Officers

It’s election time for FAS Officers…

Florida Anthropological Society Proposed 2025 Slate of Officers

President – Maranda Kles (year 1 of 2)
Maranda Kles is Vice President of Archaeological Consultants, Inc. in Sarasota, Florida and formerly, Assistant Professor at University of Louisiana at Lafayette (Ph.D., Bioarchaeology, University of Florida). Maranda has been involved in FAS since 2001, when she gave her first presentation at the meeting in St. Augustine and has continued to participate in conferences and serve on the FAS Board of Directors as well as two years as 2nd Vice President. Maranda brings varied experience in academia, professional archaeology, and public outreach. She seeks to grow FAS through strengthening its constituencies and advocating to create new opportunities for engagement and education, while continuing to honor the history and the founding principles of FAS.

First Vice President – Christian Davenport (year 1 of 2)
Christian Davenport is the County Archaeologist/Historic Preservation Officer for Palm Beach County and holds Associate Graduate Faculty status at Florida Atlantic University (FAU). Chris received his Master’s in Anthropology from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Among his many projects in south Florida, Chris oversaw the Boyer Survey of Lake Okeechobee following a record drought from 2007 to 2009, that resulted in the recordation of 33 new sites from the Belle Glade Period through the early pioneer era and he also continues work at the Dubois Mound. Chris believes strongly in developing and strengthening collaborative relationships between avocational and professional archaeologists across government, academic, and private sectors — one of the founding principles of FAS. In 2019, Chris was awarded the Ripley P. Bullen Award by the Florida Anthropological Society.
Second Vice President – Eric Prendergast (year 2 of 2)
Eric Prendergast is a Senior Archaeologist at Stantec working primarily on projects in Florida spanning historic and pre-colonial time periods. In the Tampa Bay area, in cooperation and consultation with descendant communities, Eric has gained particular expertise in relocation, excavation, and community-led management of lost and/or erased tribal and African American cemeteries. Eric has been an active participant in FAS meetings since 2012 and with his local chapter. Extending his interest in community service to FAS, he writes “I have come to understand that FAS is an organization with a legacy and continued ability of bringing together people who share a joy in archaeology.”

Recording Secretary – Rudolph “Rudy” Pascucci, Jr.
Rudy Pascucci is Executive Director of the Palm Beach Museum of Natural History and formerly, Director of the Graves Museum of Archaeology and Natural History. A Vietnam veteran with degrees in anthropology (B.A., Florida Atlantic University) and speech arts (B.A., Hofstra University), Rudy has taught science and English literature at public and charter schools in Broward and Palm Beach Counties and Military Science through ROTC. He has participated in archaeological projects in Ecuador and organized and/or led paleontological field expeditions in the western U.S. and Haiti. He served as President of the Broward County Archaeological Society from 1997 to 1999. Rudy seeks to contribute to FAS through development of new programs designed to reinvigorate and strengthen FAS chapters statewide. He holds a strong interest in the preservation of archaeological sites, too often destroyed in Florida’s development.

Treasurer – Bonita Lee
Bonita “Bonnie” Lee is interested in social and economic exchange between Florida’s prehistoric communities. Her expertise is in Landscape Archaeology, Data Science, GIS and remote sensing. Her approach is to determine the cost of mobility between archaeological sites – cost in terms of time and energy to travel. She has an extensive background in computer science. She holds a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from University of Florida, an M.S. in Electrical Engineering from University of Wisconsin, and is a candidate for an M.S. in Anthropology from Florida Atlantic University. She has archaeological experience as a crew member on South Florida sites along the Loxahatchee Slough and River, Las Olas River and Caloosahatchee River.

Director-at-large – Dr. Brad Biglow (third of three year term)
Dr. Brad Biglow is Professor of Anthropology at Florida State College at Jacksonville (FSCJ) where he teaches courses in Biological-Physical Anthropology, Archaeology, Cultural, and General Anthropology. His background includes Applied Anthropology and research in Native American and Latin American studies in the U.S., Mexico, and Peru. Dr. Biglow holds a doctorate in Anthropology from University of Florida (2001), a Master’s in Applied Anthropology from Northern Arizona University (1995), and Bachelor’s from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire (1992). He currently serves as head of the Anthropology program at FSCJ, receiving a Distinguished Faculty Award in 2020. As a founding member of the FAS Education Committee, he is deeply committed to preserving and educating the public on Florida’s heritage.
Director-at-large – April Holmes (second of three year term)
April Holmes is a faculty research associate and archaeologist at the University of West Florida Archaeology Institute (Anthropology M.A., UWF). For over a decade, she has primarily worked on archaeological sites in the heart of the Colonial Forts and Town of Pensacola. April has been a member of FAS since 2016, after becoming involved as a student member and conference attendee. She has been a member and volunteer with the Pensacola Archaeological Society (PAS) since 2003, serving in multiple capacities on the PAS board (Correspondence Secretary 2015-2018, Recording Secretary 2018-2021, Treasurer 2021-present). She has long supported the main goal of FAS to provide all people interested in Florida’s anthropological and archaeological studies with a platform to come together and learn from each other.

Director-at-large – Dorothy Block (first of three year term)
Dorothy Block holds M.A. (archaeology) and B.A. (cultural) degrees in Anthropology. She also has a B.A. in English with emphasis in theatre and writing and a certificate in ethnic studies. She is a steadfast supporter of FAS. She has served as chapter representative for PBCAS, a chapter she founded, and she chairs the FAS Journal Committee where she has worked to modernize and bring The Florida Anthropologist to a global audience. Dorothy has authored journal articles about Vodou, Santeria and the archaeology of eastern Palm Beach County. She has worked in private sector archaeology for 15 years.