Erica Ausel, Ph.D.

Biography

Erica Ausel, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor of Anatomy in Marian University’s School of Osteopathic Medicine. She earned her B.A. in Anthropology from Indiana University of Pennsylvania (Indiana, PA). Dr. Ausel continued her education at Indiana University-Bloomington, where she earned her M.A. and Ph.D. in Biological Anthropology, while minoring in Medical Sciences. During her graduate career, Dr. Ausel was a Graduate Research Fellow at the Glenn A. Black Laboratory for Archaeology, a research assistant on a National Science Foundation Research Experience for Undergraduates, and worked as a consultant for the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Under the mentorship of Dr. Della C. Cook, she completed her dissertation in 2019, which examined the biological stressors and infectious diseases experienced by a Pre-Columbian (AD 1000-1450) Native American community once located in southwestern Indiana.

Dr. Ausel’s research broadly focuses on the impact that changing environments, both social and natural, have on the health of Pre-Columbian societies. Specifically, she uses paleopathological analyses to examine oral health, juvenile biological stress, osseous infection, degenerative joint disease, and trauma in human skeletal remains.

In addition to her research, Dr. Ausel is particularly interested in developing and applying various pedagogical methods for anatomical instruction to enhance student mastery of course content. During her graduate career she took a number of courses from Indiana University’s School of Medicine, taught the laboratory component of human anatomy for many years at the undergraduate level, and participated in courses devoted to successful teaching within the medical sciences.