Research and Focus: Biological Anthropology, Evolutionary Anthropology, Human Energetics, Thermoregulation
Goals: I would love to pursue a PhD after I receive my Masters, I hope to become a professor to continue the field of anthropology through research and teaching.
Max Kalina
Expected Graduation Date: Spring 2027
Research and Focus: Landscape Archaeology and Predictive Modeling
Before graduate school, Max worked throughout the West as an archaeological technician for government land management agencies. During his work, he learned how archaeology is commonly employed in land management projects and resource management. After a decade of work, he chose to take the next step in his career and gain an M.A. in Anthropology.
Goals: After completing his M.A., Max plans to become an archaeologist at a government land management agency.
Research and Focus: Reproductive Ecology, Evolutionary Theory, Stress Pathophysiology, Caregiving, Public Health
Haley Dunham is a Biological Anthropologist completing her final year in the master’s program. Her research uses statistical methods and an evolutionary life history theory approach to understand how reproduction, maturation, and senescence vary within and between modern human populations. Drawing on disciplines such as developmental psychobiology, physiology, and neuroscience, her work explores the evolutionary attunement of the human stress experience across metabolic and psychosocial domains. Evolutionary theory enables her to analyze stress appraisal, response, and coping through an expanded theoretical tool kit that is anchored in a life course perspective. She hopes to contribute meaningful work that can assist in expanding anthropology’s impact on public health and clinical research, and is looking to continue her education with a compatible PhD program.
Research and Focus: Landscape Archaeology, Andean Archaeology, West Mexican Archaeology, GIS and Remote Sensing, Archaeological Survey, and Community Collaboration
Helen Olson is a third year Master’s student in Anthropology whose current research examines albarradas (constructed water reservoirs) in coastal Ecuador and their relationship to broader patterns of landscape use. She earned her undergraduate degree in Archaeological Studies from Yale University, where her research focused on West Mexican lithics, including pXRF analysis of lithic materials. She has experience in archaeological fieldwork in Ecuador, West Mexico, and Peru, including excavations involving human and llama remains, and was invited to return to Ecuador for three months of laboratory work following excavation.
Research & Focus: Biological Anthropology: energetics and metabolism
CJae is a second year Master's student in Biological Anthropology whose research explores the evolution of the human and primate metabolism. Her work examines how the metabolism, hormones, epigenetics, diet, and physical activity interact with one another to create a complex picture of energy expenditure. Prior to graduate school, CJae completed her Bachelors in Evolutionary Anthropology and spent time in the field in Indonesia. While in Indonesia she studied wild Orangutan populations, participated in coral reef conservation, sea turtle conservation, and ethnographic work with the indigenous people.
Goals: She plans to I plan to pursue a Ph.D in Biological and Evolutionary Anthropology. I hope to become a professor and engage in epigenetic research.
Research and Focus: Paleoanthropology and Historic Archaeology in Colorado
Helena is a second year Master's student in Anthropology, concentrating in both Archaeology and Biological Anthropology. This year, she is a TA for the Introduction to Biological Anthropology course. Her research interests broadly include paleoanthropology and historic archaeology in Colorado. After completing her degree, Helena plans to pursue a job as an archaeologist in Colorado, working with Section 106 to contribute to the historic preservation of archaeological sites in this region.
Research and Focus: European Archaeology, Bioanthropology, Zooarchaeology, Human evolutionary studies
Savannah Bedsole is a second semester Master's student in The University of Colorado Denver's Anthropology Department. Savannah is working as a Teaching Assistant for the Introduction to Biological Anthropology labs, instructing students on DNA, genetics, osteology, and human/hominin evolution. She has had extensive field school and field work experience in the Western United States, Ireland and Italy. Savannah is particularly interested in European Archaeology, and is gaining experience this fall semester with Zooarchaeology. She has also had a long-term curiosity for human evolutionary studies and bioanthropology. Savannah earned her Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology from Texas A&M University, close to where she was born and raised in Houston, Texas. At Texas A&M, Savannah gained experience in the Anthropology Conservation Lab working on ceramic artifacts to be repatriated back to their home communities. Savannah is passionate about repatriation efforts and ethical archaeological practices.
Savannah moved to Denver two years ago and has developed a love for nature and being outdoors. Savannah has experience with digital and film photography, where she is interested in applying this skill to anthropological efforts.
Goals: After completing her Master's Degree at The University of Colorado Denver, Savannah hopes to gain more field work experience in Europe or the Western U.S. as an assistant to the archaeological project lead. From there, Savannah has set her sights to pursuing a Ph.D. program for archaeology and/or bioanthropology. Savannah also has enjoyed working for the university and is open to university job roles pertaining to anthropology.
Research and Focus: Archaeology. Improving dating for cave art with suspected dates >50ka. The objective is to clarify whether the Neanderthal cave art preceded the arrival of H. sapiens in Europe.
Clyde Oakley is a second year Masters student in Anthropology. He hopes to use the results of the thesis to study whether proxies can be found for the Neanderthal and sapiens collective knowledge and practices, and if so, to assess its role in the dominance of H. sapiens.
Goals: After his M.A. Clyde plans to continue doing research independently with the collaboration of others to continue studying how collective behaviour can be measured and model to find its role in evolution and cultural competition.
If you share any of Clyde's interests, please contact him.
Alisha Wilkins
Expected Graduation Date: Spring 2027
Research and Focus: Medical Anthropology, Bioethics, Breastfeeding, Lactation Consultants
Alisha is passionate about contextualizing parenting experiences in the United States through qualitative ethnographic fieldwork, with the goal of addressing structural and social determinants of health. Alisha has more than 15 years of experience in health care, including many rewarding years providing family-attuned, care-centered breastfeeding and family-care support. Alisha currently teaches the 95 hours of didactic instruction for the Pathway 2 Lactation Consultant Training Program at MSU Denver, where Alisha engages the next generation of lactation professionals in nuanced conversations that extend beyond biomedical framings of lactation. Additionally, Alisha is completing a master’s thesis in Medical Anthropology at CU Denver and pursuing a certificate in Bioethics at CU Anschutz.
Grant Perkins is a first year Master’s student in Biological Anthropology. His areas of interest are hominid locomotion and Middle Pleistocene migration patterns. Grant is recently married with two beautiful cats. He is a student first and a full-time Distribution Manager on the side. When he’s not reading or distributing, he’s skiing, climbing, or riding his 2021 Honda XR650L.
Goals: Grant plans to pursue a Ph.D after completing his masters in 2029. If you have any suggestions, opinions, or offers on what to do next, please feel free to contact him!
David Talavera
Expected Graduation Date: Spring 2028
Research and Focus: Cultural/Medical Anthropology
David Talavera is a first-year Master’s student in Medical Anthropology. His research focuses on mental health, specifically examining how non-traditional medicine can improve the physical, mental, and spiritual well-being of underserved populations, with a primary emphasis on military veterans. His academic path began at the University of Colorado Denver, where he completed his Bachelor's degree in Anthropology and discovered his dedication to the field of medical anthropology. Embracing the Colorado lifestyle, he spends his free time traveling, hiking, and snowboarding.
Goals: After completing his M.A. in Spring 2028, David plans to pursue a Ph.D. in Medical Anthropology. Ultimately, he aspires to become a university professor and conduct research to support veterans within the Veterans Affairs (VA) healthcare system.
Madison Guthrie
Madison Guthrie is a second-year graduate student at CU Denver, with a concentration in Medical Anthropology, and is focused on studying the accessibility of healthcare, healthcare policy analysis, and the experiences of marginalized communities when interacting with the healthcare field. She graduated from CU Denver in May 2020 with her BA in Anthropology, with much of her focus on biomedicine, holistic medicine, and their accessibility, which influenced her interests to pursue policy analysis research. Her thesis is targeted around analyzing Western Slope hospitals and their practices screening low-income patients for financial assistance by looking at the current policies, barriers, and experiences of hospital staff and hidden populations, with the intent to better inform future healthcare policies. Her other passions include researching alternative medicine, advocating for cannabis research, and studying astronomy. Outside of school, she loves to read, hang out with her family and dog, and study constellations.
Hannah Bauguess
Hannah Bauguess is a second-year graduate student at CU Denver and is currently pursuing a MA in Medical Anthropology with a focus on disability studies and policy analysis. She is also pursuing a certificate in Global Public Health at CU Anschutz, with the future hopes of being a health policy analyst for people with disabilities. Her thesis is focused on the analysis of Comprehensive Transition Programs (CTPs) for Intellectually Disabled Adults in Colorado and the impact these programs have on those enrolled in the program. She received her BS in Anthropology from Kennesaw State University in Georgia, where she primarily focused on biological anthropology including osteology, bone biomechanics, and osteological pathologies. During her senior year, her interests in disability research and studies developed when she interned at an inclusive education program for intellectually disabled adults through her undergraduate university. This internship experience influenced her decision to pursue a MA in Medical Anthropology and a desire to understand and support individuals with disabilities in a professional capacity. In her spare time, she works as a TA for CU Denver's Biological Anthropology lab courses, where she assists in teaching about human evolution, osteology, and genetics to undergraduate students. Away from campus, she loves to go thrift shopping and hang out with her family and her three cats.
Devri Beckett
Devri Beckett is a first-year graduate student at CU Denver and is currently pursuing a MA in Biological Anthropology under Dr. Charles Musiba with a focus on genetics and paleoanthropology. She recently had a paper come out in Biology on “Maternal Relationships among Ancient and Modern Southern African Sheep: Newly Discovered Mitochondrial Haplogroups”. She received her BA in Anthropology from Southern Methodist University, where she focused on biological anthropology and archaeology. During her senior year, her interests in biological research and studies developed when she worked at K. Ann Horsburgh’s molecular anthropology laboratory and the archaeology research laboratory through her undergraduate university. In her spare time, she works in the department of surgery at CU Anschutz as an administrative assistant. Away from campus, she loves to travel around, and enjoys quality time with her friends and family.
Bridget McGann
Bridget is a third-year Masters student with a concentration in Biological Anthropology. She studies lactation as a biocultural system, and how it shaped us as a species. A passionate science communicator, she loves to share anthropology with the wider public.
Bridget is a Research Assistant and Knowledge Translation Consultant at THRiVE Discovery Lab, an interdisciplinary Developmental Origins of Health and Disease (DOHaD) lab at the University of Manitoba. Her 2022 paper with THRiVE colleagues (Turner, McGann, and Brockway, 2022) described the disruption of breastfeeding supports in response to COVID-19 in Western countries. Her thesis uses multi-generational data from the CHILD Cohort Study to explore the effects of historical maternal health inequities on the human milk microbiome. She holds a BA in Anthropology from Indiana University South Bend.
As a science communicator, Bridget was on the founding volunteer team for the March for Science, where she worked in communications and developing an interdisciplinary follow-up summit. She has communicated science in the form of science writing, film production, museum education, public talks, and stand-up comedy. She is also an advocate for neurodiversity in science, and gender-inclusive lactation support.
In her community, Bridget worked with History Colorado and the Rocky Mountain Irish Roots Collective to develop a museum exhibit about Irish immigrant labor strikes of 19th-century Leadville, Colorado. She also enjoys cycling Cherry Creek and playing fiddle in Denver’s local Irish music sessions.
Gabrielle is a second-year master's student who is currently serving as the Anthropology Department's Lead Teaching Assistant. Additionally, they have taught four Introduction to Biological Anthropology courses and one Human Osteology course. Their broad research interests are biological anthropology, paleoanthropology, primatology, paleoecology, geometric morphometrics, and taphonomy. Their current thesis research involves creating a geometric morphometric protocol to assess the taxonomic and ecological diversity of Cercopithecoid (Old World Monkeys) dental material found in the Pliocene fossil beds alongside our hominin relatives at Laetoli, northern Tanzania.
Gabrielle graduated from CU Denver with a BA in Anthropology in December 2020. Throughout their years as an undergraduate, they clocked in 200+ hours collectively in the Modern Human Anatomy Lab at CU Anschutz under Dr. Caley Orr and in the Morphometrics lab at CU Denver under Dr. Charles Musiba. In addition, they spent three weeks assisting in the survey and excavation of fossil and ichnofossil material at Laetoli alongside Dr. Charles Musiba, Dr. Andrew Deane, and Dr. Isaac Onoka during the 2023 field season. Outside of school, Gabrielle enjoys visiting museums, going out with friends, and taking their dog on long walks throughout the city.
Stef Reamer is a second year graduate student in the Anthropology Program at UC Denver. Their focus is in biological anthropology and archaeology, and by mixing the two, exploring how our middle and late Homo ancestors and cousins interacted with each other and the world around them. With also having a background in CAD Design and 3D Printing, they also utilize their skills to help create replicas of skulls and other artifacts that can be safely handled for educational purposes. Once graduated, Stef hopes to work in a museum setting both curating and educating on our hominin ancestors and their cultural practices. Stef graduated in 2022 from the University of Michigan with a BA in Anthropology and a minor in Spanish Language, Literature, and Culture. While there, they helped curate an anthrobotanical collection while working with Native communities to learn more about the plants' and artifacts' significance. In the past year, they have clocked 150+ hours at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science as volunteer both interacting with guests and working in the Fossil Preparatory Lab. Outside of class and research, they love to spend time with friends, reading, and exploring the beauty of Colorado.
