Pomona College professor receives lifetime achievement award

The American Anthropological Association recently awarded Pomona College anthropology professor Ralph Bolton the 2010 Franz Boas Award.

Bolton, a professor at the college since 1971, has had research interest range from HIV/AIDS education in the U.S. and Europe to applied anthropology in the Andes and Peru, according to a Dec. 13 news release. 

Nominations for author and editor Bolton, according to the release, detailed his non-conventional research methods, practical applications of his findings to AIDS education, anthropology and other areas and his civic and community involvement in and out of anthropology. 

Bolton, a 1961 graduate from Pomona College, is currently founder and serving president for The Chijnaya Foundation, which works with Southern Peru rural communities to implement and design self-sustaining education, economic development and health projects. 

"Professor Bolton brings a wealth of applied anthropology experience to the classroom from his work on Andean culture to his work urging anthropologists to get involved researching the HIV/AIDS epidemic in its early years," Pomona College dean Cecilia Conrad said in a news release.