The Society for American Archaeology (SAA) is pleased to announce the recipients of its 2025 awards, which will be bestowed on April 25, 2025, at the SAA 90th Annual Meeting in Denver, Colorado.

“The Society has a long tradition of acknowledging excellence in the field of archaeology through our awards, which pay tribute to those performing outstanding archaeological scholarship and research,” said SAA President Dan Sandweiss. “In addition to honoring highly trained and experienced archaeologists, SAA awards also identify up-and-coming leaders in the field. We are particularly pleased that this year’s Lifetime Achievement recipient is Joe Watkins, a past SAA president and only the second Native American SAA president.”

Dr. Watkins, a member of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, served as SAA president from 2019 to 2022. The only previous Native American SAA president was the SAA’s founder and first president, Arthur C. Clark. Dr. Watkins was selected because he has opened up the discipline for Indigenous archaeologists with accomplishments like beginning the SAA Native American Scholarships and “his tireless efforts to elevate both institutional and public images of archaeology as a profession, especially those in which Indigenous peoples globally are welcomed and respected as collaborators and beneficiaries.”

“To be recognized by my peers for an award of this magnitude is beyond belief,” Watkins said. “I am humbled and honored to have my contributions to the discipline considered to be on a similar level to those who have previously earned this award.”

SAA award recipients, such as for the Lifetime Achievement honor, are selected by dedicated and knowledgeable award committees made up of SAA member volunteers. 

 

2025 Society for American Archaeology Awards

The full award citations are available in the SAA 90th Annual Meeting Program.

Presidential Recognition Awards: Katherine L. Chiou, John G. Douglass, Sara L. Juengst, Daniel M. Perez, Christopher B. Rodning, Joshua M. Torres, Matthew Velasco

Gene S. Stuart Award: Brian Payton

2024 Archaeology Celebration Poster Contest Awards: 1st Place: Wyoming; 2nd Place: Maryland; 3rd Place: Arkansas

Dienje Kenyon Fellowship: Haylee Backs and Samantha Stephens

Fred Plog Memorial Fellowship: Jenny Ni
Paul Goldberg Award: Erin Mathison
Douglas C. Kellogg Fellowship for Geoarchaeological Research: Jordan J. Thompson
Ofer Bar-Yosef Scholarship for Advanced Doctoral Students in Old World Prehistory: Vasilije Marojević
Dissertation Award: Maria C. Codlin
Julie K. Stein Geoarchaeology Undergraduate Travel Award: Macayla Sauser
Charles Stanish SAA Annual Meeting Travel Award (El Premio Anual Charles Stanish para asistir a la Reunión Anual de la SAA): Mirtha Gomez-Saavedra
2025 H. and T. King Grant for Archaeology of the Ancient Americas: Rodrigo Loyola, Luis A. Muro Ynoñán, Alejandra Roche Recinos
Book Award: Scholarly: Jane Webster for Materializing the Middle Passage: A Historical Archeology of British Slave Shipping, 1680–1807 (Oxford University Press)
Book Award: Scholarly: Davide Zori for Age of Wolf and Wind: Voyages through the Viking World (Oxford University Press)
Book Award: Popular: Rachel Morgan for Sins of the Shovel: Looting, Murder & The Evolution of American Archaeology (University of Chicago Press)
Lifetime Achievement Award: Joe Edward Watkins
Award for Excellence in Archaeological Analysis: James Michael Adovasio
Award for Excellence in Latin American and Caribbean Archaeology: Barbara L. Stark
Award for Excellence in Curation and Collections Management: Amanda D. Roberts Thompson
Award for Excellence in Collections-Based Research and Education: Mark Warner and Ray von Wandruszka
Excellence in Public Archaeology Programming Award: Virginia Archaeological Technician Certification Program
Outstanding Public Archaeology Initiative Award: Chinese Railroad Workers Project, Terrace Utah (2018–2024)
Distinguished Achievement in Public Archaeology Award: Jeanne M. Moe
Binford Family Award for Teaching Scientific Reasoning in Archaeology: John Michael O’Shea
Crabtree Award: Daniel Stueber
Fryxell Award for Interdisciplinary Research: David J. Meltzer

Archaeologists Share What they Do

The Archiving the Archaeologists series is an oral history project of video interviews of archaeologists near retirement or already retired. Listen to real archaeologists reflect on their careers, how and why they became archaeologists, and their contributions to the discipline on the SAA YouTube channel.

Is the Past in Your Future?

Aimed at high school students, the Is the Past in Your Future?  [PDF 1.1 MB] brochure from the SAA provides brief information about a career in archaeology.

The National Historic Preservation Act

The National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) of 1966 is a federal law that protects archaeological resources in the United States. The What is the NPHA? [PDF 1.3 MB] fact-sheet from SAA helps explain the NHPA. It includes common misconceptions about the law and explains the Section 106 review process, which is particularly important to historic preservation.

Be an Archaeology Education Coordinator

If you are an SAA member interested in serving as your area's Archaeology Education Coordinator, please contact [email protected].

SAA Education and Outreach Awards

SAA gives out several archaeology education and outreach-related awards each year: the Distinguished Achievement in Public Archaeology Award, the Excellence in Public Archaeology Programming Award, the Outstanding Public Archaeology Initiative Award, the Binford Family Award for Teaching Scientific Reasoning in Archaeology, the Robert S. Peabody Institute of Archaeology Award for Archaeology And Education. Learn more about these awards, nominate a worthy individual or project, and view the past honorees!


Archaeology Education Newsletter Archive
1990-Present

SAA's archaeology education newsletter started as the Public Education Committee's print newsletter Archaeology & Public Education (A&PE). Running from 1990 to 1998, it featured news, events, and K-12 lesson plans aimed at expanding awareness of archaeology and heritage issues. It switched to a web format from 2000 to 2004. After a hiatus, it returned as Public Archaeology Notes (PAN) in 2016, managed by SAA's Archaeology Education Coordinators as a way to share news across regions.

Educational Videos

Looking for video content for your classroom? The SAA YouTube channel has short informational videos on a wide variety of topics, long-form interviews with archaeologists, and publicly-available online seminars.

State Archaeology Celebration Poster Contest

Does your state have an annual archaeology celebration? Submit a poster to the SAA State Archaeology Celebration Poster Contest! Learn more about the award and the submissions process.

SAA Committee on Repatriation

The Committee on Repatriation tracks national legislation, testifies at hearings when necessary, and represents SAA in discussions and negotiations on repatriation issues.

JOIN TODAY!

Join to lend your voice and your numbers to our efforts to ensure the archaeological record will exist for future generations.


Race, Inequality, and Decolonization

Please visit a selection of items on topics of race, inequality, and decolonization from The SAA Archaeological Record, Advances in Archaeological Practice, American Antiquity, and Latin American Antiquity.


Online Learning Archive

SAA members, log into the Member Center to access 30+ hours of free continuing education recordings. This is an exclusive member benefit.

Publicly-Available Recordings

Everyone can enjoy and learn from these events. See SAA's Continuing Education playlist on YouTube for publicly-available recordings of past lectures.

Have a Request?

The seminars we offer on-demand will change over time. If there is a past online seminar recording you'd like to view, please let us know at [email protected]. We can't guarantee that we can meet your request, but your input will help us make decisions about what to offer next.

Download the SAA Principles of Archaeological Ethics

In 1996, the SAA Executive Board adopted its Principles of Archaeological Ethics, and in 2016, membership voted to add a Principle No. 9. In 2018, the SAA Board created a series of task forces which culminated in a 2024 update to the Principles, which were adopted overwhelmingly by members on the January 2024 ballot. Download the most current SAA Principles of Archaeological Ethics [PDF 183 KB] to print or use for classrooms or training.