In my research, I explore the role of children in Late Bronze Age Mycenaean society (ca. 1600-1100 BCE) by focusing on the relationships, socioeconomic and religious roles, gender dynamics, and burial practices of and for children, as well as ideas surrounding adolescence and the representation of children in Mycenaean art. Children hold a unique role in society, and it is important to understand the roles and perceptions of children. In doing so, we gain a better understanding of the experience of childhood as well as the culture as a whole. I begin by defining Mycenaean views on childhood, providing a framework to contextualize the discussion. This project is a synthesis of previously published data, incorporating the Linear B tablets, sites, excavations, and art from Late Bronze Age Mycenae, explored in this paper through comparative analysis. I utilize a similar approach when discussing the burial practices for children, focusing on burial architecture and style and archaeological reports on specific sites, such as Ayia Sotira and Mycenae. By studying the roles and lives of children, we gain insight into generational dynamics, family structure, gender roles, and domestic dynamics, which all contribute significantly to understanding the cultural structure of a society. Through the specifics of material culture, social spaces, and practices involving or surrounding children, I look to develop a larger picture of the experience and significance of children in Mycenaean society, in effort to give context and perspective for existing and future research surrounding Mycenaean culture.

Turkey in Seattle, an ongoing oral history project initiated in 2017 under the auspices of the Turkish & Ottoman Studies Program at MELC, seeks to document the lives and stories of the Pacific Northwest’s vibrant Turkish community. The project's focus is on the immigration stories of people from Turkey—delving into their reasons for immigration, identity, adaptation to American culture, community involvement, and return migration plans. By cataloging their stories into a publicly available database, the project aims to record, archive, and preserve the oral histories of people who immigrated from Turkey to the Pacific Northwest (PNW) Region in the United States, creating a digital library and datasets that can be used for future research. The project has existed in three distinct stages. Phase one began with the lead researcher, Melike Yücel-Koc, as the sole interviewer. Interviews were only conducted with first generation immigrants. Phase two continued the focus yet had additional research interns, and phase three (the project's current phase) has begun interviewing second generation immigrants. I, in partnership with Turkey in Seattle, conducted over 15 of these oral history interviews over the span of 10 months, starting in phase two of the project. This process began in a training stage in Honors 345, Fall quarter 2022. After careful analysis of past oral history projects and review of previous interviews conducted for the project, I began to conduct interviews the following quarter. Interviews were conducted for a period from 1-2.5 hours, and followed oral history best practices. My presentation will discuss the methodology, process, and results gathered throughout my research, with a heavy focus on the practical applications. Beyond this, I will discuss the unique mindset that oral history demands of its practitioners and how it has proved invaluable to discussing the story of the PNW Turkish community.

This project focuses on the redesign of a faculty research website with the objective of enhancing the site’s user experience. The project documents the history of Egyptology in the late 19th and early 20th century, through the lens of unpublished personal archives. The target audience includes scholars working in the discipline of Egyptology, students within the Middle Eastern Languages and Culture department at the University of Washington (UW), and the general public, for whom survey research will be conducted. The research methodology takes a multi-faceted approach, incorporating contextual inquiry-based interviews to observe user interactions with prototype designs. Additionally, in-depth interviews will be conducted with Middle Eastern Languages and Culture professors, and independent scholars, to gather insights on the presentation of the website. The survey research gathers feedback from UW students, gauging their preferences, expectations, and challenges when interacting with Egyptology-related online resources. Through contextual inquiry-based interviews, the project aims to identify user behaviors, allowing for the development of user-centric design solutions. The involvement of Middle Eastern Studies professors in interviews adds an academic perspective, enriching the redesign process with expert insights. The redesign process will address identified user needs and preferences, streamlining navigation, and optimizing content presentation. The redesign process will prioritize fulfilling the requirements and needs that we find through our user experience research. Iterative prototyping allows for user feedback to be continuously integrated, ensuring the final design aligns with the expectations and requirements of the target audience. By combining survey research, contextual inquiry-based interviews, and expert insights from Middle Eastern Studies professors, this project aspires to create a more engaging and user-friendly Egyptology website. The outcomes of this redesign endeavor aim to contribute significantly to the improvement of academic online resources, fostering a seamless and enriching learning experience for students in the Near and Middle Eastern Studies department at the University of Washington.