Department of Anthropology

Events

For the Brandeis Anthropology Research Seminar (BARS) schedule, visit the BARS webpage.

event flyer with graphic of a nurse
Health in Prisons: A Panel Discussion

April 1, 2024

Time: 6:00 pm
Location: Zinner Forum, Heller School

Explore the intersection of health and the carceral system from a multitude of perspectives scanning academic, professional, and personal experience.

  • Dr. Sanaullah Khan, a lecturer in Medical Anthropology at Brandeis University who has studied the barriers that incarcerated and formerly incarcerated people in Baltimore face in accessing mental health and recovery services
  • Stuart Grassian, MD, a psychiatrist who works with incarcerated people and who advocates for solitary confinement reform
  • Sashi James, Director of Reimagining Communities at The National Council for Incarcerated and Formerly Incarcerated Women and Girls
  • Angelia Jefferson, who provides education services and support to formerly incarcerated people through the Partakers Empowerment Program, BEJI, and New Beginnings Reentry Service

Sponsored by the Carceral Awareness, Reform, & Education Club (CARE) and cosponsored by Brandeis Educational Justice Initiative (BEJI).

Sarah Han
Law, Legality & Social Identity: An Event with Mandel Grant Graduate Winners

April 2, 2024

Mandel Center for the Humanities Presents:
Lunchtime Talk: Law, Legality & Social Identity

New Time: 12:15-1:15 pm
Location: Mandel Center for the Humanities Reading Room (303)

Speakers: Jessica Brewer (English), Sarah Han (Anthropology), with responses from Dr. Mariam Sheibani (NEJS)

How do law and legality shape people's perceptions of themselves and their social identities? In this lunchtime talk, Jessica Brewer (English) and Sarah Han (Anthropology), winners of Mandel's 2023 Graduate Dissertation Innovation grants, discuss their research.

From Jessica Brewer's project description: "As the turn of the 19th century saw a shift in prison architecture and reform, the emergence of solitary confinement and increasing incarceration of the poor, I aim to examine mainstream authors and alternative/street literatures to map how social narratives develop around incarceration. My research asks: how did Victorian narratives create social others and how did these narratives affirm/challenge public opinion and policy? How do dominant narratives continue to shape social attitudes about specific groups? And can narratives be reshaped for social good? What tools do the Victorians offer us for modern social, political and/or police reform?"

From Sarah Han's project description: "Originating from the Balochistan region spanning Western Pakistan, Eastern Iran, and Southern Afghanistan, some Baloch have obtained Emirati citizenship, while other Baloch have passports from their "country of origin," as part of the nearly 90% of non-citizen workers living in the UAE on temporary visas, and still others remain document-less and stateless. Across all the three documentary categories, Baloch women share in the experience of being perceived as Arab and assumed to be Emirati citizens because they wear the unofficial national dress of the abaya [a long black robe] and shayla [a loose black headscarf] in many public spaces. As a result, they are treated with respect as presumably high class, socially advantaged women with social power, regardless of the reality of their legal ambiguity."

Sponsored by the Mandel Center for the Humanities.

event poster
students in a class
Anthro Thesis and IRB Info Session

April 16, 2024

Time: 5:30 pm
Location: Brown 224 - Pizza served!

Thinking about writing an anthropology thesis next year? Professors Janet McIntosh and Sarah Lamb are offering an info session where you can get all your questions answered. Immediately following, they'll discuss how to make sure your research complies with Institutional Review Board (IRB) guidelines.

We also encourage you to attend Senior Research Day on May 1 (see below). The presentations about this year's theses might inspire your own.

Here's more information about the thesis process.

Jessica Basile
Work Myself Out of a Job: The Importance of Language in Campus Sexual Violence Prevention - Jessica Basile Dissertation Defense

April 17, 2024

Time: 9:30 - 11:00 am
Location: Brown 316

Jessica Basile will defend her dissertation. Her dissertation examining committee members are Professors Sarah Lamb, Elizabeth Ferry, Janet McIntosh, and Anita Hill. This event is open to all. A copy of the dissertation is available upon request.

IRB (Institutional Review Board) Protocol Preparation Workshop

April 25, 2024

Time: 3:30 - 4:30 pm
Zoom (register here)

Are you planning a research or thesis project involving human subjects?

Attend this workshop hosted by the Brandeis Human Research Protection Program

You'll learn the ins and outs of writing a protocol, completing the forms, and what human subjects research protection is all about!

IRB permission is required to do an anthropology thesis that involves research with human subjects.

From the Anthropology Senior Honors Thesis webpage: A thesis is a "public document" so the research described in it must comply with Institutional Review Board (IRB) guidelines. If you plan to use data collected during study abroad in your junior year or during the summer between your junior and senior year, and if that data involves research with human subjects (such as interviewing or participant observation), you need to apply for and receive IRB permission in advance of conducting the research to use it toward a senior thesis. You should submit your application as soon as possible, since it can take 1-2 months to complete the process and the board frequently asks students for revisions. Some students apply for IRB permission in or at the end of their junior year; others apply first thing in their senior year. Please consult carefully with your advisor on this matter. You can find information and instructions on the human subjects research page of the website.

You are also welcome and encouraged to attend the Anthropology Thesis and IRB Info Session being offered by Professors McIntosh and Lamb on April 16 (see above).

students between stacks in the library
Anthropology Senior Research Day

May 1, 2024

Time: 10:00 am
Location: Schwartz 103

Come hear students present on their senior theses or independent research.

Refreshments served.  All are welcome!