Hello All! This is Rachael Smith the new Public Archaeology Graduate Assistant and blog manager. I am very excited to be adding to this account and hope to get feedback from you all about things you want to 
see posted. If you have interest in a topic, comment and I’ll do my best to write something about it. I little history about me first through. I graduated from Randolph-Macon College in Ashland, VA in 2018 with a BA in Archaeology, Environmental Studies, and Classical Studies. While I did major in Classics, my heart belongs to historical archaeology.
I have recently been working with a Society of Pennsylvania Archaeology group near my hometown of Pottstown, PA excavating a 1716 Swedish home along the Schuylkill River. I also recently worked for a non-profit organization recovering the remains of US Marines who died at the Battle of Tarawa during World War II. Personally, I play flute, ride horses, reenact (1830s-60s), spin and dye yarn, knit (a lot), and brew beer with my dad. At home I have a cat, two dogs, two guinea pigs, two horses, and some fish. 
I am currently at IUP working on a Master’s in Applied Archaeology and a Certificate in Geographic Information Systems. In the future I hope to do more military related recovery operations. I have discovered that I really enjoy forensics and hope to make that a large part of my career. I also have an extensive history of public archaeology jobs (hence my GA). It is always a great idea to inform the public about what we archaeologists really do. And that is exactly what I intend to do.