Board of Directors


The governing body of the Society is the Board of Directors, elected by the membership at the Annual Meeting. The Directors meet periodically to carry on the overall operation of the Society. Various committees, comprised of interested general members and Board members, report on their efforts at these meetings. Executive officers of the Society are elected by the Board of Directors.

VAS Officers

Nathan Allison President (2023) Email

Nathan

Nathan has a wealth of experience in archaeology, historic preservation, and CRM. He most recently worked as the THPO and Archaeologist for the Stockbridge-Munsee Community Band of Mohican Indians. In this role, he engaged in site protection through regulatory reviews, representing Tribal leadership in government-to-government consultations. He also facilitated community outreach, managed grant projects, and designed and directed research and field projects associated with the Tribal Nation’s interests in cultural resources. Prior to this role, Nathan directed and participated in archaeological research throughout the country. His PhD work is in Historical Archaeology with a minor in American History from the University of Idaho, an MA in History from Eastern Illinois University, and a BA in History with a minor in Anthropology from Metropolitan State University of Denver. He has a strong research interest in conflict archaeology. Nathan currently serves as an independent archaeological consultant.

Yvonne Benney Basque Vice-President (2020) Email

yvonne

Yvonne Benney Basque is a Historic Resources Specialist and Archaeologist for the State of Vermont. Yvonne has been passionate about archaeology since the first grade, participating in volunteer and avocational archaeology, cultural resource management and regulatory archaeology throughout both the Northeast and other exotic locales such as Orkney and Texas. Yvonne completed her master’s degree at SUNY Binghamton with her research on Paleo Indian caribou hunters in Northern New Hampshire. She lives in Central Vermont with her cats and her long-suffering husband, who has yet to be convinced that caribou make good pets.

Robert Bradford Secretary (2023) Email

Appointed Positions

Kathy Nolan Treasurer, Volunteer Coordinator Email

Kathy has had a long career in public accounting and in private companies working in a number of finance, tax, and accounting roles, predominantly in the NYC metropolitan area. She is a CPA. She moved to Vermont in 2014, allowing her to pursue her passions for archaeology and music as an amateur. She has an AB in Economics from the College of the Holy Cross, an MBA with an Accounting Specialization from the University of Connecticut, and a Masters in Anthropology/Archaeology from the University of New Mexico.

Niels Rinehart Journal Editor Email

niels

Niels is a recent transplant to Vermont, moving to Jericho in 2012 with his wife Lauren and two sons, Liam and Abe. He has a Masters in Anthropology (Archaeology) from SUNY Binghamton and pursued a doctorate in Anthropology at UMass Amherst. He has worked in CRM archaeology for many years predominantly throughout the Northeast and Vermont, as well as elsewhere in the United States and Africa. He works for the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation in the Lands Administration Division, where his responsibilities include managing archaeology projects on State lands.

 Social Media Coordinator 

Board Members

Jacob Clay (2015) Email

jake

Jacob is the Cultural Resources Specialist/Archaeologist for the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service Vermont State Office. His work primarily involves reviewing conservation practices on privately owned agricultural land throughout Vermont and Massachusetts. Jacob joined the VAS board in the spring of 2015 and was elected as President in the spring of 2017. He currently lives in Barre and can often be found hiking through the ruins of granite industry in the Barre Town Forest with his bear-sized dog, Jasper.

Randall Kuhlman  (2020) Email

Randall

Originally from the Finger Lakes region of New York, Randall attended Elmira College where he earned a Bachelor’s in Classical Studies and History in 2010. In 2013, Randall earned his Master’s degree in Applied Archaeology from Indiana University of Pennsylvania, completing his thesis: Classical Traditions in Central New York State: Analyzing Classical Influences in 19th Century Syracuse, New York. He then worked for Public Archaeology Laboratory out of Pawtucket, Rhode Island, as an Archaeological Technician. Randall moved to Vermont in 2014 to start raising a family. Currently, he works at the Hood Museum of Art at Dartmouth College. He enjoys hiking local trails, fishing, crocheting, and swimming at the many swimming holes in the area.

Angela Labrador (2020) Email

angela

Angela is Assistant Program Director of the Cultural Heritage Management and Museum Studies MA programs at Johns Hopkins University. She is committed to improving professional education opportunities for archaeologists and developing public education programming. She serves on the Project Archaeology Leadership Team and is co-chair of the SAA’s Public Education Committee. She co-edited The Oxford Handbook of Public Heritage Theory and Practice (2018) and has a chapter in the forthcoming A Practitioners Guide to Public Archaeology. She has worked across the Caribbean, and is delighted to live in Vermont, where she first worked in CRM in 1999. Angela edits the VAS newsletter and the VAS website. She was co-director of the 2020/2021 NEH Landmarks of American History and Culture workshop, “Freedom & Unity.”

Bruce Yelton(2023) Email

Bruce was born in the mountains of North Carolina, has lived in eight states, Brazil and Argentina, and worked extensively in Jamaica and Puerto Rico. Bruce began his archaeological study at the University of North Carolina and graduated with a minor in physical anthropology. During his student career he worked in the field, in the archaeological lab, and the Person Hall archaeological museum. In graduate school his focus was on aboriginal interaction with Europeans during early contact. Areas of focus included tribes in the Southeast and Northern Great Plains. Bruce spent several years teaching US History at the undergraduate level and has participated in archaeological projects with the Sierra Club and the National Geographic Society. Bruce completed his doctorate in Education Research and Evaluation and in the bulk professional life he has worked for UNC-Charlotte, Western Carolina University, and Winthrop University teaching research, statistics and evaluation at the graduate level. He also founded and research firm which he led for over two decades. Bruce lives in East Middlebury with wife Debbie and their two cats (Molly and Finn) and enjoys running his sifter when he prepares his garden (located on top of an early 19th Century trash pit).

Barbara Anglisz (2022) Email

Barbara Anglisz is an independent researcher who specializes in qualitative field research focusing on community heritage values, inter-disciplinary context assessments, and heritage program evaluation. She has a passion for safeguarding and preserving cultural heritage through community-based approaches, which aim to promote active community participation in heritage programs based on the values and needs of local people. Barbara conducted field research projects on the cultural significance of the historical district, the Media of Tunis, Tunisia and a stakeholder research survey for the Madaba Regional Archaeological Museum Project (MRAMP), about the proposed state of the art archaeological museum in Madaba Jordan.
She holds a Master of Arts in Heritage Preservation with a concentration in Community Engagement from New York University.

Past Presidents (Ex Officio)

Angela Labrador 1st Past President

Jacob Clay 2nd Past President