Whether she’s excavating in Cyprus or teaching at Creighton, Dr. Erin Averett inspires those around her with her enthusiasm for the ancient world.

Dr. Averett joined the faculty at Creighton in 2008 as Resident Assistant Professor in the Department of Classical and Near Eastern Studies, and this year she serves as resident assistant professor of art history and the Lied Art Gallery director in the Fine and Performing Arts Department.

“I want my students to appreciate the value of learning about the ancient world and its relevance to modern society,” Averett said. “They can teach us a lot about who we are and the value systems we have today.”

Averett grew up in Atlanta and first fell in love with the ancient world after taking Latin in high school. Later, she went on to the University of Georgia, where she double majored in Latin and classical archaeology. Averett obtained her Ph.D. in classical art and archaeology at the University of Missouri-Columbia in 2007.

Averett has traveled all over the world to participate in archaeological digs.

“You have to be on site and involved in the excavation to see [the artifacts],” she said. That is part of what attracted her to the job.

For the most part, Averett travels to the Mediterranean where she has participated in digs almost every summer since 1997, including Cyprus where she serves as the assistant director of the Athienou Archaeological Project.

Chamber tombs, Greek sanctuaries, fragments of limestone statues, Terra Cotta figurines and glass beads are just a few of the things the group studies in the area.

She is currently working on a new publication detailing their findings on the Terra Cotta figurines from this site, which were brought as gifts to temple deities in ancient cultures.

Averett also had the opportunity to live in Athens for two years as a part of the American School of Classical Studies at Athens. This university is one of the premiere institutions for Americans studying in Greece, and Averett felt very fortunate to have that opportunity. She able to spend a lot of time with scholars in her same field and she enjoyed learning about the diverse culture and people of Greece.

“I met many scholars in the field that made my research and dissertation better,” she said of the experience.

As the art gallery’s director, one of her main tasks is to devise the schedule for artists to show their work in Creighton’s Lied Center. She tries to balance showcasing artwork from the Creighton community as well as work from Omaha, national and international artists.

“It’s a lot of fun,” she said of her role as the director. “You get to meet a lot of interesting people from the art community.”

One of her favorite things about Creighton, is teaching. While she has taught larger classes at other universities, she enjoys the smaller class size at Creighton because it allows her to work more closely with her students. Averett has had a positive experience at Creighton, and she hopes to make an impact on her students’ understanding and appreciation of ancient culture.