Rate My Professor Dale Simpson

Dale Simpson serves as an adjunct faculty member in the Anthropology Department at College of DuPage, where he has taught since fall 2009. He began as adjunct faculty from 2009 to 2010, advanced to full-time faculty instructor from 2010 to 2011, and has continued as adjunct faculty since 2011. His teaching portfolio includes Anthropology 1000 (Introduction to Anthropology), Anthropology 1100 (Cultural Anthropology), Anthropology 1120 (Discovering Archaeology), Anthropology 1130 (People and Cultures of the World – The Pacific), and Anthropology 1840 (Special Topics: Sri Lankan Cultural Landscapes). Courses have been delivered in diverse formats such as 16-week, 12-week, 8-week, adult fast track, hybrid, virtual, and fully online classes. Simpson received nominations for College of DuPage Outstanding Faculty Member of the Year for 2010–2011 (full-time) and 2012–2013 (part-time), and was awarded an Online Course Development Grant in 2013 to develop the curriculum for Anthropology 1130.

Simpson earned a Ph.D. in Archaeology from the University of Queensland in 2019, with a dissertation titled 'Sourcing Prehistoric Interaction of Rapa Nui (Easter Island): Modeling the Development of Social Complexity in Extreme Isolation.' His earlier degrees include an M.A. (First Class Honours) in Archaeology from the University of Auckland (2008), a Postgraduate Diploma in Archaeology from the University of Auckland (2007), and a B.A. in Anthropology from the University of Manitoba (2002). His research specializes in the anthropological archaeology of Rapa Nui (Easter Island), encompassing geochemical sourcing of basalt quarries and artifacts, adze and tool production during moai statue manufacture, monumental architecture, political economy, and socio-political development in isolated environments. Key publications include 'A collapsed narrative? Geochemistry and spatial distribution of basalt quarries and fine-grained artifacts reveal communal use of stone on Rapa Nui (Easter Island)' (Journal of Archaeological Science, 2018, with Laure Dussubieux), 'Toki (adze) and Pick Production During Peak Moai (Statue) Manufacture' (2018), and books such as Rapa Nui’s stone quarries: An art and coloring book for kids (2022, with V. Lobos Haoa) and Atlas arqueológica para niños (2021, with M. Huke Fuentes and M. Vasquez Hulsbus). With over 210 citations on Google Scholar, his contributions challenge traditional narratives of Easter Island's societal collapse. Beyond teaching, Simpson holds positions as Senior Scientific Specialist at the Illinois State Archaeological Survey (2023–present), Editor-in-Chief of Illinois Antiquity, and board member of the Chicago Archaeological Society. He hosted History Channel's FOUND (2015–2017) and contributed to Science Channel's What on Earth? (2019–2020).