For ancient inhabitants of the Andes mountains of Peru, mountains were both places of worship and powerful entities in their own right, with names, histories, and personalities. Before Spanish colonization, many Andean ethnic groups traced their origins directly to specific mountains. One group—the Collaguas of the Colca Valley—further commemorated this intimate relationship by shaping the heads of their newborns in the form of their mountain-ancestor. Drawing on the bioarchaeological, genomic, and chemical isotope analysis of ancient human remains from the Colca Valley, this public lecture paints a new picture of the history of the Collaguas by integrating the ‘stories’ written in bone with their own narratives of origin, migration, and conquest. Weaving together multiple lines of evidence, this talk reveals a mountain world formed by webs of relationships that connected people, places, and mountains across deep time, generations, and individual lives.
We are excited to share the news that Dr. Scott Werts, Dalton Endowed Professor, has been selected to receive the 2026 Lynn Harand Outstanding Advisor Award. This is a student nominated award and clearly demonstrates how Dr. Werts goes above and beyond to care for and lead his students, in the classroom, the community, and in the field. His commitment to student success and academic guidance exemplifies the very best of the Winthrop community and we are lucky to have him as a founding faculty member of the Center for the Environment. Please join us in congratulating him on this well-earned recognition.
On January 28, 2026 the President’s Cabinet approved the formation of the Winthrop University Center for the Environment (WUCE). The innovative and interdisciplinary Center will serve as a hub for students, faculty, staff, and community partners pursuing solutions to today’s most significant environmental challenges. WUCE will provide an organizational structure for interdisciplinary collaboration, innovative teaching, community partnerships, and public outreach.
A Ribbon Cutting Ceremony celebrating our newly renovated spaces in Dalton Hall and the Sims Science Building will be held on Tuesday, April 21st from 3:00-4:30 p.m. on the green space between the two buildings.
