Emily Altimare finished her fifth year in the PhD program Anthropology at Michigan State University in 2012. Her dissertation research focused on the organizational culture of General Motors as it went through bankruptcy proceedings and its current lean manufacturing processes. While at MSU, Emily was also able to participate in the RCAH Fellowship program, where she studied the learning environment of the college and the impact it has on the education of undergraduate students. She plans to apply this research practically within her own field because it involves observation of community culture and ethnographic studies.

As a PhD student at MSU, Emily worked closely with Dr. Marietta Baba, Dean of the College of Social Science, who served as her major professor, and with David Sheridan, PhD, who served as her faculty mentor in the RCAH fellowship program. Prior to coming to MSU, Emily received a BA in anthropology (minor in women's studies) from the University of Delaware, graduating magna cum laude in 2004. She also receive an MA with distinction in applied anthropology from Northern Arizona University in 2007.