Make no bones about it--Jeffrey Campbell Graduate Fellow Richard Gonzalez is enthusiastic about the opportunity he has been given to teach anthropology at St. Lawrence.

Gonzalez came to St. Lawrence this fall after teaching at Niagara County Community College, Niagara University and the University of Buffalo. He received his undergraduate degree from Wichita State University in 1998, his first master’s degree from there in 1999, and his second master’s degree from the University of Buffalo in 2003.

“I love working with bones,” says the physical anthropologist.  “Working with human skeletal remains is just like putting a puzzle together.  There is so much interesting information you can gather from looking at a single bone.”

Gonzalez, who teaches forensic anthropology, notes that the most rewarding experience of being a professor is the knowledge he is able to share.  “In teaching, I learn, and can teach it to others,” he says.  He enjoys watching his students “follow in his footsteps,” whether by conducting research or majoring in his field. 

Gonzalez has finished researching the development of gender differences in the crania of children for his dissertation.  “The differences depend on age and the region of the cranium,” Gonzalez says.  “There is a lack of research from the remains of juveniles, which is why it interested me.”

“I love anthropology,” he says.  “I could not see myself doing anything else.  This is what many anthropologists do—they teach at universities, help students learn, and conduct research.”