This week we received an email from Mary Borgia, a 5th grade teacher at McGuffey Elementary in Newark, OH. In the email was the following essay by student Kaylee Richards from an interview she conducted of our own Curator of Archaeology, Brad Lepper. First off, Mary wanted us to know that in her class the term “nerd” is used lovingly. Their class cheer is: YOU THINK THAT YOU’RE ALL SO TOUGH SOMEDAY YOU’LL ALL WORK FOR US! GO GEEKS! (clap clap clap) GO GEEKS! With this in mind, we hope you enjoy this interview as much as we did! And from our nerdom to yours, thanks Kaylee!
The Beginning of a Nerd
Most second graders have no idea what an archeologist is but this specific man did. Recently I interviewed Dr. Brad Lepper, an archaeologist, thinking he would just talk about stuff I didnt even understand. When I started my interview I asked him if he had always wanted to be an archaeologist. He responded by saying that he had wanted to be an archaeologist since second grade. I became more comfortable and went on. I asked him how long you have to go to college. He responded and said twelve years. I was shocked. Twelve years; I thought that was ridiculous! I asked him if he ever wanted to give up archaeology and go in to a different study. He responded by saying, Occasionally, but I never did. That was a good thing because to Dr. Lepper this was a second graders dream come true. I asked where his studies took him and surprisingly he never went out of the United States. He mostly studied in Montana, Maine, New Mexico, and Ohio. My last question was if he had any sites he still wanted to visit and study. He responded by saying that, There was a never ending list of sites he still wants to visit. After my last question I didnt want to hang up. He was such a nice man and I could understand everything he talked about. I realized that just because he worked with some places I couldnt even pronounce didnt mean that he would be a tough, harsh guy. Though reluctantly I hung up the phone, all of a sudden I felt older and understood more, just because of this one very special archaeologist. Who knowsone day I might be an archaeologist just like him.
-Kaylee Richards 5th-grade Ms. Borgia’s Class McGuffey Elementary Newark
