We are excited to be working virtually with Morton Middle School 5th Graders!

We are happy to announce that we will be interacting virtually with the 5th Graders at Morton Middle School in Vandalia, Ohio during our trip this year.  They will be asking us one question per day, and we will provide pictures and information about our adventures to keep them all updated about Belize and their exciting culture. 

Hello Mr. Schmidt and the Morton Middle School 5^th grade class!

Greetings from San Ignacio, Belize!  Today we arrived late due to a broken airplane.  We had to wait four hours to leave Atlanta for a new plane to take us to Belize City, Belize.  But, we made it here safe and sound and I was happy to see an email message from you all.  

I think Mr. Schmidt showed you a few pictures from our previous trips to Belize.  We will be visiting some of the same sites this time, and I will be sure to explain a little more about those pictures when we get to them.  Currently, Belize is two hours behind you all in Vandalia.  So when you email me, I will likely have to respond towards the end of the day.  You'll have a message waiting for me each morning that we are here.  

 

Let’s get right to your question:  “Do you think the Mayan people ever had a female ruler”

While this was a very rare occurrence, I do know of at least one female ruler in the history of the Mayan civilization.  The reason this is so rare is because Mayan leadership was passed down from Kings to sons.  This is especially true for Mayan Priests and spiritual leaders.  Mayan families were very large, and the royal families were typically quite large, with many sons and daughters.  Rulers passed down leadership to the eldest sons first.  In the case that there were no sons, the eldest daughter could have been named the ruler, unless nephews of the ruler were named. 

So, fear not girls, since we vote on our governmental leadership in the United States, you all have a great opportunity to be the leader of our country, so go for it! 

I will be updating our blog page with pictures from the trip, so please check back often to read about our adventures and see new and exciting pictures from our journey.   We will do our best to update this page with information and pictures daily for each of you to follow along.  Feel free to email me any questions you might have, and hopefully I can come in and speak with you all when I return. 

I look forward to hearing back from you soon.

Dr. Chris Atchison

catchison@gsu.edu