About Me
I am a biological anthropologist, working as a Postdoctoral Research Associate at the Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology (IGB) at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. My research interests include epigenetics, reproductive ecology, life history theory, human biological variation, stress and menstrual function, and ancient DNA. Please see my CV here. My research and teaching is highlighted below.  

Teaching and Mentoring

My teaching experience includes: 
  • Course Resource Development: Anthropological Epigenetics 
    • I am part of a group of researchers and educators interested in anthropological epigenetics. We developed a website with the goal of providing free teaching resources on this topic, including reading materials, labs, and lectures. 
  • ANTH 249: Evolution and Human Disease
    • ​As instructor for Evolution and Human Disease, I challenged students to do the following: 
      1) Learn about the processes of evolution, how our evolutionary history affects contemporary health and disease, and learn about mismatches between our evolutionary and current environments.
      2) Apply this knowledge to contemporary diseases and analyze the underlying social and cultural components of current health problems.
      3) Synthesize knowledge in this course to critically research a global health concern via the final project: paper and presentation.
      4) Explore the application of evolutionary medicine and careers in this field. 
  • ANTH 143: Biology of Human Behavior 
    • I served as a teaching assistant for the Biology of Human Behavior, an online course at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. I hosted virtual and live office hours, created multiple assignments and learning assessments, and guided students through independent research projects. 
  • ANTH 249: Evolution and Human Disease
    • ​I gave guest lectures on for the course Evolution and Human Disease at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign and served as a grader for the same course. I used a combination of active learning activities in my lectures including "Think, Pair, Share" and small group discussions in order to both engage students in the learning process and help students refine their critical thinking skills. 
  • ANTH 246: Forensic Anthropology, LAS 122: Leadership and Society, and LAS 101 Environmental Sustainability and World Citizenship
    • ​I served as a teaching intern for these courses, while simultaneously taking a course on how to teach. We focused on leadership strategies and learning styles. I taught sections of LAS 101 and LAS 122. I created engaging active learning activities for ANTH 246. 
Mentoring 
  • I have mentored multiple undergraduate students. Some students have presented their research at the AAPA COD Undergraduate Research symposium and at campus research symposiums: 
    • Rivera B, Rogers MP, Georges J, and Clancy KBH. Ethnic Identity in Adolescent Girls. 2018. UIUC Research Initiative Poster Presentation. 
    • Kanthak K, Lee KMN, Rogers MP, and Clancy KBH. Female reproductive hormonal variation. 2018. UIUC Research Initiative Poster Presentation. 
    • Ban H, Rogers MP, Lee KMN, Rodrigues M, and Clancy KBH. Changes in age at menarche of rural Polish women over time. 2017. UIUC Research Initiative Poster Presentation. 
    • ​Ogden R, Rogers MP, and Clancy KBH. The relationship between birth weight and age at menarche. 2015. Conference Proceedings: AAPA Committee on Diversity Undergraduate Research Symposium, St. Louis, MO.

Research

My current projects include: 
  • Epigenomic Effects of Colonization on Indigenous Populations 
    • Historical trauma may be related to changes in the epigenome and gene expression. This community-based and interdisciplinary research project analyzes how changes in the social environment as a result of European colonization have contributed to psychological stress and to possible changes in the epigenome of Indigenous peoples in North America. We further investigate whether a return to ancestrally-informed social traditions modifies the biological changes of Indigenous peoples. This project is supported through the NSF (IBSS).
  • Bridging early environment and reproductive traits: epigenetic patterns in Polish and Polish American women 
    • While the relationships between childhood environment and life history traits and genetic variation and life history traits are well-studied independently, the relationships between all three (early life environment, genetics, and life history traits) are often left unexplored. This research project examines responsiveness to childhood environments in the context of reproductive trait timing, and we specifically focus on the timing of woman’s first menstruation, age at menarche, as well as variation in adult reproductive hormones. This project is funding through the NSF DDRIG program and Wenner Gren Foundation.  
    • More information about this project can be found on the Clancy Lab Blog! 
  • Variation of age at menarche in American adolescent girls
    • Ages at menarche (timing of first menses) have been declining globally since 1850. Age at menarche is variable and responsive to environmental factors like energetic and psychosocial stress. In this project, we investigate the relationship between social support on both variation in ages at menarche and girls reproductive hormones in a diverse sample of American adolescents. Our research has the potential to highlight the importance of including measures of family support, rather than simply measures of psychosocial stress, in future studies of adolescent reproductive health.