Digital Commons Network^™

New Faculty Guide, 2026, University Of Mississippi. Provost

New Faculty

No abstract provided.

Southern Studies Professor Named Russell Sage Fellow, Rebecca Lauck Cleary

University of Mississippi News

OXFORD, Miss. – Data from the U.S. Census Bureau puts the official U.S. poverty rate at 10.6%, representing about 35.9 million people. University of Mississippi professor Ryan Parsons will spend the next academic year on a Russell Sage Fellowship analyzing the issue, including why it's so hard for people to get out of poverty.

Black American Cemeteries And Our Need For The Stories They Tell, Vincent H. Melomo

Proceedings of the annual meeting of the Southern Anthropological Society

In recent decades, there have been increasing efforts to recognize, protect, and restore Black American historic cemeteries. At the same time, many of the historic communities in which these cemeteries lie have become increasingly gentrified. As the built environment has been reconstructed, communities have been displaced and histories erased. Nevertheless, historic cemeteries remain as stubborn and defiant reminders of those histories and provide an opportunity to challenge those erasures. This paper will tell the story of historic cemeteries in Raleigh, North Carolina, addressing key aspects of their histories, highlighting racial inequalities. It will address some of the challenges confronted by …

Before The Gravestones: Uncovering The Past Of The Jonesville Historic African American Cemetery, Najiyah Williams

Proceedings of the annual meeting of the Southern Anthropological Society

This research investigates the Jonesville Cemetery, a historic African American cemetery located on the Dobbins Air Reserve Base in Marietta, Georgia. Once a cemetery to a thriving freedman town, the Jonesville Cemetery was neglected for decades. Even though the cemetery is currently being maintained through joint volunteer effort between military personnel and community members, the cemetery still sits in the middle of the woods with a plethora of marked and unmarked graves. This mixture of marked and unmarked graves is also coupled with an inconsistency in the documentation of burials through death certificates. Due to years of community members coming …

Choreographies Of Peruvian Reality: Conflicts In Surf Media's Digital Worlds, Tuck Rodi

Proceedings of the annual meeting of the Southern Anthropological Society

This paper mobilizes the concept of the choreography of surfing to analyze networks of surfers, media creators, digital technologies, and development NGOs through which surfing becomes a device for sociopolitical and economic projects in Peru. Surf media, this paper’s object of analysis, includes all films, video blogs, and documents that incorporate surfing as a constitutive ingredient in their visual and discursive content. With the rise of online video-sharing platforms, surf media has become a digital world unto itself. This world is made through interactions among viewers, photographers, and their surfing subjects. Democratization of video-sharing platforms capacitates filmmakers to break from …

Introduction, Kiley E. Molinari

Proceedings of the annual meeting of the Southern Anthropological Society

No abstract provided.

Front Matter, Journal Editors

Proceedings of the annual meeting of the Southern Anthropological Society

No abstract provided.

Tenure And Promotion Announcement, 2026, University Of Mississippi. Provost

Tenure and Promotion Announcements

No abstract provided.

From Sacred Harp To Byzantine Chant: Inculturation And Formation Of Orthodox Communion In Alaska, Ava Ortwein

Honors Theses

This thesis will explore how Eastern Orthodoxy has been embraced by some native Appalachians, which has led to a convergence of musical trends as a regional phenomenon. It argues that parts of Appalachia are embracing Orthodoxy, especially as noted through converging musical structures. Through an examination of countries which have accepted Orthodoxy, I emphasize inhabitants’ agency and free acceptance of the Eastern Church, especially through convergence of musical traditions. I also analyze lived experience in Sacred Music within this Appalachian Orthodox Context rather than formal music theory. The research incorporates a diverse range of scholars including ethnomusicologists, historians, Orthodox theologians, …

Periodontal Disease In A Classic Maya Population From Ambergris Caye, Belize: A Cej-Ac Analysis, Avery R. Mcneil

Honors Theses

Dental remains provide a durable and information-rich record of biological, dietary, and health-related processes in past populations. This study examines periodontal disease, dental wear, and morphometric variation in a Classic period Maya population from coastal Belize (ca. A.D. 700-900) using cementoenamel junction-alveolar crest (CEJ-AC) distance as one measure of periodontal health. Dental remains were assessed using standardized bioarchaeological methods, including tooth identification, crown measurements, and periodontal scoring based on mean CEJ-AC distances recorded at preserved surfaces. The results indicate widespread mild to moderate periodontal disease across the sample, with posterior teeth exhibiting greater alveolar bone loss than anterior dentition. These …

Analyzing Best Practices In Large-Scale Digital Archaeological Databases, Chloe M. Vizier

Honors Theses

Archaeological databases, the foundation of archaeological analyses, have changed drastically alongside the rise of new digital tools in the twenty-first century. Digital databases, alongside other digital tools, must therefore be evaluated for their efficiency and effectiveness within the field. This thesis seeks to determine a set of best practices within large-scale digital archaeological databases through analyzing an existing example: The Paleoindian Database of the Americas (PIDBA). PIDBA is composed of multiple state-level datasets, a trait that both invited collaboration and creates discrepancies in data entry. Though examining both PIDBA's user-facing website and one of its most robust state-level datasets, the …

Evolution Of Nematode Prey Chemotaxis Behavior Across Different Environments, Hailey R. Smith

Honors Theses

Climatic conditions in the near future are projected to be warmer, with more frequent and intense weather events. This will substantially alter the environments in which organisms must integrate specific information to find essential resources. Many organisms rely upon chemical signals to orient towards attractive resources through a mechanism called chemotaxis. How different environmental conditions, like temperature, impact this process will be important to understand as environments change. I conducted a laboratory evolution experiment with the model nematode Caenorhabditis elegans to see how success in chemotaxis assays changes over time when selected under different temperature regimes (normal laboratory temperature, increased …

Jtc 26: Dismantling Barriers, Building A Village, By Jennifer Parsons

University of Mississippi News

This story is part of the 2026 Journey to Commencement series, which celebrates the pinnacle of the academic year by highlighting University of Mississippi students and their outstanding academic and personal journeys from college student to college graduate.

Hospitalidad Sin Barreras: A Place-Based Approach To Resource Accessibility For Immigrant Communities In North Mississippi, Jackelyn Facio

Honors Theses

This project examines barriers to resource access for Spanish-speaking immigrant communities in Lafayette County, Mississippi. Using a place-based community engagement approach, the project incorporates mixed methods to produce a resource guide for Spanish- speaking immigrants in Lafayette County. Findings showed that access is shaped not only by available services, but also by interconnected barriers such as language, fragmented information systems, and concerns related to trust and safety. These barriers discourage individuals from interacting with formal institutions, resulting in a reliance on informal information networks. In response to the data collected from area residents, the project sought to centralize community input …

Lifestyle And Activity Patterns Of The Classic Period Maya From Chac Balam And San Juan, Ambergris Caye, Belize, Abigail L. Hornbeck

Honors Theses

Bioarchaeological research often uses skeletal remains to reconstruct patterns of activity and labor in past populations. This study examines potential sex-based differences in long bone morphology among individuals from the Classic Maya sites of Chac Balam and San Juan on Ambergris Caye, Belize. These coastal communities participated in maritime trade networks, and daily activities such as cargo transport, canoe travel, and fishing may have placed distinctive mechanical stresses on the skeleton. The goal of this study was to evaluate whether measurable differences in bone structure between males and females reflect differences in habitual activity patterns.

Two complementary methods were used …

Jtc 26: A Deeper South: Finding Meaning In Music, Art And Culture, Emily Howorth

University of Mississippi News

This story is part of the 2026 Journey to Commencement series, which celebrates the pinnacle of the academic year by highlighting University of Mississippi students and their outstanding academic and personal journeys from college student to college graduate.

Disturbances In A Convergece Zone: Artisanal Fishers And The Making Of The Nearshore In Northern Coastal Peru, Leigh Shattuck Rodi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This project seeks to study how artisanal fishers in northern coastal Peru interpret and respond to environmental change provoked by three sources of harm: climate change, overfishing, and contamination. Drawing from six and a half weeks of ethnographic fieldwork among artisanal fishers in Lobitos, Peru, this paper foregrounds the concept of the nearshore assemblage to highlight the ever-shifting relations between humans and marine ecologies that constitute littoral and oceanic worlds. Artisanal fishers utilize discriminatory, non-mechanical methods to fish in a protected section of Peru’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). Fishing livelihoods in this space were previously possible because the convergence of …

Staying In Stem?: A Qualitative Exploration Of Women’S College Classroom Experiences In Stem Education, Sarah Dapaah

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Women leave STEM not because of a lack of ability, but because of the classroom and institutional conditions they encounter once they arrive. This study examines how classroom experiences shape women’s decisions to persist in or leave STEM majors at the college level. Drawing on the sociological frameworks of doing gender, gendered organizations, and intersectionality, this study explores how gender, race, and class shape women’s experiences of belonging, support, discouragement, and recognition in STEM. Using 21 semi-structured interviews and 4 classroom observations at the University of Mississippi, the study analyzes the experiences of undergraduate women who remained in STEM, women …

“Con Ăn Cơm Chưa?” (“Have You Eaten Yet?”): Foodways, Identity, And Generational Place-Making For Vietnamese Women In Memphis, Alana Freimanis

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study examines the role of food within community tactics for mobilization and negotiation. In order to do so, this study employs a mixed-methods approach of semi-structured interviews, participant observations, and archival analysis, to answer questions around how participants subvert historically racialized narratives around Vietnamese immigrant’s labor, family, and identity. Specifically, how do Vietnamese American women in Memphis use food labor to negotiate racialized immigrant identities and mobilize cultural and community power within the constraints of gendered expectations, class position, and racial stereotypes? Furthermore, this research focuses on Vietnamese women’s positionality, centering women chefs and community leaders as the …

Health And Care: Childhood Among The Classic Period Maya At Buenavista Del Cayo, Belize, Lindsey Hall

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Three deposits of perinates, infants, and young children within two non-residential superstructures of Buenavista del Cayo, Belize, display evidence of daily maintenance and care. A total of ten subadult individuals, aged 39.4 weeks gestation to 3 years, from the archaeological site of Buenavista were recovered during 2018 excavations. Signs of care and daily maintenance include survivorship through the vulnerable neonatal period (first twenty-eight days) and transition into infancy, survivorship with potential pinprick lesions on external and internal zygomatic, parietal, and pars basilaris, and intentional maintenance of the body after death. Identification of care and daily maintenance at Buenavista informs the …

Recipe For Resistance: Oral Histories Of Queer Foodways In The Us South, Astrid Janie Knox-Mcconnell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines the emerging question of what constitutes “queer food.” It asks how this concept takes on a distinct regional form in the United States South. Drawing on oral histories, archival materials, and cookbooks, it argues that queer southern foodways are not only a subset of queer food studies, but also a distinct cultural and political formation shaped by southern histories of race, labor, family, and survival. The thesis makes the case that queer southern foodways function simultaneously as protest, utopian practice, and aesthetic pleasure. Through the act of cooking, eating, and sharing food, queer southerners articulate alternative social …

Two Genres, One Narrative? A Critical Discourse Analysis Of Gendered Relationships In Top Hip-Hop/R&B And Country Songs (2015-2025), Alyssa A. Yarbro

Honors Theses

For this research, I examined how gendered relationships are depicted in the lyrics of 55 top-charting Hip-Hop/R&B and Country songs from the past decade (2015-2025). I employed Norman Fairclough’s Critical Discourse Analysis to examine how song lyrics use language to reproduce or challenge dominant ideas of gendered relationships. My analysis identified three prominent themes within the lyrics: Respect, Commodification, and Regret. Songs within the Respect category were characterized by these of romance, affection, and non-sexual intimacy. The commodification category included songs that had dominant themes of objectification, sexualization, and depicting individuals as disposable or interchangeable goods. The songs in the …

New Book Explores Small Talk, Big Silence In Evangelical Communities, Clara Turnage

University of Mississippi News

OXFORD, Miss. – In a new book, University of Mississippi sociologist Amy McDowell says small talk can be used as a tool to block meaningful conversation in the evangelical church, leaving some people feeling isolated in their beliefs that conflict with Christian nationalism.

March 19, 2026, The Daily Mississippian

Daily Mississippian (all digitized issues)

No abstract provided.

Issue 481 March 5-March 19, 2026, The Local Voice

The Local Voice

Featured Articles: "Whispers in the Pews:. How Small Talk Shapes Evangelical Identity and Christian Nationalism."; "Izzy Arthurs’ Talisman of Grief."; "Historian Starke Miller Announces 2026 Spring Tour Schedule for Oxford and Ole Miss in the Civil War."; "The View Beyond The Balcony: What Could We Do with $8M?."

Issue 479 February 5, 2026, The Local Voice

The Local Voice

Featured Articles: "Thacker Mountain Radio Returns, Announces TV Deal."; "British Scholar Ponders Why the Blues Still Matters. Tom Attah blends performance and sociology."; "The View From The Balcony: Notes in My PhoneXII."

British Scholar Ponders Why The Blues Still Matters, Rebecca Lauck Cleary

University of Mississippi News

OXFORD, Miss. – Tom Attah has played as a featured artist at the Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts and at the Great British Rhythm and Blues Festival. He also composed and recorded acoustic guitar tunes for a permanent exhibition at the former home of Georg Frideric Handel and Jimi Hendrix in Mayfair, London.

Black Swans And Safety Nets: Food Aid, Dispersal, And Eugenics In Corbin Hollow, Glenn Davis Stone, Richard K. Robinson

Southern Anthropologist

No abstract provided.

Community Engagement And Experiential Learning To Understand Food Insecurity In Georgia’S Urban Environments, Gregory Gullette, Jenna Andrews-Swann, Nicole Villamil, Christin Cain

Southern Anthropologist

No abstract provided.

Introduction, "Getting Through": Anthropologies Of Crisis, Resistance, And Resilience, Alison Bell

Southern Anthropologist

No abstract provided.