Oregon State University Archaeological Field School in Collaboration & Cultural Resource Management
Najaf Training Center | Summers 2026-2028
Oregon State University's archaeological field school offers intensive training in collaborative research methods and cultural resource management within the Willamette Valley, close to the Corvallis campus. This field school will prepare students for careers in archaeology, cultural resource management, Tribal historic and cultural preservation, environmental science, and related fields through hands-on experience with contemporary field methods and community-engaged research practices.
Field Methods & Technical Skills
Students will gain experience with a comprehensive range of archaeological field and laboratory methods:
- Archaeological survey techniques and site documentation
- Shovel probe and test excavation methods
- Ground-penetrating radar (GPR) and magnetometry applications
- Screen processing and artifact recovery techniques
- Paleoethnobotanical and geoarchaeological sampling protocols
- Screen processing and artifact recovery techniques
- Site evaluation for National Register of Historic Places eligibility and integrity
- Field documentation, photography, and mapping
- Laboratory processing and cataloging procedures
Professional Development & Collaborative Practice
The field school emphasizes skills essential for contemporary archaeological practice:
- Cultural resource management regulatory frameworks and compliance procedures
- Collaborative research and consultation protocols with descendant communities
- Community-engaged research methodologies
- Professional conduct and field ethics
- Technical report writing and documentation standards
- Communication with stakeholders including Tribal partners, descendent communities, state agencies, and federal agencies
- Mentorship and peer collaboration in field settings
Research Context
The field school investigates archaeological evidence spanning the Middle and Late Archaic periods (approximately 5,000 years) in the Soap Creek Valley of the Luckiamute River Basin. Our research project will focus on:
Indigenous Archaeology
- Seasonal mobility patterns and upland resource use by ancestral Kalapuyan peoples
- Cultural fire management and landscape stewardship practices
- Traditional food systems
- Lithic technology and ground stone assemblages
- Indigenous relationships with lands and places
Historic Archaeology
- Mid-19th century settler occupation and donation land claims
- Material culture and land use patterns in Soap Creek Valley
- Part of the broader Letitia Carson story
- Archival research and documentary analysis
- Intersection of archaeological and historical evidence
Program Details
|
Duration |
4 weeks: June 29-July 24 |
|
Location |
Najaf Training Center, former Camp Adair, Benton County, Oregon |
|
Credits |
6 credits of ANTH 438 (undergraduate) or ANTH 538 (graduate) (~$1800) |
|
Housing |
OSU campus housing or local accommodations |
|
Transportation |
Meet at TBD location and carpool via OSU van to Najaf Training Center, 20 minute drive from Corvallis |
|
Course Director |
Dr. Molly Carney, [email protected] |
|
Partner |
Oregon Military Department |
Scholarship funding: Limited scholarship support is available for students from Tribal nations and communities underrepresented in archaeology. Other forms of support can be found at:
- College of Liberal Arts Experiential Learning Scholarship
- Archaeological Institute of America: Jane C. Waldbaum Archaeological Field School Scholarship
- Society for American Archaeology Student Excellence in Archaeology Scholarship (SEAS)
- Society for Black Archaeologists Carrel Cowan-Ricks’ Scholarships
Application Information
Questions? See Frequently Asked Questions below. Contact Dr. Molly Carney [email protected] for additional information.
Frequently Asked Questions
Students must make their own necessary travel and accommodation arrangements. Students will be responsible for getting to a TBD location, and from there we will carpool via OSU van to Najaf Training Center, a 20 minute drive from Corvallis.
This course spans four weeks June 29-July 24 and will be taught in person at the OSU Corvallis Campus.
Field school participants will stay in OSU campus housing or can obtain other housing and commute from local communities. Summer 2024 room and board for students staying on the OSU campus for four weeks was $1400 for a double private room and $340 for a cafeteria meal plan.
No camping is allowed at the field site.
Our field school excavations will take place at the Najaf Training Center, which is 20 minutes north of Corvallis. While our setting is in a beautiful pastoral landscape, we will not be isolated.
Students register for ANTH 438 (6 credits) or ANTH 538 (6 credits). This course has no academic prerequisites, and all OSU and non-OSU students can apply and qualify for in-state tuition during the summer session. Because this is an accredited course, we do not take on volunteers.
Please review the list at http://liberalarts.oregonstate.edu/bring
The short answer to this question is: some, but not too much. The long answer is more telling, however. Although everyone mainly associates archaeology with the discovery of amazing artifacts, a successful field expedition is built on the establishment and maintenance of many logistical aspects that must be in place before anything else can happen. During the first day, we will do some basic site preparation to clear grass in our immediate work areas and will establish a safety fence around our workspace. We will unload and reload equipment (buckets, shovels, screens) each day from a truck. During the excavation, our physical labor demands are modest and are primarily limited to loading and unloading gear each morning and afternoon, digging with shovels and trowels, kneeling and standing while working, carrying buckets of sediment to the screens, and screening excavated sediments. In the last week of the field school, we’ll put special plastic crates into the excavation block, bury them, spread grass seed, and break down our fencing. Students generally have no problem with the labor required in the field. While some people are more physically capable than others, all we expect is that you work to the best of your abilities. Maintaining a safe and happy workplace is our main goal. Nearly everyone finds archaeology’s combination of physical and mental effort to be highly rewarding.
To be honest, no one ever asks this question; however, it’s an important topic that needs to be discussed up front. For nearly all students, the ability to participate in an archaeology field school at a great site, set in a beautiful and rugged environment is a grand adventure that they will remember fondly for the rest of their lives. These students focus on the task at hand—learning contemporary field methods and concepts in the pursuit of archaeological knowledge—and revel in the new experience of living and working well with others in a field setting. Although students of this type come from all corners of our nation (and sometimes from beyond), they all share similar traits: they are respectful of others, they are polite and patient in their interpersonal interactions, and they do not engage in offensive, disruptive or illegal behaviors while participating on the field school. To be clear as to what these behaviors entail and how sanctions may be applied read the Code of Conduct at this link: https://studentlife.oregonstate.edu/pre-student-conduct-community-standards
Students demonstrating significant behavioral problems at any time will be removed from the field school. Students performing illegal behaviors will be reported and turned over to local law enforcement agencies. Everyone deserves to work and learn in a productive, professional setting and the nature of our work demands a high level of performance from participants. Working at the Devils Kitchen site is a privilege, not a right. Because we are guests at Bullards Beach State Park and in the local community, your actions reflect upon our project and OSU as well.