Randolph-Macon College alumnus Rachael Ruth Smith ’18 was recently honored as the 2021 recipient of the prestigious Paul Goldberg Award, presented by the Society for American Archaeology (SAA). Smith will be presented with this honor virtually at the association’s annual meeting in April 2021.

Smith’s thesis, “The Use of Portable X-Ray Fluorescence to Distinguish Individuals in a Commingled Assemblage of Human Remains” was selected by the association’s Geoarchaeology awards committee on behalf of the entire society. The SAA is an international organization and the largest of its kind in North America. One Goldberg award winner is selected each year.

Smith’s interdisciplinary research applies geoarchaeology methods to forensic anthropology issues to test the feasibility of portable X-ray fluorescence to resolve commingled skeletal remains, after being excavated from a historic cemetery site. Her research aims to understand how elemental signatures (e.g., calcium, phosphorous, manganese, and others) vary within a single bone and within an individual after being interred for hundreds of years.  

Extraordinary Faculty Support and Opportunities

Smith credits her professors and experiences at RMC with fueling her passion for archeology and heightening her interest in pursuing teaching in this field as a career path.

“All my professors were extremely supportive of my choices,” says Smith.  “Dr. Elizabeth Fisher (Classics and Archaeology) encouraged me to attend the Agora excavation in Greece.”  The Agora (or marketplace) of ancient Athens, located at the foot of the acropolis was the center of economic, social, and intellectual life, as well as the birthplace of democracy. Excavations of the Agora began in the mid-1900s and continues today. The Athenian Agora Volunteer Summer Program is headed  by RMC’s Dr. John Camp II (Classics), the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Professor of Classics. Each summer students from around the world excavate the large site in hopes of discovering more about the history of Greece. “Dr. Fisher also gave me the opportunity to supervise and teach an excavation at Scotchtown as part of her class, which gave me confidence in my archaeological and decision-making abilities.”  Scotchtown, located in Hanover County, VA, is the only original standing home of Patrick Henry, who lived in the house from 1771-1778. Excavations  were conducted and directed by Fisher as part of her archaeological methods course with a goal of finding the road that would have led to the front of the house.  

“Dr. Chas. Gowan (Biology and Environmental Studies) was also a major supporter. He not only encouraged me to pursue a more applied and contracting-based path but significantly helped me improve my writing abilities, which have proven to be an immense asset.”

Fisher says that archaeological research and Cultural Resource Management require many different skills: hands-on fieldwork practice, theoretical approaches to imagine new types of research design, and real-world knowledge of archaeological law. “Rachael’s good work and well-deserved award demonstrate the value of the liberal arts education, which gave her opportunities to apply classroom lessons on excavations world-wide and taught her the scientific approach she has used to find creative solutions to complex problems,” says Fisher.

Rachael Smith ‘18

Smith earned her B.A. from RMC in 2018 and majored in Archaeology, Environmental Studies, and Classical Studies with a minor in Sociology/Anthropology.  She was inducted into the Eta Sigma Phi Honorary Society for Classical Studies and the Alpha Kappa Delta International Sociology Honors Society, received the Excellence in Environmental Studies Departmental Award and graduated Magna Cum Laude. She was a 2015 Stavros Niarchos Foundation Summer Fellow.

After graduating from RMC, Smith attended Indiana University of Pennsylvania, Indiana, PA in fall 2019 and worked as a field technician to excavate human remains from World War II on Betio Island, Tarawa Atoll, Kiribati in the Pacific Ocean. She also volunteered with the Society for Pennsylvania Archaeology excavating an 18^th century Swedish homestead in Douglasville, PA.

A second-year graduate student at IUP, Smith has taken courses in forensics, osteology, and geographic information systems and is pursuing an M.A. in Applied Archaeology. She works for a Pennsylvania-based archaeological contracting company and has conducted surveys in Pennsylvania and New York. After obtaining her M.A., she plans on continuing in contracting (cultural resource management) and hopes to eventually work in public outreach at a non-profit organization. Engaging the public in history and archaeology is a main passion of hers and she hopes that with her degree and experience she can continue to educate the public in the importance of preserving history and the stories of descendant communities.