Dear friends,
Greetings from U‑M Anthropology! My name is Andy Marshall, and this summer, I became the chair of the department. I am a biological anthropologist who works mainly on the ecology and conservation of primates and tropical forests, primarily in Indonesia. It is an honor and a privilege to serve this amazing community.
Our department is recognized worldwide as offering the best four-field anthropological training available anywhere. We produce new knowledge about the complexity and richness of human endeavors, past and present, and serve as a vital resource for our campus, the state of Michigan, and the communities with whom we work. To sustain these endeavors and ensure our students can pursue transformative learning experiences, will you support Michigan Anthropology by making a gift to our Strategic Fund today?
This past year highlighted the incredible vitality and innovative spirit of our community. In October, we hosted our third annual Four-Field Symposium: “Fairness & (In)Equality.” For the first time, we implemented a student-driven structure where participants in a semester-long seminar introduced our speakers and served as panel moderators—fostering deeply engaging discussions for a standing-room-only audience. We are excited to expand this student-led innovation for our fourth annual symposium in October 2026, titled “The Work of Death.” Furthermore, thanks to generous matching grants from alumna Julie Stroh, professor emeritus Conrad Kottak, and an anonymous donor, in March our community set a new Giving Blueday record to support student research.
While these achievements reflect our strength, flexible annual support has become more critical than ever. In an increasingly unpredictable external funding landscape, traditional grants for student research and field science are harder to secure and slower to arrive. Direct, expendable donor support fills these crucial gaps. Flexible funding allows us to respond immediately to student needs, provide access to essential fieldwork and conference travel, and safeguard student-led initiatives. Unrestricted annual support ensures that shifting national trends never constrain our students’ ability to conduct rigorous, engaged, and public-facing research.
A gift from you, small or large, will directly empower our students and sustain the excellence associated with Michigan Anthropology. Thank you for making a gift today to support our students and programs, and thank you for your enduring partnership with our department. I would love to hear from you at [email protected] with updates on how you are applying your anthropological training. Go Blue!
Best wishes,
Andrew J. Marshall
Professor and Chair, Department of Anthropology
