The University of Michigan’s Kelsey Museum of Archaeology and Museum of Anthropological Archaeology are opening the Center for Community Archaeology and Heritage, designed to support community-engaged practice in archaeological and heritage research.
Located on the Ann Arbor campus, the center will serve as a hub for a variety of initiatives that blend archaeological research with local community involvement and take archaeology beyond the academy.
It aims to become an international leader for best practice in archaeology and heritage by promoting collaborative educational and research practices among archaeologists, historians, community groups and individuals interested in investigating and preserving cultural history.
“We are incredibly excited to launch this center, which will more widely share the knowledge and benefits from archaeological work and research on heritage,” said Geoff Emberling, the inaugural CCAH director and research scientist in the Kelsey Museum.
“Working collaboratively improves the results of archaeological research and the sustainability of heritage protection; it is also essential to the continued viability of archaeology at a time when many humanities disciplines are struggling to make the case for their continued relevance.”
In its initial phase, the center will offer a range of services, including:
- Support for faculty and students working on collaborative archaeological and heritage projects at U-M.
- Provision of freely accessible resources related to community-collaborative practices in archaeology and heritage projects.
- Funding for students to do community-based fieldwork and for fieldwork collaborators to come to campus for meetings, discussions and guest lectures.
- Events such asconferences every two years, with associated publications.
“What we’re proposing to do in the center isn’t new, but it has been seen as fringe until quite recently. We hope to become an intellectual and training hub for scholars looking to shift their research in this community-based direction,” said Tiffany Fryer, co-founder of the center and assistant professor of anthropology and assistant curator at UMMAA.
In the future, the center is expected to become a focus for teaching on heritage both in theoretical and practical applications; offer fellowships for graduate students, postdoctoral students and faculty to support research, writing, and practical implementation of collaborative projects; support training programs to local communities in which archaeological projects work; and advocate for and implement community-engaged cultural heritage projects within international development.
The center will work with existing resources at U-M such as the Ginsberg Center for Community Service and Learning and the Rackham Program in Public Scholarship.
The official opening of the center will take place March 14 with a wide-ranging conference, followed the next day by interactive activities, talks and visioning sessions. In-person and virtual attendance at the events requires advance registration.
