More than 50 people attended this year’s Spring Conference held at the Metropolitan State College of Denver on the Auraria Higher Education Campus in the Tivoli Student Union building from April 14 – 17, 2011. Presenters ranged from Metropolitan State College of Denver, Northern Colorado University, and Colorado State University.
The MSCD Student Anthropological Society, ALPACA was essential to the success of the conference and many thanks go out to them and their mentor President-Elect, Dr. Jack Schultz. President Kathleen Sherman acted as program chair for the conference for the last time as starting in July Dr. Jack Schultz will become President.
Highlights of the conference included the presentation of the annual awards on Saturday afternoon. The Omer C. Stewart Memorial Award, named after a founding member of HPSfAA, was awarded to Michael Burney, an applied archaeologist and student of Omer Stewart. Kreg Ettenger, whose participation in the new website and the Society's journal, the Applied Anthropologist, is invaluable, was honored with the Bristlecone Pine Award, which recognizes long and meritorious service to the organization. The Martha and Friedl Lang Student Award went to the MSCD’s Student Anthropological Society, ALPACA. President Robert Bellamy accepted the award.
The keynote presentation was given by David White Bull, an Oglala Lakota from the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. He is a Loan Officer for The Lakota Funds, a Community Development Financial Institution. He is also a member of the Native American Church in Kyle, SD and spoke on his experience with the Church in memory of Omer Stewart and his work with religious freedom, especially the use of peyote for Native American Nations. David White Bull and his two young sons performed a Native American Church song for the audience.
A major issue at the conference was the possibility of partnering with the Society for Applied Anthropology (SfAA) for the 2013 Spring Conference. This partnership will provide HPSfAA with exposure to the larger population of Applied Anthropologists and will allow students to be exposed to a larger conference. In addition this partnership will be driven by issues that are important to the region and will be decided by HPSfAA. In accordance with the large amount of planning and time required for the 2013 Spring Conference the 2012 Spring Conference might be held at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colorado.
All in all, the 2011 Spring Conference was a successful and satisfying event, with great student participation and a wide range of high-quality presentations. Plans for Ghost Ranch are underway and will be held from September 30th – October 3rd, 2011 in Abiquiu, New Mexico. Hope to see you all there!
Thursday April 14th, 2011
HPSfAA Board Meeting - 4/14/11
Michael Brydge - CSU
"Decision Making Influences of Farmers and Ranchers in Weld County, CO"
AJ Oscarson - MSCD
"Addressing Sustainable Housing in Latin American and the Caribbean"
Sally McBeth - MSCD
"Ute Ethnobotany Project: A Collaborative Approach in Applied Anthropology"
Robert Bellamy - MSCD
"Raising Difference in Coastal Kenya"
Emilia Gonzales - Clements
Fifth Sun Development Fund
"Identifying, Measuring and Improving Quality of Life: A Brief Overview and Insights from a Northern Mexico Case Study"
PANEL: Addressing the Medical Needs of the Somali Population in Greeley, CO
MSCD Undergraduate Students
Saturday April 16th, 2011
Andrea Akers - CSU
"Lakota Women [the anti-systemic link in the capitalist world-system]
Tourism, Anthropology and Quality of Life: Interdisciplinary Perspectives Panel
Julie Reyes - MSCD
"The Role of Sustainable Tourism in Neoliberal Policies and Poverty Reduction Strategies: Do They Adequately Address Quality of Life?"
Rebecca Forgash - MSCD
"Tourism, Local/Global Cultural Production, and Quality of Life in Okinawa, Japan"
Enrique Maestas - MSCD
"Ethnography and Tourism"
Helle Sorensen - MSCD
"Viking Village Ecotourism"
MSCD - F.I.R.M.
Undergraduate Research Program
Stephen Stewart - MSCD
"What I Learned from My Father, Omer Stewart"
Keynote Speaker: David White Bull
Oglala Lakota Native American Church Member and The Lakota Funds Loan Officer
"The Native American Church and Community Development"
David White Bull and his Sons performing a Native American Church Song
Peter VanArsdale speaking about Omer Stewart
Deward Walker speaking about Omer Stewart
Awards Ceremony
The Omer Stewart Award
Michael Burney - Recipient
Michael Burney's Acceptance Speech
President Kathy Sherman announcing Kreg Ettenger as the receiver of the Bristlecone Pine Award over the phone
Martha and Freidl Lang Student Award
MSCD ALPACA Student Anthropological Society
Howard Stein
University of Oklahoma Health Services Center
"Poetry of Applied Anthropology as Life Quality Enhancement: Some Examples from American BioMedicine"
Greg Batchelder - CSU
"Participation in a Support Group for People Diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder: Impacts on Perceived Quality of Life"
Joanne Peetz Moore
"Perceptions of Higher Education as a Path to a Higher Quality of Life Among Students in Gansu Province, China"
