IUP Anthropology represented at the American Academy of Forensic Sciences in New Orleans in February 2026. The AAFS is the preeminent medicolegal professional organization, providing leadership to advance science and its application to the legal system.
IUP student Ali Schmidt and IUP alumna Dakota Dickerson ’25 presented their research on pig decomposition that they conducted at IUP’s decomposition research station. Dakota is in her first year of a PhD program at the University of Florida.
Participants of IUP’s 2025 WWII Forensic Archaeology Field School evaluated metal detection results from the site to determine whether metal type could inform recovery strategies. Professors Andrean Palmiotto and William Chadwick supervised the students, who included Ella Sibilia, Oliver Casadei, Megan McCracken, Lillian Antonelli, David Bavencoff, Lexi Dengah, Francesca Fiorello, and Axel Valdez Ruiz. Antonelli and Bavencoff were on site to present the work. Field school students from past years, including Ali Schmidt, Dakota Dickerson, Lettie Cloutier, Sophia Henn, and Phoenix Farnham, stopped by for a field school reunion (see photo). It was great to catch up and hear how their graduate school plans and programs are going.
Palmiotto also presented on work conducted in collaboration with the Indiana County Coroner’s Office and IUP’s Applied Archaeology program. Co-authors included IUP alumna Emily Sykora ’24 and the county coroner.