MA Student Accomplishments
Gabriela Saldaña (MA Anthropology summer 2026)
My MA research examined a Late Classic stucco frieze that originally decorated a vaulted building at Caracol, Belize. I brought together archaeological, iconographic, and epigraphic data to examine how the frieze functioned within its context. Support through graduate assistantships allowed me to immerse myself fully in this research, while my continued participation in the Caracol Archaeological Project has shaped my development as an archaeologist. My committee, Drs. Arlen and Diane Chase, and Dr. Rex Koontz, brought together expertise in Maya archaeology and Mesoamerican iconography. This fall, I am organizing UH's Archaeology Laboratory. My long-term goal is to continue developing as an archaeologist through research and opportunities in heritage and cultural diplomacy.
Karina Zemel, MA candidate in Anthropology
Karina’s thesis title is, Navigating Identity and Belonging: Latinas and Affective Politics in a White-led Texas Megachurch. Here’s how she describes her summer research: “My thesis project examines the spaces, narratives, and practices shaping the social perspectives of Latina evangelicals in a white-led interracial megachurch in suburban Texas. Situating their experiences within histories and processes of white evangelical hegemony, neoliberal suburban expansion, and growing far-right extremism in the U.S. and Texas, the project explores how Latina women negotiate identity, belonging, and power through their everyday practices of faith and community-building. It aims to connect these practices to broad religious and political shifts in the U.S., as well as local emotional and spatial legacies of white settler colonialism. The CLASS Summer Fellowship allowed me to devote significant time to fieldwork over the summer. I attended weekly services at multiple campuses of my megachurch field site, joined a weekly women’s small group, and began interviewing members as part of fieldwork.”
Her MA thesis committee consists of Dr. Dinah Hannaford (chair), Dr. Marwa Ghazali, Dr. Erin Routon.
Noah Wood (MA Cultural Anthropology 2026)
Recent alum Noah Wood (MA Cultural Anthropology 2026), winner of the prestigious Lydia Mendoza Fellowship reflects on his research. "My research is centered on the toxic environments within southeast Houston and how residents close to oil, gas, and petrochemical centers understand what home means in an area under constant danger to threats of pollution and disaster from industrial fires, explosions, and mishaps. The Lydia Mendoza fellowship was a tremendous help to my research as their funding allowed me to pursue my graduate degree stress-free. Through their monthly meetings, I had the opportunity to enrich my skills as an academic as well as be welcomed into a small community of bright local scholars." Noah got his undergraduate degree from UH Anthropology as well. His thesis work was overseen by Dr. Erin Routon (Chair), Dr. Marwa Ghazali and and Dr. Allison Saenz.
Noah shares a happy moment from the fellow’s luncheon where he got to meet the sponsors of the Lydia Mendoza fellowship.
Lucilla Arcile is a second-year graduate student of the MA Anthropology program. She graduated with her B.S. in Anthropology and a minor in biology from the University of Houston. The tentative title of her MA thesis project is: “Understanding Agency and Self-Embodiment of Hispanic Mothers Engaging with Community Gardens in Houston, Texas.” In her thesis project, she blends frameworks from critical food studies, critical medical anthropology, gender studies, and labor studies to examine Houston’s community gardens and their relationships with Hispanic women. With the Center of Mexican American and Latino/a Studies Graduate Fellowship for Fall 2026-Spring 2027, she plans to further develop her thesis project, which will explore how Hispanic mothers in Houston overcome specific barriers to address food and health disparities affecting their families. She also has support from the Blanche Espy Chenoweth Fellowship for Fall 2026-Spring 2027. Her future goal is to apply her anthropological training, particularly ethnographic methods, to public health research. At UH’s MA program, she is being mentored by her MA Thesis Supervisor, Dr. Debarati Sen, and her committee member, Dr. Marwa Ghazali.
Congratulations! Anthropology graduate student Kaira Mercer-Jones was selected as the Winner of the UH Outstanding Master’s Thesis Award in the Social Sciences for her Master’s thesis, "Hair Narratives: Discourse within African American Hair Care Practices and its Connection to Identity." As the award winner, Kaira is also being nominated for the 2024 Master’s Thesis Award competition sponsored by the Conference of Southern Graduate Schools.