Kathryn A. Cross

BA Anthropology, James Madison University
MA Anthropology, Southern Methodist University

I am a PhD student in Southern Methodist University's (SMU) Department of Anthropology with a concentration in archaeology. I graduated from James Madison University (JMU) in 2011 with a BA in Anthropology. While at JMU, I worked as an archaeological field and laboratory technician for the Environment and Archaeology Program which involved work on prehistoric and historic sites at Shenandoah National Park and various places throughout the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. I attended field school with JMU's Chupadera Mesa Archaeological Project. After graduating, I began work as an Archaeologist and Environmental Compliance Review Specialist for the Environmental/Historic Preservation Department of the Federal Emergency Management Agency in Biloxi, Mississippi.

I entered the Anthropology PhD program at SMU in 2015. My doctoral research project seeks to explore the lived experiences of African Americans residing in Dallas Freedman's Towns during the Reconstruction and Jim Crow eras. I am currently working with local descendant and stakeholder communities in a collaborative effort to understand how the residents of Freedman's Towns navigated anti-Black racism in the struggle for full citizenship and equal rights.

Entered program in 2015

Region of Study:

Texas