Growing up in the Republic of Georgia, Ana Tkabladze ’14 was surrounded by remnants and relics of the ancient world. She dreamed of someday learning about the sites and making her own discoveries. Now a classics major pursuing a concentration in classical archaeology, Tkabladze is already leaving her mark. Last summer the UMW junior spent three weeks on the Spanish island of Menorca and in Portugal as part of a team excavating and analyzing thousand-year-old artifacts. “I’m basically helping real archaeologists find out about that era,” Tkabladze said. “That’ll go in history later, which is pretty exciting.” She is one of several UMW students who received undergraduate research grants for the summer. Each year, a few students in the classics, philosophy, and religion department go on excavations, either through UMW undergraduate research grants like the one Tkabladze received or as part of an independent study. “Ana is an excellent example of those of our students who … [Read more...]