Anthropology student earns internship with Crow Canyon Archaeological Center

This summer, UAB Student Nick Long will complete an internship with the center’s archaeological laboratory, which hosts one the largest archaeological databases in the United States.

Nick Long StreamNick Long This summer, one University of Alabama at Birmingham College of Arts and Sciences student will have the unique opportunity to complete an internship with the Crow Canyon Archaeological Center.

Nick Long, a cultural heritage studies major within the UAB Department of Art and Art History, will complete an internship with the center’s archaeological laboratory, which hosts one of the largest archaeological databases in the United States.

“I hope to gain a better perspective on collections management within archaeology and develop my analytical methods and techniques within the archaeology lab at Crow Canyon,” Long said.

Long will be helping to analyze artifacts brought in from the field, along with teaching the public about archaeology. Not only will he be working with Crow Canyon’s collection, but he will also have the opportunity to work with other collections from different institutions in the area. 

“The Cultural Heritage Studies program here at UAB has given me the opportunity to work with professors who have helped me develop as a student and as an anthropologist,” Long said. “Dr. Cathleen Cummings, a professor in the Department of Art and Art History and the director of the CHS program, has been such a wonderful support for me while being here at UAB. Not only has she been a support, but she has also provided a broader perspective for me in the field of cultural heritage, and I believe that has helped me in making me a better anthropologist. I also have been so thankful to work with Dr. Lauren Downs in the Department of Anthropology. She has been so helpful with anything I have asked of her and has literally helped me since my first day here at UAB.”

He also credits Assistant Professor Jordan Kiper, Ph.D.

“Just like Dr. Cummings and Dr. Downs, Dr. Kiper has been a great support for me as a student,” he said. “While I am a student of anthropology, my focus is on archaeology. Dr. Kiper helped me to expand my knowledge of cultural anthropology, which is something I have always wanted, and has been beneficial to me as a student. These professors here at UAB have helped me so much in my academic career, and I hope to make them proud through this internship.”