The University of Tulsa undergraduate and graduate students have conducted research in the collection as part of various courses. In addition, the collections are used as an integral part of teaching in the Department of Anthropology and across campus.
Meet our students & volunteers that conduct research in our lab:
Doctorate and Graduate Students

Emily Schumacher
Doctoral Candidate
Emily Schumacher, M.A., is a Doctoral Candidate in Anthropology with interests in historical archaeology, landscape change, and the preservation of cultural resources. Her current research focuses on the former Danish West Indies (modern-day U.S. Virgin Islands) and combines archival research, Geographic Information Systems (GIS), and archaeological investigation to examine the relationship between military control, sociopolitical power, and economic influence on the patterning of the St. Croix landscape as well as better understand the lived experiences of those involved in the military defense of the island.

Robyn Messer
Graduate Student
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Kathleen Kelley
Graduate Student
Kathleen Kelley’s research in the graduate department at The Univ. of Tulsa is focused on a 100,000 yBP site in Yahuai, China. She is researching micromammal remains from the site in order to ascertain the likelihood of early man’s presence in the area during his dispersal out of Africa. Her main area of interest is in the field of bioarchaeology.

Jordan Thomas
Graduate Student
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Forrest Valkai
Graduate Student
Forrest Valkai is a master’s student working on the paleoecological reconstruction of ‘Ubeidiya, Israel by analyzing stable isotopes of deer. By putting together a picture of the landscape in ‘Ubeidiya 1.5 mya, he hopes to help us understand the dispersal of Homo erectus out of Africa. Forrest holds degrees in education and integrative biology, teaches science to over 800,000 followers on the internet, and is an incredibly bad dancer.

Bass Andre
Graduate Student
Undergraduate Students

Kristin Coon
Undergraduate Student
Kristin Coon is a junior undergraduate at The University of Tulsa, majoring in anthropology, minoring in art. This is her second year working in the zooarchaeology lab.

Grace Cook
Undergraduate Student
Grace Cook is currently working towards a bachelor’s degree in English and Anthropology at the University of Tulsa. She is currently working on an independent study about Neanderthal’s depictions in Literature and Anthropology in light of Anthropological finds in the 20th century. Her main research interest is in the field of archaeology.

Madeline Jennings
Undergraduate Student
Madeline Jennings will be in her second year of studying Anthropology at the University of Tulsa in the 2021-2022 school year. She began volunteering in Dr. Belmaker’s lab in the Spring of 2021. She started off working in the Micromammal Taphonomy Collection cleaning and categorizing bones. Madeline intends on continuing her work in the lab and engaging with many different collections while learning from her colleagues throughout her academic career.
Volunteers

Anastasia Matveeva
Volunteer
Anastasia Matveeva is currently an undergraduate student at the University of Central Oklahoma. Studying Forensic Science and Biology, she ultimately wants a career in Biological/Forensic Anthropology. She is very grateful to have received the opportunity to assist Dr. Belmaker in her lab during Summer 2021.

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TURC scholars, independent studies
Past Members of the Lab
Graduate Students
- Heather McGuire
- Paul Bowman
- Ashley Brown
Undergraduate TURC scholars, independent studies & volunteers
- Audrey Stromberg