​Chloé Monet Miller

ACADEMIC HONORS/FELLOWSHIPS/SCHOLARSHIPS/AWARDS

IDEAS (Increasing Diversity in Evolutionary Anthropological Sciences) Scholar, AAPA January 22, 2016

Participate in the IDEAS Program, April 12th-17th, that precedes the 2016 Association of American Physical Anthropologists (AAPA) meetings. Partnered with a mentoring group of biological anthropology faculty and postdoctoral researchers with similar interests. Includes presentations, group discussions on a range of ongoing research topics, and professionalization modules.

 

Minority Awards Program-Internship, Smithsonian Institution October 5-December 11, 2015

Ten-week position as a Native American Intern in the Repatriation Office of the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. Helped with the development of a human osteology and bioarchaeology workshop tailored to the cultural sensitivities of Native American participants. Consulted with a diverse group of people from Smithsonian staff, to academics involved in repatriation, and to tribal or clan members from all regions of North America. Conducted semi-structured interviews with an interview guide, while remaining adaptable and seemingly informal for consultants who responded better to informality. Research purpose was to hear more about the different spiritual beliefs and traditional protocols surrounding death and ancestors, while also asking if there was a need for such a workshop. Results will be used to develop a workshop that sustains a dialog between Native Americans and the fields of bioarchaeology and physical anthropology.

 

Phi Beta Kappa Society, Pennsylvania Alpha Chapter May 16, 2015         

Fulbright Research Grant (Romania) Finalist January 16, 2015 

Baird Sustainability Fellowship, Dickinson College December 2014-May 2015     

Mary M. Moser Memorial Book Award, Dickinson College Archaeology Faculty May 15, 2015

Eta Sigma Phi Honor Society, Delta Theta Chapter March 2012

Alpha Lambda Delta Honor Society, Dickinson College Chapter January 2012

           

 

INTERNSHIPS/VOLUNTEER EXPERIENCES

Latin Club Teacher November 2013-May 2015

Taught 4th-5th graders Latin and Roman culture during two academic years. Work involved developing and executing lectures and activities that created a foundation of the Latin language and Classical world. Provided approximately 84 hours of service.

 

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Internship September 2014-May 2015

Provided technical support to Dickinson College faculty and staff for GIS-related teaching and research activities. Assisted students enrolled in GIS courses with assignments and projects. Collected, edited, organized, and managed spatial data for the GIS data server. Prepare and conduct workshops, learning seminars, and tutorials. Maintained the Dickinson College GIS blog site.

 

Medieval Funerary Excavation June 11-July 8, 2014

Ran by Zsolt Nyárádi, Univeristatea Babeș-Bólyai, Cluj Napoca and Haáz Rezső Múzeum, and Archaeotek. Tasks included revealing burials, taking field notes and drawing, mapping, and interment and preservation of remains. Other tasks included attending lectures, organizing and cleaning field equipment, and protecting the site. Gathered information will be used by the museum to for educational programs, creating exhibits, and public outreach. Provided approximately 150 hours of service.

 

Grave Creek Mound Archaeological Complex Service Project June 2-9, 2013

Served the Grave Creek Mound Archaeological Complex in Moundsville, WV. Assisted the curators by helping clean, identify, label, and catalogue artifacts. Processed archaeological reports, photos, and field notes into the facility’s database. Specialized in identifying Archaic through Late Woodland period pottery shards. Provided approximately 72 hours of service.

 

Dickinson Classics House Manager Summer 2013-Spring 2015

Maintained a physically and mentally safe environment for residents. Required strong mediation and communication skills, ability to plan and execute social and academic events in order to expand the house’s involvement with the Dickinson community. Developed a Facebook page as a public outreach tool for future house members.

 

Eta Sigma Phi, Delta Theta Chapter Historian Spring 2014-2015, Vice President Spring 2013-2014

Dedicated many hours of involvement in order to benefit the society by developing and promoting interest in classical study between the Dickinson and broader Carlisle community. Attended the 87th Annual Convention in Atlantic City, NJ.

 

Dickinson College Archaeology/Anthropology Majors Committees Spring 2013-2015

Work with Department Chair to improve the departments and engage interested students. Changes include student-faculty gatherings and a larger residential house for interested students.

 

Dickinson College Orientation Assistant/First-Year Mentor Fall 2012

Served as a mentor and resource for a group of 15 first-year students. Responsibilities included hours of volunteer work preparing and training for incoming students, move-in day, creating a welcoming environment, and being a mentor throughout the year.

 

ATTENDED WORKSHOPS

Juvenile Osteology Workshop, Archaeotek July 5- August 1, 2015

Experienced an intensive review of juvenile osteology and an overview of the ways in which to interpret collected information. Studied the growth and development and pathologies of the human skeleton across various juvenile age cohorts. Analyzed and interpreted juvenile skeletal remains excavated from archaeological sites in central Transylvania (Harghita County, Romania). Mentored by Jonathan Bethard, PhD, Assistant Professor at Boston University and Emily Peschel, MS, Graduate Student at University of Calgary.

 

Adult Osteology Workshop, Archeotek June7-July 4, 2015

Evaluated how major political events physically impact local Transylvanian populations by studying human remains excavated from four different cemeteries from central Transylvania (Harghita County, Romania). Trained to conduct osteological analyses and frame bioarchaeolgoical research questions. Mentored by Jonathan Bethard, PhD, Assistant Professor at Boston University and Emily Peschel, MS, Graduate Student at University of Calgary.

 

Wilderness First Aid, NOLS March 28-29, 2015

Two-year certification to assess harmful situations and administer medical aid to those injured.

 

Dickinson College Digital Humanities Boot Camp January 6-18, 2014

Participated in an intensive 10 day training program that helped develop skills to produce, manage, and display digital media content using programs such as Durpal, ArcGIS Desktop, ArcGIS Online, Wordpress, Photoshop, and Adobe Creative Cloud. Created a website for the paleoethnobotany or archaeobotany work of Dr. Maria C. Bruno. The website included an archive of published works by academics who focus on archaeology in the Lake Titicaca Basin, Bolivia, an archive of carbonized seeds of different species and each species’ significance, and an interactive GIS map of an archaeological site near Lake Titicaca, Bolivia.

 

 

RECENT PRESENTATIONS

“Paying the Way: Infant Coin Burials in Transylvania”

2015 International Student Colloquium on Osteology and Bioarchaeology: Session II

Székelyudvarhely, Romania July 31, 2015

Abstract: The archaeological record is riddled with medieval European coin burials with Transylvania being no exception. Three individuals, excavated from under the floor of the church at Telekfalva here in Harghita County, were found to have coins associated with their burials. However, due to the lack of textual sources, the purpose of these coins remains uncertain. By examining these individuals from a biocultural perspective, we can begin to explore the meaning behind these phenomena and how it relates to both a local and broader sociocultural and historical context.

 

“Patinas of the Past: Exploring Cultural Factors of Taphonomic Staining in a Medieval Churchyard at Bögöz, Romania”

2015 International Student Colloquium on Osteology and Bioarchaeology: Session I

Székelyudvarhely, Romania July 3, 2015

Abstract: The purpose of our research is to identify taphonomic staining that may have cultural implications among individuals excavated from a medieval Reformed churchyard in Bögöz, Romania. Understanding taphonomy is important for differentiating between biological, environmental, and cultural processes. A broad exploration of various bone staining examples helps give insight to the nature of staining found on the Bögöz remains, mostly on the hands and cranium. Green staining occurs when high concentrations of copper, usually from artifacts, oxidize. In one particular burial (sir-60), the green staining was assumed to be from a cornet—a headpiece usually only worn in this region by females. However, skeletal analysis determined the individual to be male. The perplexity of sir-60 will be explored further.

 

“Bones of Beliefs: A Mortuary Analysis of the Effects of Medieval Christianization within the Carpathian Basin”

30th Annual Science Student Research Symposium Conference

Carlisle, Pennsylvania, USA April 15, 2015

Abstract: The purpose of my research is to conduct a mortuary analysis of medieval populations living in the Carpathian Basin. A study of the deposition of human remains with regards to mortuary practices and beliefs enables me to see if Christianization did affect mortuary behaviors within the region. Understanding the dead and their relationships with the living allows for a more thorough reconstruction of past populations than just historical documentation. There is limited literature that examines the medieval Carpathian Basin from a biocultural perspective, which is why my research combines human osteological data with cultural literature about religious beliefs and mortuary behaviors of the time and region. Skeletal remains are physical embodiments of lived cultural experiences; therefore, analyzing the effects of Christianization on mortuary beliefs and behaviors with in the Carpathian Basin contributes to a better understanding of religious conversion’s impact on cultural practices and the daily lives of these people. Through my research, I have concluded that Christianization did affect these ‘pagan’ populations in various ways in varying degrees, which ultimately led to relatively universal mortuary practices that can be identified as “Christian’ burials. Some of these Christian traits include linear cemetery layouts, West-East body orientation, body on its back, less or no grave goods, and deeper burials of children. However, I argue that just because a site and/or individual burial may appear Christian does not mean that that person or the people burying the individual held to Christian beliefs since there are signs of possible resistance.

 

“Dickinson Environmental Archaeology Lab (DEAL) Website”

Mellon Digital Humanities Showcase

Carlisle, Pennsylvania USA, January 27, 2014

 

 

RECENT EMPLOYMENT EXPERIENCE

Transcriber, Smithsonian Institution Arctic Studies Center-Anchorage, Alaska February 16-March 18, 2016

Will be reviewing video footage from a 4-year collaborative archaeological/oral historical project from Yakutat Bay, Alaska. Footage that will be transcribed is of Tlingit and Eyak elders, seal hunters, and other Native Alaskan tribal members discussing their culture and oral histories.   

 

Anthropology Teaching Assistant, Dickinson College September 2014-December 2014

Provided support for students enrolled in Dr. Karen Weinstein’s “Into in to Biological Anthropology” course by assisting students during lab, explaining bioanthropological theories and methodologies, and tutoring during weekly open office hours.

 

Archaeology Research Assistant, Dickinson College June 2013-June 2014

Year-long research assistantship with Dr. Maria C. Bruno as part of her NASA GCCE Grant: Agricultural & Ecological Impacts of the Tiwanaku State on the Taraco Peninsula, Bolivia (AD 400-1150) and Climate Change & Ancient Agricultural Production on the Taraco Peninsula, Bolivia and Dana Research Project. Aided with archaeobotanical analysis of floatation samples taken from the Taraco Archaeological Project, Bolivia. Traveled with Dr. Bruno and Dr. Christine Hastorf for 3 weeks in the Altiplano of Bolivia, helping her collect type specimens, interview farmers, excavate a trench, and draw the profile of that trench. Also, helped to teach the students of her Environmental Archaeology course methods of archaeobotanical analysis.

 

Library Assistant, Dickinson College October 2012-May 2015

Assisted patrons and visitors with questions and concerns. Maintained equipment in the building and instructed patrons on proper use of equipment. Gave and interpreted information regarding library policies, use specialized library software to process, manage, and share library collection. Processed materials patrons use. Required working well within a team and communicating with supervisors, strong communication and interpretive skills, ability to identify individual needs of patrons, strong attention to detail, and ability to interact with diverse audiences.

 

Personal/Dock Master’s Assistant, River Harbour Marina/Marion Hill Associates Summer 2011, 2012, 2015

Planned and executed events that were attended by over 100 people. Accommodated patrons’ needs quickly and efficiently. Developed the ability to predict and mitigate situations before they arose. Filed expenses and documented financial information. Contacted patrons when employer was unable to. Enriched pre-existing events with activities that engaged all age groups. Required strong communication and organizational skills, ability to work under pressure in a fast-paced environment and multitask, patience, creativity, and computer skills. 

 

Nanny/Tutor, Carlisle, PA January 2012-May 2015

Cared for 3 different families. Helped rear a 12 month old boy starting in 2012 until 2015 (during the academic season), which required researching infant learning techniques. Cared for and tutored twin 9 year old boys from August 2012 until May 2015 (during the academic season), which required research and knowledge of learning techniques used by their school and innovative ways to challenge and entertain them. For the summer of 2014, lived with and tutored 2 brothers with special needs (Asperger’s/OCD/ODD) and 1 sister, which required the ability to interact with 3 drastically different individuals while maintain a safe and homeostatic environment in addition to developing structured curriculum of innovative activities (much of it art) to keep everyone happy and engaged.

 

Hostess/Busser, Café Bruges, Carlisle, PA August 2013-May 2014

Required physical and mental endurance, working well within a team, ability to work efficiently and quickly while under pressure, strong communication and interpretive skills, ability to identify individual needs of customers, strong cleaning skills and attention to detail. Did not return due to academic demands and opportunities.

 

Teacher, Beaver County YMCA, New Brighton, PA June 2011- August 2011

Developed and executed innovative programs using multiple learning techniques for diverse groups of children, ranging from 8 months to 12 years old, that participated in the YMCA Daycare Program. Left the Program to attend college, then did not return because of a higher-paying opportunity.

 

 

Education

 

Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA

2011-2015

Magna Cum Laude

Phi Beta Kappa Society

Baird Sustainability Fellowship 

Mary M. Moser Memorial Book Award                                                    

Alpha Lambda Delta, Freshman Honors Society                                                                                

Eta Sigma Phi, Classics Honors Society                                                                                                   

Dean’s List                                                          

John Montgomery Scholarship (merit-based)                                                                                                  

New Brighton Area High School, PA

2007-2011

Valedictorian

 

Languages

 

Latin

Hungarian

French

Lakota

 

2010 - present