Dr. Gearhart takes an interdisciplinary approach (visual anthropology, history, performance studies) to her research on non-Western expressive arts, primarily among the peoples of coastal Kenya. She received a Ph.D. in Anthropology from the University of Florida at Gainesville. Linda Giles taught in the Anthropology Program at Illinois State University and is currently retired but teaching part-time as an adjunct in the Anthropology Program at Illinois Wesleyan University. Her research area is the East African coast, where she has conducted research on spirit possession and the theft, global trade, and repatriation of Mijikenda ancestor memorial posts. She received a Ph.D. in Anthropology from the University of Texas at Austin.