ANNE KELSEY
Marketing and Communications Manager
At the close of our fourth annual Anthropology Day celebration, it is clear that the discipline is filled with enthusiastic ambassadors keen to share all that is amazing about our field. Our 2018 celebration saw a record 259 officially registered groups with 32 international registrants joining from 14 countries.
What excites us most about Anthropology Day each year is the incredible diversity in the way that groups choose to celebrate the event, and 2018 was no different.
AAA staff teamed up with representatives from Archaeology in the Community, the Society for American Archaeology, National Geographic, Montgomery College, the George Washington University, and the National Museum of Natural History to spend the day visiting local schools and conducting virtual presentations to a total of 355 elementary and middle school students. Many of our registered groups followed suit, taking their celebrations into their communities. Northern Kentucky University hosted their event at a local library, the Rhode Island College Anthropology Department did activities with the children at their campus childcare center, and Lehigh University anthropologists held a trivia event for students at a local high school.
East Carolina University celebrated for their fourth consecutive year by holding an “Anthropology after Dark” event, which featured a lecture, laboratory and artifact exhibits, Andean music, and an Egyptian tomb brought to life. Minnesota State University, Mankato’s department also held an open house, including a donation drive to benefit ECHO Food Shelf, a program of lectures, faculty-led department tours, and prize raffles.
The University of North Texas and the University of South Florida both chose to highlight the varied careers available to anthropology majors through their Applied Anthropology Expo and Anthropology in Action events. The Haffenreffer Museum of Anthropology at Brown University hosted a photo booth where museum visitors and employees could showcase their love of anthropology.
Normandale Community College; SUNY Oswego; the University of Sindh Jamshoro, Pakistan; Mardin Artuklu University, Turkey; the University of Manipur, India; and dozens of other groups marked the day with film screening events, guest lectures, games, snacks, and other festivities. Georgia Southern University’s department of sociology and anthropology expanded their program to celebrate a full “Anthropology Week” with lectures, film events, and photo opportunities spread across multiple days.
Anthropology Day celebrations are as diverse as the field and the Association extends our most sincere gratitude to all the people who participated in events at their schools or workplaces and shared their love of anthropology using #AnthroDay on social media. Continue sharing why anthropology matters with people in your communities by registering for the next celebration at AmericanAnthro.org/AnthroDay.
You can find a complete list of activity suggestions on the AAA website at americananthro.org/anthrodayactivities.