Plains Anthropological Society 2019 Distinguished Service Award John W. “Jack” Brink

Abstract

The Board of the Plains Anthropological Society is honored to recognize one of its longstanding members, John W. “Jack” Brink, with the 2019 Distinguished Service Award. Jack has been involved with archaeology of the Plains for nearly a half century. His earliest archaeological training was as an undergraduate at the University of Minnesota, from which he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology with Honors, followed by graduate studies at the University of Alberta. Here, he received a Master of Arts and pursued doctoral studies. In 2012 Jack was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Laws by Athabasca University in recognition of his contributions to the field of archaeology, specifically of pre-contact Alberta and the northern Great Plains. Over the years, Jack has filled integral roles with the Archaeological Survey of Alberta and Royal Alberta Museum (formerly the Provincial Museum of Alberta), where he most recently served as Curator of Archaeology. Jack’s research has added much to our knowledge of ancestral Native peoples of the Plains and archaeological study. He has authored, coauthored, and edited books, chapters, and articles distributed widely through Plains Anthropologist, Journal of Archaeological Science, American Antiquity, The SAA Archaeological Record, the International Newsletter on Rock Art, Lithic Technology, Canadian Journal of Archaeology, Alberta Archaeological Review, Occasional Papers of the Archaeological Survey of Alberta, Mercury Series of the Archaeological Survey of Canada, Arctic Anthropology, and Arctic, among others. His research explored a range of subjects that include prehistoric and protohistoric communal hunting techniques; rock art documentation, interpretation, and preservation; plains anthropologist, Vol. 65 No. 253, February 2020, 4–6