Biological Anthropology
Sarah Johnson is a paleoanthropologist currently pursuing her PhD in Biological Anthropology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She obtained her bachelor’s degrees in forensic science and Anthropology at Saint Louis University. Her current research focuses on musculoskeletal variation of the hand in extinct and extant taxa and its relationship to biomechanical function. With the assistance of her mentor, Dr. John Hawks, she hopes to better understand the locomotor repertoire of Homo naledi.
Sarah also has a passion for exploration and fieldwork and is an avid scuba diver and rock climber. In 2018, she participated in a field mission to the Republic of Palau as a member of Project Recover, an organization dedicated to locating and repatriating the Americans that have been missing in action since WWII. In 2022, she joined the Rising Star team and participated in the excavation of Dragon’s Back Chamber led by Dr. Keneiloe Molopyane.