Departmental News

Posted:  Oct 05, 2020 - 12:00pm

Dr. Jada Benn Torres (UNM PhD, 2006) of the Department of Anthropology at Vanderbilt University has been elected Vice President of the Executive Committee of the American Association for Anthropological Genetics. 

Dr. Benn Torres has also been selected as the recipient of the 2021 Robert W. Sussman Award for Scientific Contributions to Anthropology. The purpose of this award is to recognize meritorious scientific contributions to the field of anthropology by mid-career anthropologists. It was established at the 2017 Section H Business meeting at the AAAS Annual meetings, to honor Bob Sussman’s embodiment of the science and spirit of Anthropology. Dr. Benn Torres exemplifies the spirit of this award with her prolific and insightful contributions in her work on genetic ancestry and population history of African and Indigenous Caribbean peoples. Please join us in congratulating Jada Benn Torres for her outstanding contributions! Dr. Benn Torres joins former AAAG president Deborah Bolnick as Sussman Award winner.