http://today.cofc.edu/2014/05/07/4-life-lessons-learned-archaeology/
By: Melissa Whetzel Contact: Jim Newhard, Classics professor and director of the archaeology program, 843.953.5485
From the CofC main web page: Contact: Jim Newhard, Classics professor and director of the archaeology program, 843.953.5485 On May 10, 2014, five College of Charleston students will become the first graduates in South Carolina to earn a Bachelor of Arts in Archaeology. They plan to be museum curators, tour company owners, and to use their geoarchaeological knowledge to travel the world working on excavation sites. In the fall, Coleman will begin the Masters Program of Environmental Archaeology at University of Umeå in Sweden. She is one of the program’s first five graduates, along with James Boast, Corey Heyward, Steven Paschal, and Caroline Weber. RELATED: Four real-life lessons learned through archaeology. “My favorite part about the major was being able to take classes from a wide range of departments to fulfill the requirements,” says Steven Paschal. “I feel that the major, although it is more of a ‘hard’ science, really fits into the liberal arts nature of the College of Charleston.” The archaeology program includes professors and courses from four different schools within the College of Charleston. Plus, students are required to do either an internship or participate in a field school – a hands-on experience that all the graduates enjoyed. RELATED: Watch a video of the Archaeological Field School at Dixie Plantation. “Our regional laboratory for archaeology is second to none,” says professor Jim Newhard, program director. “Evidence for major prehistoric and historic events of our continent are easily found within driving distance of campus. We, however, go further. Our students and faculty are engaged in archaeological research the world over, and we have a growing reputation for archaeological informatics. These assets – lowcountry, global reach, informatics – provide a wide variety of opportunities for students and faculty alike.” RELATED: Read the College’s archaeology blog. The College of Charleston has offered a minor in archaeology for many years and since the archaeology major was approved in fall 2013, it has exceeded expectations, growing to more than 35 students. “I wanted to major in archaeology because I wanted a degree that would give me hands-on knowledge as well as the theories behind studying the past. I wanted to prepare myself for a career that would allow me to more interactive and interdisciplinary,” says Corey Heyward. “In the fall, I will be attending George Washington University to earn a Masters in Anthropology with a concentration in museum studies.” http://today.cofc.edu/2014/05/05/busy-student-athlete-student-media-editor-thrives-pressure/ There’s a moment just before a competition dive when everything goes silent. That’s the part College of Charleston junior Nicole DeMarco loves most. The tense stillness, the sense that everybody is watching her, the pressure to perform. “You’re standing up there and you get nervous,” DeMarco says. “It’s a rush.” The pursuit of that “rush” propels DeMarco in many areas of her life. Student-athletes are famously time-crunched, but DeMarco has redefined the student experience by trying as many different activities as she can, including athletics, student media, student government, and a sorority. And she’s no slouch in the classroom either. DeMarco is a double major in international studies and French with a minor in political science. She’s set to venture overseas this summer for a prestigious internship –– the third international trip of her college career. As editor-in-chief of Cistern Yard News, the College’s student media organization, DeMarco oversees the content and publication of Cistern Yard Magazine and news website cisternyard.com. DeMarco says she has always thrived under deadline pressure –– the rush that is synonymous with journalism. At her high school newspaper in Shelton, Conn., the fluffy stories weren’t for her. She gravitated toward international news and weightier topics like gay rights and bullying. At the College, she has worked her way up through the news staff – from writer, to news editor, to managing editor, to her current position. “Nicole is the type of student who is always busy, but you would never know it,” says Katie Dean Williams, assistant director of student life marketing and media. “She is dedicated to her staff. Courteous, but a natural leader, she always meets deadlines and follows up with everyone to make sure they are on track.” Along the way, Demarco has tried her hand at student government (a senator during her freshman year) and Greek life (Zeta Tau Alpha) because “it was something else to be involved in.” She’s already completed two study abroad experiences – Paris during her freshman year and Morocco in the summer of 2013. RELATED: Learn more about study abroad opportunities at the College. “I’ve always been someone who has to be busy, doing as much as I can,” she says. “That can be good and bad.” It’s good, because she’s always challenging herself with new experiences. It’s bad, because she can overcommit. To keep herself on track, she swears by the simplicity of a Moleskine calendar. Her friends tease her about this old-school calendaring method, but DeMarco finds that the act of writing things down on paper makes them stick. Earlier this year, having published her first issue of Cistern Yard Magazine in February 2014 followed by the conclusion of the diving season in March 2014, DeMarco had been settling into a rhythm with her courses. That’s when she was struck by the urge to take on a new commitment. She found it on the United Nations’ online career portal. What the heck, she thought, as she clicked the submit button on an application for an internship with the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, a United Nations court of law that deals with war crimes. RELATED: Read more about the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia. And what do you know? The life of this busy student-athlete just got a little busier. DeMarco ships out for the three-month internship in The Hague in May 2014. She has a lot to do before then. But she welcomes the challenge. “I work really well under pressure,” she says. “When I have too much time on my hands I can’t get things done. The pressure helps.” Education Reform Expert to Speak in Charleston. Posted on 20 March 2014 | 12:08 pm On April 17, 2014, the College of Charleston will host Roslyn Mickelson, an expert in school reform. She will speak at 4:30 p.m. in room 235 of the Robert Scott Small Building (175 Calhoun St.). The event is free and open to the public. Roslyn Mickelson Her studies have concluded that children of any race who attend diverse schools are more likely to succeed, in areas like graduating, avoiding crime and attending college. She’ll talk about this in her presentation, entitled “Majors, Leavers, and Avoiders: The Interactive Influences of Gender, Race, Social Class, and Institutional Forces along the Pathway to STEM Degrees in North Carolina.” [Related: Read about Mickelson’s research in a 2013 New York Times article.] Mickelson’s research focuses on the political economy of schooling and school reform, particularly the relationships among race, ethnicity, gender, class, and educational organization, processes, and outcomes. She investigated school reform in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg schools from 1988 to 2008, focusing on the ways integration and resegregation influenced educational equity and academic achievement. Her coedited book, Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow: The Past, Present, and Future of (De)segregation in Charlotte will be published in 2014 by Harvard Education Press. Roslyn Arlin Mickelson is professor of sociology and public policy at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. In 2011, Mickelson received the First Citizens Bank Scholar Award from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte in recognition of her career as a distinguished scholar. She is a Fellow of the American Educational Research Association and the National Educational Policy Center. For more information about this event, contact Lauren Saulino at saulinole@cofc.edu. Events, Languages, Cultures, and World Affairs Office of Media Relations Mike Robertson Melissa WhetzelCollege of Charleston to graduate first South Carolina BA recipients in Archaeology
“When I was younger, I would pretend to be Indiana Jones in my backyard,” Jessica Coleman says. “The archaeology major brought back the kid in me that was always looking for adventure and long lost treasures. At the College, I spent practically all of my time in the geology department to understand what affected various sites around the world.”
Busy Student-Athlete, Student Media Editor Thrives Under Pressure
Contact: Katie Dean Williams, assistant director for student life media & marketing, 843.953.5289
Nicole DeMarco
Nicole DeMarco in competition dive.
Education Reform Expert to Speak in Charleston
Senior Director of Media Relations
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Director of Media Relations
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