Biography

DIANE Z. CHASE is the Executive Vice President and Provost at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. As such, Dr. Chase serves as the university’s chief academic and budget officer and as the chief executive officer of the university in the absence of the President. Dr. Chase is charged with the overall administration of all academic units, works closely with deans and faculty to develop, implement, and promote educational and scholarship goals, and provides leadership to ensure achievement of the university’s mission. She was formerly a Pegasus Professor and Vice Provost for Academic Program Quality in Academic Affairs at the University of Central Florida. Her Ph.D. in Anthropology was earned at the University of Pennsylvania. Her research focuses on the ancient Maya of Central America, the archaeology of complex societies, and on osteological and mortuary analysis. For thirty-five years, she has co-directed excavations at Caracol, Belize; before that she directed a seven-year project at Santa Rita Corozal in the same country. She has authored over 145 articles and book chapters, as well as Investigations at the Classic Maya City of Caracol, Belize (1987, with A. F. Chase), A Postclassic Perspective (1988; with A. F. Chase), Mesoamerican Elites: An Archaeological Assessment (1992; 1994; edited with A. F. Chase), and Studies in the Archaeology of Caracol, Belize (1994; with A. F. Chase). Dr. Chase is a member of the Investment Committee for the Society for American Archaeology for a term ending in April 2021. Currently, she is working on a book with A. F. Chase entitled Maya Archaeology: Reconstructing an Ancient Civilization. Her writings may be found at www.caracol.org.

November 2018