From the Fragments: Places and People in Colonized New England
University of New Hampshire
Institute Team
From the Fragments is hosted at UNH by the Center for the Humanities.
Project Director
Dr. Meghan Howey
Meghan is a Professor of Anthropology at UNH. She developed and leads the community-based, interdisciplinary Great Bay Archaeological Survey (GBAS) which is exploring the socioecological shock of colonialism in the 17th century in this unique ecosystem.
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Project Co-Director
Dr. Stephen Traszkoma
Stephen has been a leading advocate for public humanities at UNH. Formerly the Director of the Center for the Humanities, now Affiliate Faculty at UNH, he has recently joined Cal State LA as the Dean of the College of Arts & Letters.
Education Specialist
Elaine Marhefka
Elaine taught elementary school for years and found her passion was in innovative and inclusive curriculum development. She returned to school herself and is currently finishing her PhD in Education at UNH.
Project Coordinator
Katie Umans
Katie Umans is the Assistant Director of the Center for the Humanities at UNH and has years of experience managing programs, projects, events, and grants. She has an MFA in Poetry from the University of Michigan.
Project Research Assistant
Alyssa Moreau
Alyssa is a recent graduate of UNH in Anthropology with a minor in Native American and Indigenous Studies. She has worked on GBAS for the past two years at increasing levels of responsibility.
Guest Scholars and Community Experts
From the Fragments is honored to have a suite of renowned experts, both scholars and community knowledge keepers and organizations, who will help guide our learning over the week with enriching lectures and site tours.
Dr. Lisa Brooks
Dr. Brooks is a Professor of American Studies and English at Amherst College. She is a leading Abenaki scholar and expert who has garnered recognition and awards for her work on Indigenous methodologies and early colonial Indigenous New England histories and geographies, including her most recent book, Our Beloved Kin: A New History of King Phillip's War (Yale University Press, 2019).
Denise and Paul Pouliot
Denise and Paul are, respectively, the Sag8moskwa (Head Female Speaker) and Sag8mo (Head Male Speaker/Grand Chief) of the Cowasuck Band of Pennacook-Abenaki People. Renowned regional Indigenous leaders, Paul and Denise lead a vast array of educational and social justice activities. They are also Affiliate Faculty in UNH's Native American and Indigenous Studies Minor.
Dr. Michael Palace
Dr. Palace is Associate Professor of Earth Sciences and in the Earth Systems Research Center at the University of New Hampshire. He is a forest ecologist who specializes in geospatial modeling techniques and remote sensing technologies and runs the Satellite, Airborne and Drone Remote Sensing Lab. He collaborates with GBAS.
Dr. Kabria Baumgartner
Dr. Baumgartner is Associate Professor of History and Africana Studies and Associate Director of Public History at Northeastern University. She is an expert in researching and sharing hidden and erased lived experiences of Black peoples in New England. Her first book, In Pursuit of Knowledge: Black Women and Educational Activism in Antebellum America (New York University Press, 2019) received multiple awards.
Black Heritage Trail of New Hampshire
BHTNH is an educational non-profit organization dedicated to promoting knowledge of African American history and lives in New Hampshire. One of their most significant memorials is the Portsmouth African Burying Ground. They offer multiple themed Sankofa walking tours of Portsmouth and host educational speaker series and events across the state each year, including the Black New England Conference.