Lara Homsey-Messer

Lara Homsey-Messer is Associate Professor of Anthropology and Graduate Coordinator of Applied Archaeology at Indiana University of Pennsylvania, where she is affiliated with the Department of Anthropology, Geospatial and Earth Sciences within the Kopchick College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics. She earned her MS in geology (2003) and PhD in archaeology (2004), both from the University of Pittsburgh, and previously taught for nine years in the Geosciences Department at Murray State University.

Her educational background includes:

• PhD in Archaeology, University of Pittsburgh (2004)
• MS in Geology, University of Pittsburgh (2003)

Dr. Homsey-Messer is a geoarchaeologist whose research focuses on how changes in the geologic environment (such as natural hazards and climate change) affected prehistoric populations. Her methodological expertise includes soil micromorphology, microartifact analysis, geochemical fingerprinting, GIS, and remote sensing applications. She has conducted significant research at sites including the Coles Creek Raffman Site, Mississippian Wickliffe Mounds Site, South Mountain Metarhyolite quarries in Pennsylvania, and Dust Cave in Alabama. Her work often examines household organization, mound building technologies, food processing techniques, and settlement patterns across different cultural periods.

Analysis of her publication record reveals strong thematic continuity in her research, with particular emphasis on integrating geoarchaeological methods with traditional archaeological approaches. Her work frequently addresses questions of site formation processes, feature analysis, and human-environment interactions across multiple temporal scales from Paleoindian through Mississippian periods. A notable trend is her increasing focus on applied archaeology and public education, exemplified by her laboratory manual Experiencing Archaeology and her service learning initiatives.

Her professional service includes:

• Associate editor of the Journal of Kentucky Archaeology
• Member of the editorial board of American Archaeology magazine
• Service on the Public Education Committee of the Society for American Archaeology
• Member of the Register of Professional Archaeologists
• Member of the Society for American Archaeology
• Member of the Geological Society of America

Dr. Homsey-Messer teaches undergraduate courses in Contemporary Anthropology, Geoarchaeology, Environmental Archaeology, Soils, and Cultural Resource Management, as well as graduate seminars in Pre-Columbian Archaeology, Archaeological Interpretation, and Public Archaeology. Her teaching philosophy centers on service learning and public education, with a focus on making archaeological methods accessible to non-majors through experiential learning. She has developed innovative approaches to teaching archaeology, particularly through her laboratory manual that provides hands-on activities for large lecture classes.

Her research has been supported through various grants, including work on the South Mountain Metarhyolite Quarries conducted for the South Mountain Partnership, which combined geochemical research with archaeological fieldwork to develop management best practices for the quarry complex in Michaux State Forest.