GSAR’s Education mission in 2023

In 2023 GSAR helped two interns gain acceptance into graduate programs. We would like to congratulate Brayden Voehkle and Katharine Febres. In our education and outreach work at the Gault site, we had over two hundred K-12 students take part in tours and over 500 people for public tours. Quite a few are repeat visitors, too. To see what the excitement is about schedule a visit with us! Last, we recently had the honor of hosting federally recognized tribes to the Gault site. It was a wonderful day of making connections and walking this special site together.

The archaeology performed here shows that this locality has always been a special place and made for a reliable, large residential setting throughout prehistory. We scientifically excavated abundant, clear evidence in good context, that shows near-continuous occupation for about the last 20,000 years. This site’s ancient human story extends into the last Glaciation and this is a paradigm shift in archaeological thought. Nonetheless, when you walk this place today, observe and reflect on the landscape, and understand what this landscape has provided for so long, it is easy to grasp the thread between place and people here. The Gault site is a significant place in the ancient human story of the Americas and we cannot thank Mike and Karen Collins and the Lindsey family enough for preserving this site for the public’s education and interest. Through those efforts, the spirit of conservation has been a part of GSAR from the start, beginning with this special place. I truly hope for those with possible blood ties to the ancient people that walked here and all those that may not, that we all feel part of the human story and can appreciate and respect all the effort that has gone into preserving the ancient heritage here, protecting the site, and improving our understandings about the ancient people that occupied this place across time. – Dr. Sergio Ayala