Why They Chose the UA: Regents' Professor Had Eye Set on UA's Renowned Anthropology School

Why They Chose the UA: Regents' Professor Had Eye Set on UA's Renowned Anthropology School

By Amanda BallardUniversity Relations - Communications
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Six faculty members were recently honored as the UA's newest Regents' Professors, University Distinguished Professors, and University Distinguished Outreach Faculty.

Each of these titles honors faculty members for their significant contributions and commitments to higher education.

Over the next few weeks, we'll be profiling the recently inducted professors to get a closer look at why they chose to bring their talents to the UA.


 

At the nexus of nature and humanity, professor Mary C. Stiner says she has found her niche.

Stiner is an anthropologist who studies Mediterranean cultures and is the author of "Honor Among Thieves," a book on Neanderthals that serves as recommended reading for prehistoric anthropology students across the globe. She also works at the Arizona State Museum as a curator of zooarchaeology, which is the study of animal remains, such as bones, scales, hair and DNA.

In recognition of her notable career, Stiner was recently inducted as a Regents' Professor. Created in 1987, the title of Regents' Professor is the highest honor bestowed on faculty in the Arizona university system.

Upon learning about the honor through an unexpected phone call from President Ann Weaver Hart, Stiner said she was shocked that her colleagues had been able to keep her nomination a secret.

"I was surprised, because I had no idea I had been nominated (to be a Regents' Professor)," Stiner said. "It was such a nice thing to know that my colleagues had pretty much unanimously nominated me for this. They were so supportive and happy for me. It meant a huge amount to me."

After earning her doctorate from the University of New Mexico in 1990, Stiner got a tenure-track job at Loyola University in Chicago working with undergraduates. However, she desired to one day work with graduate and doctoral students, and had her eye on the UA.

"The UA School of Anthropology is actually a world-famous department for trading and anthropology in general, and archaeology specifically," she said. "I was very interested in becoming part of that and adding my own touches to it."

Stiner waited two years until a position became available, and joined the UA in 1994.

"I was lucky," she said.

Since then, she has made a career of excavating and classifying cultural remains. Much of her work has focused on human origins, specifically the study of southern European Neanderthals. Her research encompasses 200,000 years of the Paleolithic era.

Aside from her own work, Stiner said she finds watching her students grow into prominent anthropologists and professors is extremely rewarding.

"That's just an amazing thing to see – to watch them really blossom and do their own thing," she said.

She also enjoys opportunities for collaboration beyond the School of Anthropology.

"I really like the intersection and interaction between the different departments, both in social sciences and in science proper," Stiner said. "I collaborate a lot with really great colleagues. Collaboration across disciplines – that's what the UA is really great for, among other things."

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