June 14, 2021
Last month, we shared about how the Washington, D.C. Society persevered in spite of the challenges associated with the pandemic to launch new initiatives during the 2021/2021 season. This month, we’re excited to shine a light on the work of the Orange County Society, who has carried on its full schedule of programming despite a difficult year.
Sophie Cripe, Vice President for the Orange County Society, tells us more about what they’ve been doing in southern California over the past year.
“In 2020-2021, the Orange County Society maintained an exciting series of virtual lectures despite the pandemic. In addition to our national lectures featuring Dr. Anne Austin and Dr. Sharyn Jones, we had other monthly speakers from around the U.S., including Dr. Daniel Schowalter speaking on Omrit in northern Israel, Dr. Connie Rodriguez speaking on Castle Craig in Scotland, and our two 2020 grant recipients, Genesis Torres Morales and Matthew Lobiondo.
In 2015, the Orange County Society launched a grant program to financially support southern California archaeology students in furthering their education and experience. Each year, the Society invites grant recipients to present lectures on their projects to share their research with the general public. This event is also an opportunity to raise funds for future grants. The Orange County Society funds one or more grants up to $2,000 every year. In the first six years of the program, we’ve distributed $24,000 to 13 worthy local graduate students. Grants awarded in 2021 were funded by generous donations from the Cripe and Seigle families of the Orange County Society. In 2021, the Society is looking forward to once again hosting our garden party fundraiser to raise money for the grants. The event is held in early fall and also serves as the kickoff for our fall lecture season.”
Bravo to the Orange County Society for consistently providing excellent archaeological programming!
Click here for more information regarding the Orange County Society grant program.
