Leadership Team
Professor Naomi Sykes
Head of Department
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Naomi researches and teaches on human-animal-environment interactions over the last 10,000 years, exploring how they inform on the structure, ideology and impact of societies, past and present. She is particularly interested in reconstructing the bio-cultural histories of introduced and locally extinct / endangered species (e.g. fallow deer, chickens, rabbits, hares, cats, dogs and wolves).
Karin Venema
Department Manager
I am here to help the department flourish, resolving issues and removing obstacles so academics can focus on their teaching and research. I say what I do and do what I say.
Dr Catriona McKenzie
Deputy Head of Department, Archaeology
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I am here to help with any issues that students and colleagues may have. My aim is to create a positive, supportive, and inclusive department where all can thrive.
Professor Catherine Rider
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Deputy Head of Department, History
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I’ve worked at Exeter since 2007, researching and teaching in medieval history and the history of magic. I’ve also held various administrative and management roles over the years and am keen to use these to support staff and students in the department.
Professor Jane Whittle
Director of Research and Impact
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Jane Whittle is Professor of Economic and Social History, with expertise in the history of work and gender in preindustrial Europe. Her research explores work/labour, gender, economic development, household economies, material culture and consumption, c.1300-1750 (late medieval and early modern).
Professor Oliver Creighton
Director of Research and Impact
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Oliver Creighton is Professor of Archaeology in the Department of Archaeology and History at the University of Exeter.
He is an expert on castles, landscapes and warfare in the Middle Ages and writes, researches and teaches about the archaeology of medieval and historic Britain and Europe.
Professor Richard Toye
Director of Global Engagement, History
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I am Professor of Modern History and have worked at Exeter since 2007. I am Co-Director of Global Excellence (with Alan Outram) for the Department.
Dr Alex Pryor
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Director of Education and Student Experience, Archaeology
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Alex Pryor is a specialist in isotope analysis of archaeological bones and teeth (Sr, O, C, N, S). His research focuses on the European Upper Palaeolithic but he also works in more recent contexts as an isotope specialist.
Dr Susan Greaney
Director of Postgraduate Research
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Dr Susan Greaney is a Lecturer in Archaeology at the University of Exeter.
Susan is an archaeologist who specialises in the study of British prehistory, particularly monuments of the Neolithic and Early Bronze Age. Her PhD (funded by the AHRC, and completed at Cardiff and Southampton Universities) focused on the Neolithic monument complexes of Britain and Ireland.
Dr Helen Birkett
Director of Postgraduate Research
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I am a Senior Lecturer in Medieval History with expertise in twelfth-century Britain and Ireland, intellectual and religious culture, medieval monasticism, hagiography, and news. My main research interests concern the construction of texts and narratives in the central Middle Ages, and the ways in which recent information, particularly news, was transmitted and preserved.
Dr Carly Ameen
Director of Business, Engagement and Innovation
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Carly Ameen (she/her) is an archaeological scientist specialising in bioarchaeology and digital imaging. She is an expert on the application of geometric morphometrics (GMM) to the study of archaeological materials and a founding memeber of the Centre for HumAnE Bioarchaeology.
Dr Hajnalka Herold
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Director of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
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I am an archaeologist with two principal fields of interest, the study of the early Middle Ages in Europe and beyond (c. 400–1100 CE), and the archaeometric and experimental analysis of pottery from various geographical and chronological backgrounds. I have studied and worked in archaeology and archaeological science in various countries, including the United Kingdom, Austria, Germany, Switzerland, and Hungary.