The MATRIX Project – I have been an assistant to Anne Pyburn for the Making Archaeology Teaching Relevant in the XXI Century Project (MATRIX) for several years. Archaeologists who are part of this NSF funded project redesigned undergraduate archaeology curriculum and created courses that address the skills needed by future archaeologists and the responsibilities archaeologists have to the public.  The MATRIX website (http://www.indiana.edu/~arch/saa/matrix/homepage.html) contains course modules and resources designed by archaeologists all over the country.  Currently, I am working on an NEH grant to expand the MATRIX project to include the perspectives of Native American scholars and community members.
• Chau Hiix Archaeological Project – The Chau Hiix field school has always had a close relationship with the local community of Crooked Tree. Project members participate in festivals, educational projects, and give tours of the site to visitors. For more information, visit the Chau Hiix website: http://www.indiana.edu/~swasey/ChauHiix/
• Ethnographic Research on Latino Newcomers – Dr. Bradley Levinson at the IU School of Education is conducting a research project that examines the ways that local social service agencies, teachers, and school administrators are incorporating and accommodating Latino newcomers into their community programs, educational curriculum, and local activities.  For this project I have interviewed outreach staff at community organization, transcribed interviews, and presented data at conferences.
• Public Outreach -- Part of the mission of the Social Context Program is to become involved in the local community and participate in archaeology education at local schools, museums, and festivals.  I have participated in Indiana Archaeology Month activities every September, designed museum exhibits, visited local classrooms, and planned school field trips.  I have also worked with other CAPI members at the Hovey Lake site (http://www.indiana.edu/~archaeo/hovey/hl-ts.htm)

 For more information about my previous jobs and research projects feel free to contact me!  

           Jenna Los and I at Xunantunich, Belize              Students learning from artifacts in Crooked Tree, Belize

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