Maria Viteri Headshot

mviteri@uchicago.edu

Organismal Biology and Anatomy

Chicago, IL


Maria Viteri worked in the Sereno Fossil Lab all four years of her undergraduate time at the university. She studied evolutionary biology with an interest in pursuing a career in conservation paleobiology. She worked as Undergraduate Lab Manager for two years, training and coordinating the lab's many student volunteers. She worked as a teaching assistant for Paul’s Dinosaur Science class, teaching students about geology, anatomy, and dinosaurs, as well as helping students learn excavation techniques on the class’s week-long field trip to Wyoming. Her interest in archaeology had also driven her to get involved in the Gobero Project. In particular, she was interested in the faunal and lithic materials found at this site, completing a thesis identifying crocodile fauna found in the area.

Maria was also the co-founder and President of the University of Chicago PaleoClub. This organizations brings together individuals interested in paleontology, fostering a community of budding researchers and casual enthusiasts alike. 

Maria is currently working towards her Ph.D. in Biology through Liz Hadly’s lab at Stanford University. She received the prestigious NSF Graduate Research Fellowship and is looking at recent vertebrate remains to understand how communities respond to changes in the environment, with an interest in conservation.