Hi! My name is Valda Black and I am a bioarchaeologist studying how communities are impacted during times of sociopolitical change. My main area of research, and the focus of my dissertation, is within the Peruvian Andes. However, I have worked in various capacities in Belize, Ecuador, Peru, and the United States.

I began my anthropology career at CUNY Hunter College in New York, NY, where I received my B.A. and M.A. I completed my Ph.D. at Washington State University in Pullman, WA in 2023. During my time as a graduate student, I taught at different academic institutions (WSU, SFCC, CUNY Lehman) with a variety of classes including Intro to Anth, Osteology, Archaeology, Biological Anthropology, and more.

For my dissertation, I used a multimethod approach to look at community social structure:
• Archaeological excavations to observe culture and demographics
• Isotopes to look at rates of migration
• Ancient DNA to see how people are related within and between communities.

For more information on my dissertation, click here.

I am currently working as a Field Archaeologist for a local tribe and enjoying the opportunity to record and preserve the prehistory and history of the region. I am also planning the next steps of my academic journey and hope to apply my research interests to other areas of Peru in order to provide a voice to other ancient communities.