Last day as Campus Archaeologist!

Campus archaeologist Terry Brock cleans and artifact

Today is my last day working as Campus Archaeologist. Being Campus Archaeologist at Michigan State University has been the most rewarding professional experience I have ever had. Two years ago, when Lynne Goldstein informed me that I had the job, I had no idea what to expect. It was the first time such a position had existed, and was a central component of the newly formed Campus Archaeology Program. Neither the program or position existed anywhere, let alone at MSU, so what I’d be doing was only partly understood. Some of the responsibilities were clear, others would be developed as we went on. Little did I know, it would be an experience that would help me discover more about myself, my home town, my university, and my future than most could ever ask for in a job.

I grew up in East Lansing. I graduated from East Lansing High School in 2000, and spent my childhood attending MSU football and basketball games, feeding ducks by the river, picnics in the park behind Student Services, summer baseball camps at College Field, and annual school field trips to the MSU Museum and Wharton Center. My father works here, my sister went to school here. I have always loved MSU. Little did I know that the opportunity to explore its past through its archaeology would deepen the love affair: holding this position has given me chance to gain a thorough understanding about why MSU is what it is. This is a great school, with a rich tradition in teaching, research, and community engagement, and that commitment has shaped how it looks and the type of education offered here. I am hopeful that more students, faculty, staff, alumni and community members learn about it and develop a greater appreciation for where it has come from. And I hope that it is the Campus Archaeology Program that leads the way.

The job itself is steeped in professional opportunities that I couldn’t have predicted. There is the obvious experience of conducting archaeological survey and excavations, the added benefit of co-directing my first field school, and learning about the process of doing Cultural Resource Management. What was unexpected was the amount of experience I gained in developing a fully functioning campus program focused on research, teaching, and engagement. I learned how to work with departments across campus, watched and learned about the inner workings of campus administration, learned about managing budgets, developed internships and mentored undergraduate interns, and interacted in new and exciting ways with the community. These experiences are going to follow me everywhere, and greatly inform who I am as an academic, researcher, and person. I have Lynne Goldstein to thank for the guidance, the wisdom, and the trust to let me be creative, take risks, and letting me be as involved as possible in every step of the development of this program. This blog, for example, in addition to the use of digital social media, are examples of risks that I was allowed to take. That sort of trust is rare in any boss, and I have had the good fortune of working with someone who gave me that freedom. Mentors are hard to come by, and Dr. Goldstein is one of a kind. I am lucky to have her in my corner.

The future for me will be in Williamsburg, Virginia, where I will be writing my dissertation on a slave plantation site in Southern Maryland. Leaving my home town is hard, but it won’t keep me entirely from Campus Archaeology. I will continue to work for the program as a researcher, converting many of the archaeological projects we have conducted over the past couple years into (hopefully) publishable articles, along with some other interesting engagement projects. I will continue to post here about all of these projects, so that you can continue to be involved in them. Chris Stawski, who has worked with our program as a field tech and teaching assistant for the past two years, will be taking over as Campus Archaeologist. A good friend of mine and a fellow graduate student in Anthropology, Chris will be bringing even more unique talents to the program…so stay tuned.

In closing, I’d like to thank everyone at the MSU Anthropology Department for their help and support, and all my fellow grad students who’ve been out digging with me: it has been so much fun. I’d like to give a huge thank you to the MSU Archives and Historical Collections for all of their help, energy, and expertise. They are an unknown treasure on this campus. I’d like to thank all the people across the university, from University Relations to the MSU Union to MSU Campus Planning who have taken beautiful photos, served delicious food to hungry archaeologists, and offered helpful insight and advice about our campus. An enormous thank you to the MSU Graduate School and Dean Klomparens, who provided the funding for the Campus Archaeologist experiment in so many stages: this has been a wonderful experience that is exemplary of what advanced graduate education at MSU is all about. I’d like to the thank every person who showed up to an excavation, asked a question, or followed us on Twitter or Facebook: our work and research is meaningless if we don’t have a community to share it with, so thank you for giving us a reason to do what we love. Most importantly, I’d like to thank MSU Physical Plant, particularly those of you on the ground who are at work before all of us making this campus a beautiful place to work and live. You’re appreciation for MSU’s past has allowed us to learn some amazing things, and it’s been a blast being out in the field with all of you making these discoveries together.

Thanks again, and Go Green!

Author: Terry Brock



8 thoughts on “Last day as Campus Archaeologist!”

  • Since we share the same name, I’ll of course take credit for for your work here whenever I can!

    You know I’m proud of what you’ve done – not only with CAP, but the gender violence work, your academics, and geriatric baseball. I’ve learned a lot about where I work from talking to you over the last couple of years and of course loved having you near home again for that period. I’ve also learned to be in awe of someone as effective and selfless as you’ve been in so many unique ways…which somehow you seem to do everywhere you go.

    Go write your thesis!

    Love,
    Dad

  • You’re not really leaving – you’re just moving to our “virtual” campus. In terms of thank you’s, I owe one to you for doing such a terrific job and maintaining that ever-so-important enthusiasm. Also, I want to thank MSU’s VP Fred Poston and Pres. LouAnna Simon for being so supportive of the program. It will be exciting to see what we can do next!

  • Thanks for all your great work Terry. You were an excellent choice for our first Campus Archaeologist.

  • Terry,
    Good luck in your new adventures. It has been great working with you and your team.

    Landscape Services and Physical Plant has gained a great appreciation for the history of MSU and we are thankful for having the opportunity to be involved with your program. We look forward to working with Chris on new and continuing projects.

    Thanks again and good luck,
    Amy

  • Good luck in your new endeavor Terry. It was always a pleasure working with you on our road/utility jobs, etc. Thanks again.

    -Andy

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