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meet the team:

Megan So

PRESIDENT

Hello! My name is Megan So, and I am this year’s President of the Anthropology Society. I am going into my fourth year and am majoring in Anthropology with minors in Disability Studies and Informatics. I am a second-generation Korean-American woman. At UW, I have encountered all kinds of people and heard so many stories, which turned my curiosity into a passion for learning about all the different realities that people are living every day. The human existence is such a diverse, beautiful, and tragic experience, and I realized I wanted to learn more about it. Pursuing Anthropology has taught me so much about what it means to be a human on Earth; a human in the United States of America; a human in Washington; a human in Seattle; a human at the University of Washington; a woman, daughter, sister, and friend. Better understanding the world and my own identity has pushed me to find ways to better connect with the people around me so that I can learn from and with them.

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After declaring Anthropology as my major, I realized the irony of the Anthropology department having no designated community. How can we study humans without first learning with and about each other? Thus, I discovered that there once was an organization for Anthropology students: the Anthropology Society. And I’m bringing it back. I am so excited for the upcoming school year as we navigate the obstacles that 2020 has presented us. >

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These are certainly strange times, but I believe that we can still be a productive community and that, if anything, this is a great opportunity for growth. Although we may be limited in our engagement with one another, I am determined to create a safe space for anyone interested in Anthropology to collaborate and network. I hope together we can make the Anthropology Society an impactful student organization that empowers its members and the Anthropology department. 


If you have any questions or suggestions for the organization or for me, please feel free to contact me at mhs15@uw.edu and I will reply as soon as possible. Or if you just want to chat about humanity and life, I’d be happy to!

Alondra Rodriguez

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VICE PRESIDENT

Hello! I’m Alondra Rodriguez and I’m the Anthropology Society’s Vice President this year. I am a senior majoring in Archaeology and History and am also pursuing a minor in Classical Studies. Since high school I knew I wanted to study archaeology and have a future career in the field. My formal introduction to archaeology was through anthropology, the broader discipline from which archaeology is a subfield of. Archaeology itself is vast with a variety of subjects, sub-disciplines, and intersections >

across other disciplines. Navigating and learning about them all was a bit daunting for me at first due to my lack of previous knowledge and process of unlearning of stereotypes and misconceptions of the field. However, I have found that various subjects, intersections, and complexities of archaeology are what excite me the most. One of my favorite things to examine are the stereotypes and misconceptions of the field found in pop culture, the exact same reason that inspired me to study archaeology in the first place. I hope to use my degree to move towards studying museology and doing curatorial work. However, my fieldwork experience and various courses I have taken motivated me to also think about doing work involving the education and prevention of looting, destruction, and conservation of archaeological sites. Needless to say, there are many opportunities and pathways within archaeology and its related fields. If you’re interested in anything archaeology, history, or classics, would like to chat, or if you have any questions about the Anthropology Society please feel free to reach out to me at
alondr@uw.edu.

Amanda Monahan

SECRETARY

Hello! My name is Amanda, and I am the Anthropology Society’s Secretary for the 2020-2021 school year! I am a rising Junior this year and I am studying Archaeology. During Winter Quarter I plan on applying to the Medical Anthropology and Global Health track as well. My path to the University of Washington and Anthropology was an unusual one. I spent much of my early twenties travelling around the world trying to discover what I was most passionate about. In the four years I took off to travel and work I visited 4 continents and 14 countries; if you ask me about my time in Uganda and I could talk your ear off for hours. During this time I spent a lot of it learning about different cultures and trying to soak up as much time with locals as I could manage. Eventually, I realized what I was most passionate about: other cultures and the material objects those cultures leave behind for us to analyze. 

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During my first quarter at UW I was determined to ask the advisors about starting a new club for anthropology majors and those interested in other cultures. >

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To my very pleasant surprise, Megan had already beat me to it. I was so grateful to find this club early on in my UW career where I could share my passion for Anthropology and wanted to share their interests within the UW community. If you have any questions about the Anthropology Society, please do not hesitate to reach out to any of the club officers! 

My email: amandaym@uw.edu

Francisco Carter

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TREASURER

My name is Francisco Carter and I am a sophomore at the University of Washington. This year, I am grateful to have the opportunity to act as Treasurer of the Anthropology Society. In 2019, I passed the Washington State Broker Examination and became a licensed real estate agent. I believe that some of my skills as a realtor will carry over to the position of Treasurer. Explaining financial matters, handling funds, and calculating the costs of resources are duties that I fully expect to take part in. 

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Outside of the business realm, I think it’s interesting to bring up my curiosity in anthropology/art and where that stems from. I was born into two puppet families. My mother is a sixth generation Chinese hand puppeteer and my father is a second generation marionettist. As a result, I think that I have a fairly strong understanding of the challenges artists face in a country with limited support for the arts. Preoccupied with trying to make a living and the creative aspects, most puppeteers have little time for anything else. Consequently, written histories and documentation of the art form have been less than thorough — particularly in comparison to other artistic mediums (e.g. paintings, sculptures). With each generation that passes, information about these intangible cultural assets of humanity are lost to the world forever. During my time at the University of Washington, I have aspired to research global puppetry traditions through an anthropological lense. Over the summer, I published an article that explored some of the sociopolitical effects of puppetry during China’s Cultural Revolution. 

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Both in and outside of academia, I have always had an interest in culture and more importantly, people’s stories. I hope that the Anthropology Society will be able to act as a hub for those who hold a similar interest.

Alex Blair

SOCIAL MEDIA COORDINATOR

Hello, my name is Alex, and I am this year’s PR/Social Media Officer! I am a junior medical anthropology & global health major and am also studying communications. Anthropology has been a life-changing subject for me to study. As a queer individual, the study of people helped me discover more about my own identity. My favorite part about studying anthropology is that it really gives you the skills and tools to be able to think critically and see the world from a different perspective. 

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My goal after completing this degree is to be able to implement strategies in the US medical system that creates a more equitable and inclusive kind of care, where patients can more easily access care and can be in more control of what is healing for them. In my free time, I love to play around with digital art, be outdoors, listen to surf rock, and make and drink coffee. 

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If you are interested in learning more about the Anthropology Society Club, anthropology in general, or just need a friend to talk to, feel free to email me at haleyb28@uw.edu, or DM us on our Instagram and Facebook pages.

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