Facilities

The WKU Ethnographic Video Production Lab is housed in the Department of Folk Studies and Anthropology in Fine Arts Center 246. The equipment includes two Panasonic video cameras, two Sennheiser shotgun microphone kits, wireless and lavalier microphones, a Shure field mixer, tripods, two MacPro computer editing stations with 40-inch monitors and Final Cut Pro editing software, and a wide range of additional field equipment. The equipment is used by students enrolled in Anth 449/449G Ethnographic Video Production, trained students completing independent research projects and theses, and department faculty.

Located in the Rock House, the WKU Anthropology Lab houses teaching and research collections, lab and field equipment, site documentation, and library resources. The lab is directed by Dr. Darlene Applegate.

The largest collection curated at the WKU Anthropology Lab is archaeological materials, including prehistoric and historic artifacts from 92 of Kentucky's 128 counties. The archaeological collection was obtained over the last three decades through field school excavations, government compliance contracts, and donations from private citizens concerned about preserving Kentucky's archaeological record. Site documentation ' in the form of field notes, field drawings, photographs, correspondence, and reports ' for hundreds of archaeological sites is curated at the lab.

Also curated at the WKU Anthropology Lab is a small collection of human skeletal remains from archaeological sites. Most of the bones are from local prehistoric archaeological sites and are culturally unaffiliated. The skeletal collection is NAGPRA compliant.

The E. E. Hegen Collection is a small collection of cultural artifacts from contemporary South American cultures. The materials were collected in the 1950s by a WKU geography faculty member and were donated to the WKU Anthropology Lab in 2000. Specimens include fishing tools, bark textiles, head gear, and personal ornaments. Several anthropology students have completed research projects using the Hegen Collection.

There are teaching collections and teaching aids related to archaeology and biological anthropology at the WKU Anthropology Lab. We maintain a comparative faunal collection for the analysis of animal bones from archaeological site. We have skeletal casts of fossil humans and recent humans for use in forensic anthropology, paleoanthropology, and related courses.

The WKU Anthropology Lab supports a wide range of student engagement activities. Students in archaeology and biological anthropology classes complete lab assignments as part of their course work. Selected anthropology students complete directed studies and lab practica at the lab. For instance, students have conducted analyses of artifact collections and skeletal remains, and they have assisted with curation projects at the lab. Community outreach and public education programs at the lab include Girls in Science Day and Boy Scout Merit Badge University. The WKU Anthropology Club regularly holds meetings and other events at the Rock House. Each year student volunteers invest literally hundreds of hours of work at the lab washing artifacts, curating collections, reorganizing the library, and entering data into our lab databases.

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