Shannon Cowell

Shannon Cowell collaborates with Tribes to protect heritage places from looting and vandalism. In her role as the BIA Collaboration Director & Preservation Archaeologist, Shannon leads the nationwide implementation of the Bureau of Indian Affair’s (BIA) cooperative agreement with Archaeology Southwest to provide support to Tribes in responding to violations of the Archaeological Resources Protection Act (ARPA).

The ARPA Assistance Initiative is a collective of archaeologists and law enforcement allied with Tribes to protect ancestral and cultural heritage. This interdisciplinary team provides educational resources for practitioners and the public, hosts trainings on ARPA damage assessments and forensic methods, and helps restore damage from looting and vandalism at archaeological sites. More information can be found at SaveHistory.org and the ARPA Assistance Initiative’s Menu of Services.

Shannon began her career as a field archaeologist in 2008 and has worked on cultural resource management projects in 20 states throughout the Southwest, Pacific Northwest, Midwest, Plains, Subarctic, and Great Basin. She earned her master’s degree at New Mexico State University in 2018 and joined Archaeology Southwest in 2019. A commitment to working directly with Tribes to create culturally appropriate and sustainable solutions to looting and vandalism guides her work.