Areas of Discipline Consortium Members

The Consortium of the Bethsaida Excavations Project (CBEP) is headed by Prof. Rami Arav at the University of Nebraska at Omaha and Prof. Richard Freund at the University of Hartford (USA).

Membership in the CBEP is based upon a financial commitment (annual dues), institutional backing, and willingness to lead groups to Bethsaida for on-site excavation. Benefits of membership include access to materials for publication, assigned topics of research (subject to final approval by the Director of Excavations), "franchise rights" associated with Bethsaida Project. Public events, fund raising, and community interaction is encouraged of each Director or Staff Member in his/her home institution. More complete information on joining the consortium is available from the Project Coordinator.

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Areas of Discipline

Our archaeological excavation includes many more areas of study than just archaeology. Obviously, the integrity of the excavation is dependent upon quality, sound, and cautious methods of archaeology, but we adopted a multi-disciplinary approach to the study of the material remains excavated at Bethsaida each year.

It is understood that all material remains found at the site are open to research. This has attracted a wide array of scholars and students to our work, which ultimately benefits all by being able to assemble a more complete look into life in antiquity. 

In addition to the archaeology, there are other sciences involved, as well as arts and humanities.

SCIENCES (including Social Sciences)

• Anthropology
• Electromagnetometry
• Geoarchaeology
• Geography
• Geology
• Metallurgy
• Sociology
• Tomography
• Zooarchaeology

ARTS AND HUMANITIES

• Art
• Art History
• History
• Literature (including Hebrew Bible, other ancient writers such as Josephus Flavius, the New Testament, rabbinical writings, and medieval sources).

The inter-disciplinary focus has contributed greatly to our success in putting together a more complete picture of ancient life at Bethsaida. In addition to those listed above, we have undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral students working in and researching topics such as:

• Glass studies
• Ancient pollen
• Pottery restoration
• Conservation
• Drafting
• Technical Drawing
• Photography
• Web-site development
• Electronic cataloguing

Meshing the research of the material remains with the ancient literary sources is a key goal of our project, as is incorporating many, seemingly disparate, fields of study.

Consortium Members

Board of Co-Directors:

• Dr. Rami Arav, Director of Excavations and Research, CEO of the Board, University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO)
• Dr. Richard A. Freund, Project Director, University of Hartford
• Dr. John F. Shroder, Jr., Chief Geologist, UNO
• Dr. Heinz-Wolfgang Kuhn, University of Munich, Germany
• Dr. John T. Greene, Michigan State University
• Dr. Frederick Strickert and Dr. Walter C. Bouzard, Wartburg College
• Dr. Mark Appold, Truman State University
• Dr. Elizabeth McNamer, Rocky Mountain College
• Dr. Gordon Brubacher, Messiah College
• Dr. Denny Clark and Dr. Mark Smith, Albertson College
• Dr. Carl Savage, Drew University
• Dr. Ilona Skupinska-Lovset, University of Lodz, Poland
• Dr. Stanley Udd, Grace University
• Dr. Nicolae Roddy, Creighton University

Associated Staff and Researchers:

• Dr. Monika Bernett, University of Munich
• Ground Penetrating Radar: Dr. Harry Jol, University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire
• Mapping: Dr. Philip Reeder, University of South Florida
• Physics: Dr. Robert Shuster, UNO
• Tomography: Paul Bauman, Komex International, Canada
• Small finds analyst: Baruch Brandl, Antiquities Authority of Israel
• Conservation:  Orna Cohen, Jerusalem
• Pottery Restoration:  Charleen Green, Drew University, Bernie Trams
• Numismatics:  Dr. Arieh Kindler, Tel Aviv, Donald Ariel IAA
• Artist:  DreAnna Hadash, UNO
• Zooarchaeology:  Toni Fisher, University of Tennessee-Knoxville
• Coordinator/Archivist:  Stephen Reynolds, UNO
• AutoCAD: Christina Etzrodt
• Director of CBEP Board in Austria: Friedrick Schipper

Institutional Consortium Members - Class of 2008

• University of Nebraska at Omaha
• University of Hartford
• University of Munich
• Rocky Mountain College
• Drew University
• Grace University
• College of Idaho
• Western Missouri State University
• Wartburg College
• Truman State University

2008 Membership Information