The Arizona Site Steward Program is an organization of volunteers, sponsored by the public land managers of Arizona, whose members are selected, trained and certified by the State Historic Preservation Office and the Governor's Archaeology Advisory Commission. The chief objective of the Steward Program is to report to the land managers destruction or vandalism of prehistoric and historic archaeological and paleontological sites in Arizona through site monitoring. Stewards are also active in public education and outreach activities.
 Purpose of the Steward Program
Site Stewards work toward the following goals:
- To preserve major prehistoric, historic and paleontological resources for the purposes of conservation, scientific study, and interpretation.
- To increase public awareness of the significance and value of cultural resources and the damage done by artifact
hunters.
- To discourage site vandalism and the sale and trade of antiquities.
- To support the adoption and enforcement of national, state, and local preservation laws and regulations.
- To support and encourage high standards of cultural resource investigation throughout the state.
- To promote better understanding and cooperation among agencies, organizations, and individuals concerned about the preservation of cultural resources.
- To enhance the completeness of the statewide archaeological and paleontological inventory.
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 Site Steward Training
Volunteer training involves 10 hours of classroom instruction and fieldwork. The training sessions include antiquity laws, crime scene management, site and feature identification, and map reading. The program seeks volunteers with strong interests in cultural resource conservation who like the outdoors.
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 Site Steward Opportunities
A Site Steward's primary role is to monitor archaeological and paleontological sites and report any vandalism to the land manager. Stewards make an important contribution to preserving our cultural heritage by working closely with Federal, State, County and Municipal agency archaeologists. The Site Steward Program is designed to meet the interests and skills of the volunteers. Additional opportunities may include:
- Acting as a liaison between local communities and the SHPO.
- Documenting archaeological and paleontological sites in danger of vandalism, destruction, or deterioration.
- Documenting/photographing sites not previously recorded.
- Monitoring construction activities to see if buried sites are exposed.
- Documenting private artifact collections.
- Assisting in activities such as surveys, mapping and rock art recording.
- Collecting oral histories.
- Presenting talks within communities regarding the Steward Program or preservation of heritage resources.
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| State and Federal antiquity laws prohibit damage to archaeological and paleontological sites. Help protect Arizona's irreplaceable cultural resources by becoming a Steward of the past. |
| To become a Site Steward, please fill out an Arizona Site Steward application (pdf) and send it to the Mary Estes at the address listed below. New for Arizona's Site Stewards, the Site Steward Quarterly Activity Log (pdf). Please print out this document, fill in the appropriate information, and mail to:
Mary EstesArizona State Parks1300 W. WashingtonPhoenix, AZ 85007
(Please place the appropriate codes checked below on your Activity Log report to SHPO under the vandalism column).
| Code# |
Code# |
| 1___New roads/ATV travel |
9___Artifacts removed (surface collecting) |
| 2___Potholes/looting |
10___Human remains uncovered |
| 3___Backhoe or bulldozer trenches |
11___Petroglyph thief (or attempted removal) |
| 4___Signs removed or used for targets |
12___Spray paint/paintball damage |
| 5___Rearranging of rock features |
13___Petroglyphs used for target shooting |
| 6___Sherds or other artifacts placed in piles |
14___Shrines or cairns built |
| 7___Fires made at sites or fire rings |
15___Erosion/Flood damage to site |
| 8___Unauthorized visitors at site |
16___Other (Please Specify)____________ |
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