Laura Delarche Roghair
Conservation Management Institute * GIS and Remote Sensing Division
College of Natural Resources * Virginia Tech University
203 W. Roanoke St. * Blacksburg, VA 24061 * (540)231-7348 * lola@vt.edu

Education

Graduate Studies, 1999
Concentration in Geographic Information Systems & Remote Sensing
Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University, Blacksburg, VA

BA in Geography, 1998
Concentration in Geographic Information Systems & Remote Sensing
Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University, Blacksburg, VA

Graduate Studies, 1991
Concentration in General Anthropology
Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA

BA in General Anthropology, 1990
Concentration in American Archaeology
Pennsylvania State University; University Park, PA

Academic Awards

Excellence of Scholarship, National Council for Geographic Education & Association of American Geographers (1998)
President's List for Notable Achievement, College of Arts & Sciences, Virginia Tech University (1998)
Outstanding Student in Human Geography, Department of Geography, Virginia Tech University (1997)
Dean's List, Penn State University (1987, 1989), Virginia Tech University (1997, 1998)

Professional Experience in GIS

Research Associate Dec 1998 - Present
Conservation Management Institute /Virginia Tech University, Blacksburg, VA
  • Management of a Phase I archaeological survey at Fort Pickett Military Installation
  • Development of Geographic Information Systems and Geospatial Databases
    • Feature mapping in ARC/INFO and ArcView GIS
    • Paper GIS conversion to digital spatial data.
    • FGDC-compliant metadata reporting.
    • Cartographic production of thematic and reference maps.
    • 3-D modeling of terrain and surface features in ArcView GIS.
    • GIS internet mapping with ArcIMS.
    • VBA programming in ArcGIS.
GIS Consultant Feb - Sept 1999
Department of Architecture/Virginia Tech University, Blacksburg, VA
  • Construction of a multi-state ArcView GIS project for a faculty researcher to analyze the frequency and association of selected man-made features.
Grading Assistant Aug - Dec 1998
Department of Geography/Virginia Tech University, Blacksburg, VA
  • Lab assignment grading and exam proctoring for the senior-level Geography course Introduction to Remote Sensing.

Independent Study & Internships in GIS

Undergraduate GIS Assistant Fall 1998
Fish & Wildlife Information Exchange/Virginia Tech University, Blacksburg, VA
Construction of an ArcView GIS database for the University of Virginia to analyze species data collected at the Mountain Lake Biological Station in southwestern Virginia.

Office Automation Intern Summer 1998
U.S. Forest Service/Huron-Manistee National Forest/Huron Shores Ranger Station, Oscoda, MI
Computerization of the Forest Roads Inventory in ARC/INFO, field mapping of wildfires and recreation trails with a Trimble real-time GPS receiver, and assistance to field personnel with map production in Pathfinder Office and ArcView GIS.

Computer Skills

Operating Systems:
Windows95/NT/2000

Computer Languages:
ARC Macro Language (AML), Visual Basic for Applications (VBA), VBScript, HTML, Extensible Markup Language (XML), Active Server Pages (ASP)

GIS & Remote Sensing software:
ArcGIS 8, ARC/INFO Workstation, ArcView GIS 3.2

Professional Experience in Archaeology

Field Archaeologist Jan, May - Aug 1997
GAI Consultants, Inc, Monroeville, PA
  • Testing of prehistoric sites on the Roanoke River floodplain in southwestern Virginia.
  • Survey and testing of historic and prehistoric sites, including a multi-component rock shelter site, in the Big Sandy River Valley of western West Virginia.
Field Archaeologist Nov 1992 - Dec 1996
Louis Berger & Associates, Inc., East Orange, NJ
Extensive prehistoric/historic site survey, testing, and excavation throughout the Northeast, Southeast, and Midwest U.S., including:
  • Excavation of late 18th Century house structures and mill on the Susquehanna River floodplain in southeastern Pennsylvania.
  • Excavation of an Archaic to early Historic component site adjacent to the Cumberland Gap National Park in southwestern Virginia.
  • Excavation of late 17th - early 18th Century residential lot foundations and shaft features in the Central Historic District of Philadelphia.
  • Mitigation of a Middle Woodland house site on the Iowa River floodplain in eastern Iowa.
  • Survey in the pocosin swamps at Camp Davis and Camp Lejeune Marine Base of coastal North Carolina.
  • Testing of a large Mississippian village on a terrace of the Broad River in southeastern South Carolina.
  • Site testing on the banks of the Savannah River adjacent to Stallings Island in Augusta, Georgia.
Archaeological Monitor Aug - Oct 1992
Infotec Research, Inc., Eugene, OR
  • Monitoring of pipeline construction in archaeologically significant areas of the John Day Canyon in Oregon and the Sacramento River delta in the Central Valley of California.
Field Archaeologist Jun - Jul 1992
Metcalf Archaeological Consultants, Eagle, CO
  • Excavation of prehistoric Freemont and Ute sites within the high desert of northwestern Colorado.
Field Archaeologist Feb - Jun 1992
Mid-Continental Research Associates, Lowell, AR
  • Testing of prehistoric and historic sites on the Mississippi River floodplain in eastern Arkansas and Missouri.
Field Archaeologist Oct - Dec 1991
New South Associates, Stone Mountain, GA
  • Survey and testing of multi-component prehistoric sites within the Francis Marion National Forest of coastal South Carolina.
  • Excavation of a palisaded Mississippian village in the Chattahoochee National Forest of northwestern Georgia.
  • Survey in the Ouachita Mountains National Forest of western Arkansas.
Field Lab Director Oct 1991
3D/Environmental Services, Inc., Cincinnati, OH
  • In-field curation of a 20,000-piece artifact collection recovered from the excavation of the Padula Site, a multi-component prehistoric site in the Delaware River Valley of southeastern Pennsylvania.
Crew Chief Jul - Oct 1991
3D/Environmental Services, Inc., Cincinnati, OH
  • Supervision of an excavation crew on the Padula Site, a multi-component prehistoric site in the Delaware River Valley of southeastern Pennsylvania.
Field Archaeologist Oct 1988 - Jul 1991
Archaeological & Historical Consultants, Inc., Centre Hall, PA
  • Survey and site testing throughout Pennsylvania as a student employee on weekends, school holidays, and summer semesters.

Independent Study & Internships in Archaeology

Faunal Classification Fall 1990
Department of Anthropology /Penn State University, University Park, PA
Species identification of shell remains recovered from the excavation of a Late Mississippian Lamar village in central Georgia.

Cultural Resource Management Internship Summer 1990
Bureau for Historic Preservation/Pennsylvania State Museum, Harrisburg, PA
Assistance with the archaeological review of state/federal-funded construction projects, maintenance of the Pennsylvania Archaeological Site Survey (PASS) files, and completion of a research project using museum artifact collections and site documentation. Research project focused on material identification of selected projectile point styles and an analysis of lithic selection in each prehistoric cultural period for a five-county study area.

Lithic Analysis Fall 1989 - Spring 1990
Department of Anthropology /Penn State University, University Park, PA
Laboratory classification and intra-site spatial analysis of the lithic artifacts recovered from the Lindsey Site, a Late Mississippian hamlet in central Georgia.

Archaeological Field School Summer 1989
Department of Anthropology /Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA
Instruction in archaeological field methods and techniques through the excavation of a Late Mississippian site and field mapping of the Rock Eagle effigy mound within the Occonee National Forest of central Georgia.