Meet the Team

Dr. Rami Arav teaches in the Department of History and the Department of Philosophy and Religion at UNO. Biblical Archaeology, Jesus and Archaeology, Egyptian and Babylonian texts and archaeology are among his special topics courses. He is extensively published on the archaeology and history of the Land of Israel and of Bethsaida in particular. He has directed numerous archaeological excavations, including the Cave of Letters.

In 1987, Dr. Arav undertook a ten-day probe of et-Tell (literally "the mound") on the northeastern coast of the Sea of Galilee in Israel to determine if the 21-acre site was indeed Bethsaida. His conclusions were promising, but Dr. Arav knew more work must be done to reveal more of the ancient layers. In 1990, Dr. Arav founded the Consortium of the Bethsaida Excavations Project, which since then has been housed in International Studies & Programs at UNO. He continues to lead groups of students and scholars on digs every summer.

In 1996, Dr. Arava and his team uncovered the remains of an Iron Age (time of Hebrew Bible) City Gate complex at Bethsaida, which has led the scholars on a new quest - to find out more about the Iron Age city that no one expected to find underneath the Hellenistic-Roman remains. It is now believed the Iron Age Bethsaida was the capital of the kingdom of Geshur. Geshur is notable in the Hebrew Bible for its visit by King David, and his subsequent marriage to Ma'achah, the daughter of the king of Geshur. Dr. Arav's recent work has focused heavily on the Iron Age City Gate complex - one of the biggest and best preserved in the region - and its link to a previously excavated palace.

E-mail Rami Arav at rarav@unomaha.edu.

Mrs. Leahy Pape has been the Excavations Coordinator since January 2010; she is the primary contact for volunteer excavators, consortium members, and intstitions that would like to become involved with Bethsaida. She has also been a key organizer for the annual Batchelder Biblical Archaeology Conference, which draws students, scholars, and the general public from all over the world to discuss the latest findings in the field.

Prior to her work with Bethsaida, Mrs. Leahy Pape was a Judaics teacher at synagogues in Omaha and Marietta, Georgia. She has a bachelor's degree in Religious Studies from UNO with minors in Anthropology and Ancient History. With her unique background in education, history, and religious studies, she revels in the discoveries made at Bethsaida and the sense of wonder they inspire in the volunteer excavators.

E-mail Kristy Leahy Pape at kristyleahy@unomaha.edu. You can also reach her by mail, phone, or fax:

Bethsaida Biblical Archaeology
International Studies & Programs
University of Nebraska at Omaha
Omaha, NE 68182-0485

Phone: 1.402.554.3108
Fax: 1.402.554.3681

The work at Bethsaida is made possible by these board members and the contributions of the Consortium Members they represent:

• Dr. Richard Freund, Hartford University
• Dr. Carl Savage, Drew University
• Prof. Dr. Heinz-Wolfgang Kuhn, University of Munich
• Dr. Mark Appold, Truman State University
• Dr. Walter Bouzard, Wartburg College
• Dr. Alison Hood, Huntington University, Canada
• Dr. Patrick Russell, Sacred Heart School of Theology, Wisconsin
• Dr. Elizabeth McNamer, Rocky Mountain College
• Dr. Mark Smith, College of Idaho
• Dr. Jerome Hall, University of San Diego

While hundreds of volunteers have furthered the excavation and interpretation of artifacts at Bethsaida over the years, these contributors have made significant, sustained contributions in their fields of expertise:

• Dr. Kate Raphael, Independent scholar, Israel
• Prof. John F. Shroder, UNO, Geology
• Dr. Robert D. Shuster, UNO, Geology
• Dr. Nicolae Roddy, Creighton University
• Prof. Dr. Ilona Skupinska Lovset, Lodz University
• Dr. Fred Strickert, Wartburg College
• Dr. Greg Jenks, Charles Sturt University Brisbane Australia
• Dr. Jacquelyn Lloyds, Laidlow University New Zealand
• Dr. Harry Jol, Eau Claire University, Geophysics
• Dr. Philip Reeder, University of South Florida, Cartography
• Prof. Sagi Filin, Technion Israel, Photogrammetry
• Dr. Elizabetta Boaretto, Weiztman Institute, Israel, Radiocarbon Dating
• Dr. Nili Liphschitz, Tel Aviv University, Paleobotany
• Dr. Toni Fisher, Zooarchaeologist
• Dr. Baruch Brandl, Israel Antiquities Authority, Small Finds
• Dr. Donald Ariel, Israel Antiquities Authority, Numismatics
• Dr. Monika Bernett, University of Munich
• Dr. Andrea Rottloff, Glass Expert
• Prof. Amoz Agnon, Hebrew University, Israel, Geology
• Prof. Israel Hershkovitz, Tel Aviv University, Israel, Physical Anthropology
• Patrick Geyer, Pollen Analysis
• Christina Etzrodt, AutoCAD Cartography
• Orna Cohen, Israel, Conservator
• Hanan Shafir, Israel, Photography
• Barney Trams, Pottery Restoration
• Aliza Rappaport, Israel, Architect
• Chris Morton, Database Digital Designer
• Shai Schwartz, Israel, Instructor and Web Updates
• DreAnna Hadash, Staff Artist