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On August 16, 2023, the Santa Cruz Valley Heritage Alliance, Inc., which administers funding for the recently formed Santa Cruz Valley National Heritage Area, awarded the nonprofit Old Pueblo Archaeology Center a $2,000 grant to help fund Old Pueblo’s OPEN3 simulated archaeological excavation learning program for children.

Since 1997, Old Pueblo has helped whole classrooms of southern Arizona children learn about archaeology, Indigenous cultures, and the scientific me­thod by excavating “OPEN3,” a re-created Hohokam archae­o­logical site. For schools in which many students are from families who cannot afford to contribute to per-student charges to participate in the OPEN3 program, Old Pueblo provides classroom scholarships to cover some or all of the school’s fees. The classroom scholarships make it possible for many underserved students to learn the scientific method and professional ar­chaeological excavation tech­niques that facilitate interpreting how an­cient southern Arizona people lived.

Old Pueblo will utilize this $2,000 grant to cover some of our employee costs we incur to provide OPEN3 programs to schools that are within the Santa Cruz Valley National Heritage Area boundaries and that take advantage of our classroom scholarships.

To learn more about the Santa Cruz Valley National Heritage Area please click on the image above. For information about the OPEN3 program please Click Here.