On January 31, 2020 graduate students, Alex Goots, Micayla Spiros, and Rhian Dunn, hosted our 5th annual half-day workshop for the students from the Bay-Arenac ISD Career Center-Forensic Science Program. Approximately 30 students attended the workshop where they learned how forensic anthropologists estimate the biological profile from human skeletal remains. The series of lectures on Forensic Anthropology included identifying human vs. nonhuman bone, age estimation methods, and sex estimation methods, followed by hands-on activities so that students had the chance to apply material learned in the lectures.
During the week of September 23, 2019, the MSUFAL conducted a week long training course for the Michigan State Police (MSP). The course included two days of lectures by MSU faculty and staff on forensic anthropological methods for analyzing human remains, and one day of field recovery.
After the first day of lecture series, attendees were given a set of skeletal remains to layout anatomically and were tasked with determining the age, sex, ancestry, and stature of the individual based on methods provided in the lectures.
The field recovery portion of the course allowed participants to excavate four burials, each with their own unique burial contexts. Here, participants learned to map, photograph, document, and properly excavate and recovery human remains.
On the final day of the workshop, participants presented their findings from the skeletal analyses and their field recovery to discuss different methodological approaches for their specific burial circumstances.
MSUFAL would like to thank the Michigan State Police for allowing us to conduct this training and thank you for those who attended!!
Upcoming Events
No upcoming events. If you would like the MSUFAL to hold an outreach event for your team, please contact Dr. Carolyn Isaac.