The Big Western CRM Archaeology Layoff
Feast or Famine is a frequently acknowledged part of being a CRM archaeologist. Because many of our companies are so poorly managed, they live and die by close-ended, temporary cultural resources...
View ArticleDear Future Archaeologist
(Last month, I was asked to write a letter to a fifth grade student that is interested in archaeology. The student is African American and has not been doing well in school. The Society for Black...
View ArticlePreparing for the Archaeology Conference in the Land of the #12Man
As soon as I stepped off the plane in Seattle, I knew the Seahawks had either won the Super Bowl or taken over the world. For many reasons, the prevalence of Seahawks’ gear and 12th Man kudos makes me...
View ArticleSuccinct Research 2014 Review and 2015 Prospectus
“If you bite off more than you can chew, just keep chewing.” Last year (2014), was a difficult one for me and Succinct Research. Time was hard to come by because I was still working on my PhD classes...
View ArticleArchaeology, Structural Racism, and the Seahawks: Musings on #SHA2015
“Peripheries and Boundaries” was the theme of this year’s Society for Historical Archaeology (SHA) Conference in Seattle. Many of the symposia focused on the issues that arise when people and...
View ArticleAre archaeologists racist?: Part I
WARNING: This blog post is probably going to make you very emotional. The principal emotion you are likely to experience is anger. Before you start rampaging in the comments box, please, read the...
View ArticleAre archaeologists racist?: Part II
This is the second of a two part series focused on structural racism and archaeology. I encourage you to click here to read the first part. Again, I have to warn you this blog post is probably going to...
View ArticleWhy is it a big deal when universities discuss whiteness?
Last week, Fox News helped my dissertation research immensely. I learned about five books that I definitely need to read based on their coverage of a course at Arizona State University titled “U.S....
View ArticleNative Americans, Archaeological Monitoring, and CRMers
Archaeological Monitoring (v.) (1) watching and waiting for a mechanical excavator to reveal an archaeological deposit; (2) a great way for archaeologists to find sites and Native people to reclaim...
View ArticleHow to become an expert on cultural resource management
I wonder how many hours I’ve spent being a cultural resource management archaeologist. It’s hard to calculate because, even though I’ve been doing CRM since 2004, I haven’t always been employed...
View ArticleIt’s not just archaeology. Most students don’t learn what they need in college.
A few months ago, I penned a (un)popular blog post titled “When archaeology field techs have to teach PhDs how to do archaeology”. Some people thought it was great. Many did not. Fortunately, I haven’t...
View ArticleBourbon, Heartland Virus, and Archaeology
Ticks are one of the main reasons why I don’t like working in the east or Midwest. I can handle scorpions, brown recluse, and black widows. I get freaked out by diamondbacks, sidewinders, and Mojave...
View ArticleIs education and #freearchaeology really a substitute for actual archaeology...
We’ve all seen the following clauses in a job description: – A combination of education and experience which includes College-level education or training that provided knowledge equivalent to that...
View ArticleWhat does student loan bubble mean for archaeology?
Small liberal arts colleges are starting to lose the battle against the “educational-industrial complex.” This month, two colleges in the eastern United States—Sweet Briar College and Tennessee Temple...
View ArticleWhat do you think should be included in an archaeological field school?
Yesterday, I received good news. The property owner of the Erma Hayman House in Boise, Idaho has given permission to conduct an archaeology project on this property. This will be the next step in my...
View ArticleDoes a cultural resource management report count as archaeology writing?
I was recently informed that a CRM archaeology technical report isn’t true archaeology writing. It was a shocking revelation that came from somebody that has written dozens of cultural resources...
View ArticleWhat March Madness taught me about the archaeology job market
In the beginning, there are 64 teams. The NCAA selection committee ranks each team and creates four groups loosely based on regions of the country. Then, they play each other until only one remains....
View ArticleThe Number One Truth about Cultural Resource Management Reports
I have been lead author or primary contributor to over 60 cultural resource management archaeology reports. That’s not including reports where I wrote a historic background, artifact analysis, or...
View ArticleHow to identify open career niches in the cultural resource management industry
Cultural resource management companies don’t need archaeologists. They don’t. Think about it. Is archaeology the ONLY thing CRM archaeologists do for their companies? Do companies need employees that...
View ArticleThe shocking truth about a career in cultural resource management archaeology
“It’s not whether you get knocked down. It’s whether you get up.” Vince Lombardi It’s no secret most cultural resource management archaeologists give up. CRM is a hard field in which to build a career....
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