Jacqueline DiBiase-Sammons, assistant professor in the Department of Classics and the 2021 recipient of the Dr. Mike L. Edmonds New Scholar Award in Humanities. Her research investigates the aesthetics of ancient graffiti and graffiti made using charcoal. DiBiase-Sammons takes the audience on a walk down a street in Pompeii to examine the messages preserved beneath the ashes of Mount Vesuvius and what ancient graffiti can tell us about the people that once lived there. Dr. Jacqueline DiBiasie-Sammons’ interest in Pompeii ignited when she discovered her birth date was on the same day as the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in 79 AD. Now she spends summers walking ancient streets, exploring 2,000-years-old graffiti, and listening to the voices of the underrepresented.
