Submitted by Dennis Blanton
Good things are happening this spring in the Society for Georgia Archaeology—I hope that you can be a part of them all.
Annual Spring Meeting. You won’t want to miss our annual spring meeting featuring the Archaeology Month theme, Mounds in Our Midst. A roster of fine speakers will make presentations at Wesleyan College concerning prehistoric mound sites around the state. New findings as well as reconsideration of old discoveries will keep the program lively. Also, the ArchaeoBus will make its SGA debut at the Macon meeting, providing everyone a chance to take in our one-of-a-kind mobile education platform. And on Sunday, May 17, the National Park Service will treat us to a walking tour of the Lamar mound site in the Ocmulgee River floodplain, perhaps best known for its enigmatic spiral-ramped mound.
Speaking of Archaeology Month, prepare yourself to be impressed by the 2009 poster design highlighting Georgia mounds, not to mention the long list of special events offered around the state. Please note that the posters will be distributed only at the meeting—they will not be mailed. More information on the meeting and Archaeology Month is provided elsewhere in The Profile (see article here) and on the SGA website.
New SGA Website. The SGA website has undergone a major redesign in recent months and we expect it to go live before the spring meeting. More information about the site and its new features is provided elsewhere in The Profile (see article here), but I offer a couple of my own comments here. First, SGA owes Michael Shirk a huge debt of gratitude for the years of work he has devoted to development and maintenance of the current website. I am more aware than ever of what it takes to do what he has done so well. Second, this is your SGA website and it will flourish only with constant member input. Sammy Smith has worked wonders to make the new design real, but she and I issue an appeal—starting now— for your contributions of content. Reports on old and new research, chapter happenings, opinion pieces, photo collections, useful links, meetings and event calendars are all solicited from the membership. Together let’s make the SGA website the one-stop source for Georgia archaeology information.
The Profile. Make note: this paper issue of The Profile will be the last of its kind; hereafter the SGA newsletter will be distributed electronically. Larissa Thomas is supplying more on the details of the change (see notice here) that you will want to review carefully. This change has significant cost benefits for our society and also improves our overall efficiency.
Membership. Membership growth is a perennial goal of SGA, but we must also maintain the loyal base that has become the heart and soul of the society. Please renew your membership in 2009 if you haven’t done so yet. Also, I challenge each of our current members to bring a prospective new member to an upcoming event, perhaps the spring meeting, an Archaeology Month event, or a chapter meeting, and encourage them to join our ranks. That simple step alone could double our ranks.
Thanks so much for your continuing participation and support.
Posted online on Friday, March 13th, 2009