ECU produces most archaeology, maritime professionals

For the third consecutive year, East Carolina University has produced the highest number of new registrants to the Register of Professional Archaeologists.

ECU is one of only a few graduate institutions in the U.S. offering an interdisciplinary master’s degree in maritime history and nautical archaeology, a key reason ECU continues to produce the highest number of applicants to the RPA. In fact, according to the article on the RPA web site, “In 2015, of the 313 applications received by The Register, 14 were recipients of Master’s degrees in Anthropology and Maritime Archaeology from East Carolina.”

“The success of the Program in Maritime Studies is due in large part to the quality of our students,” said Dr. Bradley Rodgers, director of the program, housed in the Thomas Harriot College of Arts and Sciences Department of History. “They are self motivated, ambitious and high energy; you have to be to dive in some of the places we visit, which are seldom ‘Club Med’ environments.”

Researchers in the field of archaeology must apply to become members of the RPA, though not all applicants are accepted. The RPA expects its members to have high standards of research performance and adhere to a specific code of conduct.

Dr. Randy Daniel, chair of the Department of Anthropology said, “The fact that many of our MA archaeology grads are applying to RPA confirms that the training they receive at ECU meets the professional standards required to be listed on the register. Prospective employers of archaeologists, including state and federal agencies as well as private companies, look to the register to identify those archaeologists that meet established professional standards.”

Alumni of the ECU anthropology program accepted into RPA are Kathryn Parker and Kate Thomas. Alumni accepted into RPA from the ECU program in maritime studies include Jeremy Borrelli, Daniel Brown, Kara Fox Davis, Chelsea Freeland, Stephanie Gandulla, Thomas Horn, James Pruitt, William Sassorossi, Lucas Simonds, Greg Stratton, Jeneva Wright and Caitlin Zant.

For additional information about ECU’s programs in anthropology, visit www.ecu.edu/anth. More information about the program in maritime studies is available at www.ecu.edu/maritime.

–Lacey Gray