Bonnie L. Christensen

Mississippi Valley Archaeology Center, University of Wisconsin - La Crosse, 1725 State Street. La Crosse, WI 54601, 608-785-6473, christen.bonn@uwlax.edu

Description of past and current involvement in public education and outreach

I am a former precollegiate educator and currently the Director of Public Education at MVAC at UW-L.  In this role for the past 16 years, I have worked to involve the public of all ages, precollegiate teachers, and undergraduate students in the area of archaeology.  I have been involved in SAA PEC for the past 10+ years.  Originally my work for PEC was connected with precollegiate education and the resource forum.  For the past 6+ years I have been interested in building the awareness of professional archaeologists for public outreach through workshops/professional development.

Interest in PEC membership

Benefits anticipate receiving - involved with a network of professionals interested in public outreach I have 16 years of experience working in archaeology public outreach.  I am also a former precollegiate educator and I bring this perspective to my work in outreach.

Area of Interest: professional development for archaeologists related to public outreach

Target Audience:  I am interested in all audiences but I am particularly interested in professional archaeologists.

Allen Dart, RPA

Old Pueblo Archaeology Center, PO Box 40577, Tucson AZ 85717-0577, 520-798-1201, adart@oldpueblo.org

Description of past and current involvement in public outreach and education

I am the executive director of Tucson's Old Pueblo Archaeology Center, a not-for-profit corporation that provides outreach presentations for children and adults, opportunities for volunteers to participate in archaeological research, and exhibits and facilities for interpreting archaeology and history. Old Pueblo works closely with the public, schools, Native American groups, and other archaeological and historical organizations. I began working in archaeology in 1975 with the Museum of New Mexico (Santa Fe), and afterward worked for the Bureau of Indian Affairs (Albuquerque Area Office), the Arizona State Museum (University of Arizona), and the Institute for American Research/Center for Desert Archaeology/Desert Archaeology, Inc. (a Tucson association of nonprofit organizations and a for-profit consulting company) before founding Old Pueblo in 1994. At Old Pueblo I have helped develop a public archaeological field school and outreach programs, and a children's mock archaeological  dig education program that has been acknowledged as one of the best in the western U.S. (The mock dig program is only offered directly to entire school classes and other structured education groups.) I am also an adjunct faculty member with Tucson's Pima Community College for teaching noncredit classes and leading archaeology and history site tours, and am a contracted outreach speaker for the Arizona Humanities Council. My volunteer work has included developing educational and volunteer archaeology programs for the Arizona Archaeological and Historical Society, Arizona Archaeological Society, and the United Way, and service on the Arizona Archaeological Council's Archaeology for Educators Committee, the Archaeological Institute of America's Education Committee, and the Society for American Archaeology's Public Education Committee (PEC).

Interest in PEC Membership

Networking with others interested in public archaeology and archaeology education; keeping up with the field of archaeology education. My main reason for serving on the PEC (and the education committees of the Arizona Archaeological Council and the Archaeological Institute of America) is to help develop and evaluate archaeology and culture education programs for teachers, elementary and secondary students, and the general public. I can offer the PEC expertise in presenting archaeology to the public, teachers, and students; experience with how these audiences view archaeology and the degree to which they want to learn more about it and participate in research; review of archaeology education program materials and archaeological research documents for content and technical editing.

Area of interest: My major professional interests include public archaeology and history, archaeology in education, southwestern prehistory and history, and archaeologist-Native American relations.

Target audience: Teachers, elementary and secondary students, and the general public.