Friday, March 11, 2016

Professional Development Opportunities, Awards and Scholarships for Archaeology Students in Pennsylvania and the Greater Middle Atlantic Region: 2016 MAAC, SPA and ESAF annual meetings

Its spring conference season for archaeology professionals, avocational enthusiasts and students once again. The State Museum of Pennsylvania, Section of Archaeology actively partners with the Middle Atlantic Archaeological Conference (MAAC), the Society for Pennsylvania Archaeology (SPA), the Pennsylvania Archaeology Council (PAC) and the Eastern States Archaeological Federation (ESAF), to protect archaeological resources, promote and disseminate scientific research and provide educational programming throughout the year. At annual meetings Museum staff regularly present papers about ongoing research and curatorial concerns; assist with and/or host meetings; help to review, administer awards and scholarships; and periodically serve as organization officers. We encourage all those who are interested in archaeology to support these organizations through active membership, annual meeting attendance, monetary donations and student sponsorships.

Student memberships in MACC, SPA and ESAF have many perks in addition to discounted rates and association journal subscriptions. These organizations provide opportunities for support and professional development to budding archaeologists at the start of their careers. Here are some of the opportunities available to students and recent college graduates at the 2016 MAAC, SPA/PAC and ESAF 2016 annual meetings, as well as links to and additional information about conference programming and registration for all interested in attending these events.
The 46th annual Middle Atlantic Archaeological Conference will be held this weekend:

Thursday, March 10 to Sunday, March 13
Clarion Fontainebleu Hotel
10100 Coastal Highway
Ocean City, MD 21842
Reservations: 1-800-638-2100 or (410)524-3535

Click the provided links for more information about the 2016 MAAC Conference Program and to visit the Conference website. The Friday evening Keynote Speaker is Charles Ewen, PhD, Croatoan: Guidepost or misdirection? Walk-in registrants are welcome through this Saturday, March 12th, 4pm.

MAAC student presenter, poster competition
The call for poster and paper presentations ended January 31st; however, there are many opportunities to learn about avenues of professional development for students and recent graduates interested in attending the program this year. Graduate and undergraduate student geared social and steering committee activities kick off Friday morning with the Student Committee Coffee hour at 11:00am, the Friday evening MAAC Student Committee Round Table (5-6pm), and the Student Mixer Saturday evening (7:30-8:30pm). The highlight of the student focused programming is a mentoring meet and greet workshop session planned Saturday afternoon with representatives from cultural resource management firms, graduate schools and federal agencies.

Track C Saturday Afternoon, 1:30 – 3:30 pm
Workshop: Archaeological Speed Dating and Resume Review
Chairs: Carole Nash, James Madison University and Heather Wholey, West Chester University

Participating students and recent graduates will get the chance to network in a 20-minute ‘speed dating’ format with archaeological professionals from private, academic and public sectors as well as gain useful, one-on -one direction on how to build and present professional credentials. For this session, participants are encouraged to bring a copy of their resume for review.

MAAC student presenter 2014
MAAC will soon begin soliciting student papers and poster presentations for 2017. Competitive scholarships are available for one undergraduate and one graduate paper every year. Winners receive a $100.00 award, a one-year membership with MAAC, and the opportunity to publish in the Journal of Middle Atlantic Archaeology.  Whether or not student presenters choose to participate in the competitive scholarship program, most participants are able to attain a sponsorship award for the cost of one year’s student membership and the conference registration fee. Additionally one undergraduate and one graduate student poster presenter is awarded a special recognition for excellence during the conference.  The 2016 poster presentations will be adjudicated by Kurt W. Carr, Senior Curator of Archaeology at the State Museum of Pennsylvania. 

Winning poster, 2015 MAAC graduate student competition, Casey Campetti, Indiana University of Pennsylvania
March 31st is the presenter submission, scholarship and award deadline for,

Hosted by Ohio Valley Chapter 22
April 15-17, 2016
Park Inn by Radisson
3377 New Castle Road
West Middlesex, PA 16159

There is still time to join the program as a paper presenter and take advantage of scholarships available to high school and college student participants. For general attendance, online and mail-in pre-registration is open through April 13th

James W Hatch Scholarship- a $100.00 scholarship awarded to high school or college students by the Pennsylvania Archaeology Council in cooperation with the SPA to attend the joint PAC/SPA annual meetings. Preference is given to students planning to present papers. Follow the scholarships link provided above to find more information.

Joseph R. Blondino, Temple University, 2009 PAC Symposium presenter,
accepting Hatch scholarship from Paul Raber, PAC
W. Fred Kinsey Scholarship- the W. Fred Kinsey Scholarship was created in 2009 to encourage students to participate at the annual meetings of the Society by presenting scholarly research in a friendly, professional atmosphere. Dr. Kinsey was a curator with the former William Penn Memorial Museum, now The State Museum, before going to Franklin and Marshall College and The North Museum from the early 60’s thru the mid 1980’s. He made significant contributions to the archaeological record and mentored many students who went on to become noteworthy archaeologists on their own merits.  Students currently pursuing an undergraduate or graduate degree are eligible to apply for the W. Fred Kinsey Meeting Scholarship. Eligibility is dependent on a complete, single-author paper with PowerPoint slides (if appropriate) to be presented at the annual meeting of The Society for Pennsylvania Archaeology. Student presentations must be accepted by the program chair for the SPA annual meeting to qualify. Papers should focus on topics relevant to Pennsylvania archaeology. Award of the Scholarship requires submission of the complete paper by a single author, in an electronic format (Word or WordPerfect) to the Program Chair by the regular submission deadline date for papers as set by the Program Chair. The Program Chair Person this year is Amanda Valko, submission deadline for abstracts is March 31, 2016. Selection of the winning paper is decided by committee review and will be based on quality of original research, presentation and appeal to the avocational and professional archaeology community. The committee consists of at least three members of the Society, one from staff of the PHMC and one member from the education committee of the Society. 

Jennifer C. Rankin, Temple University, 2012 Kinsey 
Scholarship recipient, paper published in the PA Archaeologist (83:1)

Presentation of the award will be announced at the Annual Meeting of the Society for Pennsylvania Archaeology on April 15-17, 2016 in West Middlesex, Pennsylvania. The selected paper will be published on-line through the PHMC website and submitted for review to the editor of the journal Pennsylvania Archaeologist for possible publication. The editor of the journal will make the final decision on publication. Donations are encouraged to support the W. Fred Kinsey Scholarship fund. In addition to the monetary award and publication assistance, one year of membership in the Society is included in the award. Questions regarding this scholarship may be directed to Janet Johnson, Curator of Archaeology at the State Museum of Pennsylvania (janjohnson@pa.gov).

This year’s theme is, “Digging down into Pennsylvania’s Past: Pre-Clovis through Postmodern” with open sessions Saturday morning, Saturday afternoon, and Sunday morning. The Saturday evening banquet speaker is Dr. Aksel Casson, Assistant Professor of Anthropology, Department of Interdisciplinary Studies, Slippery Rock University, Destruction of Cultural Heritage in Syria: Thinking Globally and Locally.

Announcing the Friday afternoon PAC Symposium, to be held in conjunction with the SPA annual meeting:
Lithic Quarries in Pennsylvania: The Archaeology of Tool Stone Procurement

ABSTRACT
The study of tool stone procurement and distribution has been a long-standing interest for archaeologists in Pennsylvania and surrounding regions. Despite this, there have been few systematic archaeological studies of quarries, outcrops and secondary sources. This symposium summarizes the available information on quarries and other tool stone sources and the exploitation of these resources by the prehistoric inhabitants of Pennsylvania, both hunter-gatherers and horticulturalists.
The Geologic Origins and Distribution of Tool Stone in Pennsylvania.
Frank J. Vento

An Overview of the Recorded Tool Stone Quarries in Pennsylvania
Kurt W. Carr

Jefferson County Chert
Kenneth Burkett

The Exploitation of Quartzite in the Lower Juniata and Susquehanna Valleys: Outcrops and Cobble Sources
Paul A. Raber

Sourcing and Studying the Source: Bald Eagle Jasper Quarries and the Houserville Habitation Complex
Barry Sheetz and Tim Murtha

Chert Sourcing Studies in Western and Central Pennsylvania
Beverly Chiarulli and Gregory Katz

The Southeastern Pennsylvania Steatite Quarries
Heather A. Wholey

Digging into Quarry Sites: Theoretical Approaches and New Analytical Methods for Understanding Mined Landscapes.
Brian L. Fritz

Coming to Pennsylvania this fall,
November 4-6, 2016
Sheraton Bucks County
400 Oxford Valley Rd
Langhorne, PA 19047
(215) 547-4100

Online registration is now available for presenters and attendees. Similar to MAAC and SPA annual meetings, a competitive scholarship is available to student presenters. The best student paper award is open to all currently enrolled students who submit single author papers for presentation and review at the ESAF meeting. This year’s application deadline coincides with the general presenter submission deadline, September 15, 2016.  Papers are judged both on content and oral presentation and the winner is announced at the banquet, Saturday night. Award recipients receive a certificate of award, a cash prize, and a one-year membership in ESAF. At the request of the author, the winning paper may be considered for publication in Archaeology of Eastern North America at the discretion of the AENA editor. ESAF also encourages state societies like the SPA and cultural resource firms to sponsor students’ meeting registration fees and/or membership dues.

Students don’t forget to also seek further funding sources through educational institutions. Academic departments, colleges and universities often provide grants and awards to support student research and participation in professional conferences. These grants can offset the cost of travel, food, lodging, and registration fees.

Note: If you attended the 2015 State Museum of PA’s Workshop in Archaeology, or caught our exhibit at the PA Farm Show this January—Weed Seeds to Garden Seeds: the Archaeology of Farming in the Keystone State—you can revisit similar topics on a wider regional scale at the MAAC meetings in the Track A Friday morning session, Foragers in Middle Atlantic Prehistory. Also, get a sneak peek into the 2016 PA Workshops in Archaeology, scheduled for Saturday, October 29th. This year’s Workshop theme, prehistoric symbols and belief systems, will be touched on by Friday afternoon MAAC Track A session presenters—Changing Landscapes: archaeological evidence of ideological, social and technological transformation amongst farmers in the Middle Atlantic Region, c. AD 1050 – contact.
Andrew Wyatt, 2009 SPA annual meeting presenter, slide image of Susquehannock maskette.
For more information, visit PAarchaeology.state.pa.us or the Hall of Anthropology and Archaeology at The State Museum of Pennsylvania .

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