Thomas Pleger
Campus Executive Officer and Dean
Associate Professor of Anthropology/Archeology
Phone: 608-355-5222
E-mail: thomas.pleger@uwc.edu

In April, 2007, Thomas Pleger was named Campus Executive Officer and Dean at UW-Baraboo/Sauk County, after serving 11 months as interim CEO/Dean.

Prior to his appointment at UW-B/SC, Dr. Pleger served as Associate Campus Dean and Associate Professor of Anthropology/Archaeology at the University of Wisconsin-Fox Valley in Menasha. In that role, he oversaw curriculum development, staffing budgets, course schedules, as well as the recruitment and retention of instructional academic staff for the second largest of the 13 UW Colleges campuses.

Dr. Pleger received a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science, with honors, from UW-LaCrosse. He earned his M.A. in Anthropology and his Ph.D. in Anthropology/Archaeology, both from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He also attended the University of Wisconsin in Dalkeith, Scotland Program. His Ph.D. and subsequent research has focused on the archaeology of the Western Great Lakes and has resulted in publications in regional and local archaeological journals and edited volumes including the Wisconsin Archeologist and the Midcontinental Journal of Archaeology.

Dr. Pleger has taught anthropology and archaeology courses at UW-Marinette, UW-Madison, UW-La Crosse, Lawrence University, and UW-Fox Valley. He has directed five archaeological field school research projects for the University of Wisconsin Colleges and conducted numerous research projects in Wisconsin and adjacent states. He is a former University of Wisconsin System Teaching Fellow and is presently a speaker on Wisconsin archaeological topics for the Wisconsin Humanities Council Speakers' Bureau.

Dr. Pleger received the 1999 UWFox Teacher of the Year Award and the 2000 Rotary Cutting Edge Award. He also received the Lapham Research Medal from the Wisconsin Archaeological Society in 2001 for distinguished service in anthropological research. He also served as the 2000-2001 president of the Wisconsin Archaeological Survey.

Curriculum Vitae

Articles about Wisconsin Archaeology:

• Paleo-Indian
• Old Copper
• Prehistoric Mounds
• Puzzles of the Past
• University of Wisconsin-Fox Valley 2006 Archaeology Field School
• UW-Colleges 2003 Archaeology Field School
• UW-Colleges 2001 Archaeology Field School UW-Colleges
• 1999 Archaeology Field School
• Archaeological Excavations at the River Resort Site, Southwest Wisconsin