The proposal to establish a Register of Professional Archaeologists (ROPA) is moving toward a vote this fall by the memberships of both the Society for American Archaeology (SAA) and the Society for Historical Archaeology (SHA). The Archaeological Institute of America (AIA) is scheduled to consider the proposal in December. ROPA is based on the existing structure of the Society of Professional Archeologists (SOPA) but would come into being as a new organization under the sponsorship of SAA and the other major archaeological organizations. The proposal has been endorsed by the SAA board as a way to promote professionalism in archaeology and to respond to growing concerns within the field about ethics, professional standards, and public accountability (cf. Lynott and Wylie 1995; Lipe and McGimsey 1995; McGimsey et al. 1995; Lipe 1996; Lipe and Redman 1996; Lipe and Kintigh 1997).
The ROPA concept was initiated at a joint meeting of the SAA and SOPA ethics committees in 1994, and the present proposal was developed by an SAA-SHA-AIA task force (see below). SAA sponsored an open forum to discuss the formation of ROPA at the 1996 Annual Meeting in New Orleans, and the boards of SAA, SHA, and SOPA subsequently agreed to put it to a vote of their members. SOPA voted in favor of the proposal this past fall (Lipe and Kintigh 1997). If the members of both SAA and SHA approve it in the coming balloting, ROPA will be established and SOPA will become inactive.
Becoming a registered professional archaeologist (RPA) would be voluntary, but if ROPA is established, the sponsoring societies will encourage their professional members to join. To become an RPA, an archaeologist will have to meet basic standards of training and experience and will agree to abide by ROPA's explicit code of ethics and standards of research performance. Registered archaeologists will also agree to participate in a peer-administered grievance process should their professional work or behavior receive a credible challenge. This is a central feature of ROPA--having a mechanism for the enforcement of standards and ethics. The major archaeological societies currently have ethical codes, but no mechanisms for enforcing them. Initially, the ROPA code of ethics, standards, and grievance procedures would be those currently maintained by SOPA.
In American society, numerous occupations have developed ways of publicly documenting their members' rights to be called professionals and of holding those members to account for a professional level of ethical behavior and job performance. Examples include not only medicine, law, engineering, and accounting, but numerous research and managerial specialties, as well as a number of trades. In general, public certification of professionalism develops in fields where there needs to be public confidence in the practitioner's ability to perform independently, with a high level of skill, and without taking unfair advantage of the public trust. Mechanisms for ensuring public confidence include in some cases rigorous qualifying exams and quasijudicial grievance procedures. As archaeology has increasingly come to serve legally mandated public policies, and as public interest in archaeology has grown, an increasing need has been recognized for the field of archaeology to develop and promote professional standards and measures to ensure public accountability.
The SOPA approach, which will become the starting point for ROPA, has been developed to fit the field of archaeology. It does not assume a rigid, one-size-fits-all type of training, and does not require an examination for registration. Rather, it is designed to recognize those archaeologists who have crossed a basic threshold of training and experience, and who have publicly declared themselves accountable to basic standards of ethics and research performance. It is a system designed to build a solid foundation for archaeological professionalism. If a sufficient number of archaeologists become registered, they can be extremely effective in promoting ethical use of the archaeological record and in increasing public confidence that archaeology is a professional field with high standards. By jointly sponsoring ROPA, the major archaeological societies can take a major step to establish and enforce basic expectations for ethical and professional performance in the field. Each of these societies serves a number of interests and has a broad base of membership including nonprofessionals and students, as well as professionals; hence their missions extend well beyond issues of professionalism. Sponsorship of ROPA will enable these societies to focus and implement those aspects of their missions that deal specifically with ethics, standards, and professional accountability. The alternative would be to create differing certification programs within each society.
Additional background information on the development of the ROPA proposal is provided in the citations below. The article by McGimsey et al. (1995) also includes a copy of the current SOPA Code of Ethics, Standards of Research Performance, and Outline of Grievance Procedures. This information can also be found on the SAA web site (http://www.saa.org/News/ropa_proposal.html). The SOPA web site (http://www.smu.edu/~anthrop/sopa.html) presents additional information about SOPA and also includes the Code of Ethics and Standards of Research Performance. Questions about the ROPA proposal can be directed by email to Bill Lipe at lipe@wsu.edu or to Keith Kintigh at kintigh@asu.edu.
References
Lipe, Bill
1996 Open Forum on ROPA. SAA Bulletin 14(2):2.
Lipe, Bill, and Keith Kintigh
1997 SOPA Vote Favors ROPA Proposal. SAA Bulletin 15(2):20.
Lipe, Bill, and Chuck Redman
1996 Conference on "Renewing Our National Archaeological Program." SAA
Bulletin 14(4):14-20.
Lipe, William D., and Charles R. McGimsey III
1995 Should SOPA Become ROPA? SAA Bulletin 13(2):2, 18.
Lynott, Mark, and Alison Wylie (editors)
1995 Ethics in American Archaeology: Challenges for the 1990s. Society
for American Archaeology, Washington, D.C.
McGimsey, Charles R. III, Bill Lipe, and Donna Seifert
1995 SAA, SHA, SOPA, AIA Discuss Register of Professional Archaeologists.
SAA Bulletin 13(3):6-9, 14-15.
Question: Why the name change from Society of Professional
Archeologists (SOPA) to Register of Professional Archaeologists (ROPA)?
Answer: ROPA will be a new organization that will not provide a
full range of services to a broadly defined membership (as do SAA, SHA, and
AIA) but will serve an explicitly defined group of professionals and the
profession of archaeology. The name makes it clear that the organization will
not test (i.e., certify) its members but will list (i.e., register) those
individuals who have obtained full professional status and who have agreed to
be held publicly accountable to a code of ethics and to standards of
performance with regard to their professional activities. Finally, registering
rather than certifying its members ensures that they become Registered
Professional Archaeologists (RPAs) rather than Certified Professional
Archaeologists. Perhaps the world already has enough CPAs!
Question: Would an RPA be required to joined the SAA, AIA, and/or
SHA?
Answer: No, but application fees and annual registration fees
would be higher for RPAs who were not members of any of the sponsoring
organizations. It can be expected that the great majority of RPAs would be
members of one or more of the sponsoring societies.
Question: Would a member of the SAA, AIA, or SHA with
professional qualifications be required to join ROPA?
Answer: No, but she/he would be strongly encouraged to do so by
the leadership of those societies.
Question: How would this plan benefit archaeology as a
discipline?
Answer: It would enhance archaeology's image as a true profession
to the extent that ROPA's unified code and standards are accepted by a majority
of professional practitioners. Professional credibility would also be enhanced
because RPAs will have pledged to be held publicly accountable for any failure
to comply with the code or standards.
Question: Why should an academic or a government archaeologist
with institutional job security want to become an RPA?
Answer: All archaeologists are equal partners in their
responsibility to act as stewards of the resource base, conduct archaeological
research in an ethical manner, and behave responsibly toward archaeology's
several publics. If a majority of archaeological practitioners--whatever their
work environment--accept and become accountable to principles of professional
ethics and standards, it will be much easier for the profession of archaeology
to act against unacceptable behavior within its own ranks and to make the case
to the public against destruction of the archaeological record and trafficking
in looted antiquities.
Question: Would SOPA cease to exist?
Answer: In order to enhance the effectiveness of ROPA, SOPA would
become dormant (see Section D, "Transition" in the proposal). ROPA would be
created as a separate not-for-profit organization with a structure similar to
SOPA but with a somewhat different make-up of the board of directors. ROPA
would serve the profession in much the same way that SOPA does now--by
evaluating the qualifications of applicants, promulgating a code of ethics and
standards of research performance, and conducting grievance proceedings.
Question: Would the sponsoring organizations (SAA, SHA, and AIA)
control ROPA?
Answer: No. ROPA would have its own board, and none of the
sponsoring societies would have a controlling voice in it. Because each
sponsoring society would provide financial and moral support to ROPA, however,
each would be represented on the ROPA board. The three officers of ROPA would
be elected directly by the RPAs. All board members, whether elected at-large by
the RPAs or representing the sponsoring societies, would themselves have to be
RPAs.
Question: Would SOPA's standards be reduced or compromised?
Answer: No. The ROPA board of directors would continue to have
responsibility for the code, standards, and grievance procedures. While it is
anticipated that there would be future changes to reflect the concerns of a
broader constituency (e.g., archaeologists working outside the U.S.,
archaeologists whose primary data source is collections rather than fieldwork),
there is no reason to doubt that the integrity of the code, standards, and
grievance procedures would be protected and retained.
Question: Would there be substantial risk to the sponsoring
societies of financial liability resulting from ROPA-related lawsuits?
Answer: ROPA will be a separate organization and will be set up
in such a way that a "firewall" will be maintained between it and SAA. SAA's
existing bylaws authorize the development of formal relationships with other
organizations, and the Council of Affiliated Societies has operated for some
years under a type of SAA sponsorship. Legal counsel has expressed the opinion
that there is little chance that a lawsuit against a sponsoring organization
that stemmed from ROPA actions would succeed, even though total immunity can
never be guaranteed. Low-cost liability insurance, like that now carried by
SOPA, is available to cover claims that might be assessed against a sponsoring
organization. SOPA's 20 years of experience without any such suit being brought
attests to the fairness and viability of its grievance procedures.
Question: Is there any guarantee that an RPA would always perform
to the full satisfaction of employers, granting agencies, and professional
colleagues?
Answer: Of course not--no more than that a fully qualified,
experienced physician will always make an accurate diagnosis or that a licensed
barber will always give her/his clients a satisfactory haircut. However, should
any member's performance violate the code and/or standards, a grievance may be
filed against that individual by anyone, member or nonmember alike, and the RPA
charged will voluntarily submit to the grievance process.
Question: What is to prevent the ROPA grievance process from
being used to pursue trivial complaints or personal vendettas?
Answer: The grievance process would be a multistage one, which
would start with inquiries and fact-finding by a grievance officer, who would
have the authority not to proceed with a grievance, should the officer
determine the grievance was groundless based on private, initial inquiries
(usually by telephone). SOPA's experience is that this outcome is not uncommon
and seems to be effective in eliminating frivolous grievances without a
substantial impact on the accused party. The grievance process would continue
to be modeled on the one successfully developed and implemented by SOPA over a
period of more than 20 years. SOPA's experience has been that only the most
serious and well-founded complaints move through the full process.
Question: Will ROPA actively seek out cases of possible
misbehavior to investigate?
Answer: No. The grievance process is triggered only by a
complaint, and as noted above, there would have to be clear evidence that a
serious issue was involved before the challenged RPA would be asked to appear
before a hearings board.
Question: How would this benefit individual archaeologists?
Answer: Individuals will be publicly identified as professionals
by virtue of having met ROPA standards of training and experience and of having
agreed to abide by a code of professional ethics and standards of performance.
Such public identification as a professional may assist in employment and
career advancement. For all archaeologists, including those in secure
positions, there are both practical and philosophical benefits in identifying
with a major effort to ensure professionalism in the use of the archaeological
resource base. As archaeologists, each of us is often both the first and the
final "steward of the past." If each of us does not accept full public
accountability for our actions with respect to the archaeological record, how
can we expect others to act in a responsible manner?
Question: Have existing SOPA standards been effective outside
that organization?
Answer: A number of public agencies have modeled their
requirements for archaeological training and experience on SOPA's standards,
and SOPA's code of ethics and standards of research performance have been
widely cited as examples of basic principles for archaeological
professionalism. With sponsorship by the major archaeological organizations and
a greatly increased membership, it can be expected that ROPA will be even more
effective in promoting a general understanding and acceptance of what it means
to be a professional archaeologist.
Question: I know a certain archaeologist who is a member of SOPA,
and, in my opinion, this person is not a good archaeologist. In that case, why
should I believe that the transformation of SOPA into ROPA will do anything to
increase the level of professionalism in American archaeology?
Answer: The existence of a grievance procedure will give
archaeologists a chance to actually do something about violations of
basic ethical and professional standards, instead of just complaining to each
other. In fact, if you believed a Registered Professional Archaeologist had
seriously violated basic standards, it would be your responsibility to bring it
to the attention of the grievance officer, whether you are an RPA or not. You
must keep in mind, however, that both SOPA and its proposed successor, ROPA,
are designed to establish and enforce minimal basic requirements of
archaeological qualifications, ethics, and performance. The process is not
primarily designed to identify and reward excellence, as desirable as that
might be; it is designed to define what is minimally required for someone to be
called a professional archaeologist. A core concept is that individuals who
become registered have publicly declared that they will be held accountable
through the grievance process should their qualifications, ethics, or
research performance be challenged. This is what will give the register its
moral force for defining professionalism both within archaeology and to the
general public. All archaeologists have a stake in establishing and maintaining
these standards of ethical and professional behavior.
Question: How will ROPA impact CRM firms?
Answer: Registration will be the responsibility of the individual
archaeologist. RPAs in consulting firms will be responsible for the quality of
the field and laboratory work conducted under their supervision.
Question: Can we expect future modifications in the code of
ethics and performance standards?
Answer: Undoubtedly. With the inclusion of more archaeologists
and diverse interests, the ROPA board will certainly wish to consider
promulgating new standards to better address various levels of field
experience, work in foreign lands, and issues not addressed in the initial
proposal.
Question: What will happen if ROPA is not formed?
Answer: SOPA will continue to exist. If SAA wishes to promulgate
an enforceable code of ethics and performance standards without ROPA, it could
do this independently but with a reduced scope and larger startup and operating
costs (because SHA and AIA would not be cosponsors). By developing different
sets of ethical codes and standards (and the organizations involved could go in
this direction), we create confusion for government officials, the public, and,
potentially, ourselves.
Question: Will the formation of ROPA lead to the development of
state licensing of archaeologists?
Answer: Interest in licensing has been expressed in some states
and by some segments of the archaeological profession. Licensing is common in
many professions and trades that serve the public. Moves toward state licensing
would have to originate at the state level, and such licensing would be
controlled by state governments or state commissions appointed by state
government. If ROPA is formed, it will be positioned to have input into state
licensing and to provide a national model for the types of training and
performance standards that should be required by states that choose to pursue
the development of licensing programs for archaeologists.
Question: Will ROPA become a drain on the SAA budget and hence
affect SAA's ability to carry out other programs of benefit to its members?
Answer: Sponsorship of ROPA will require an initial
allocation of $7,500 by SAA to help fund start-up costs, and an annual
contribution to ROPA of $5,000. The annual contribution cannot be raised
without the consent of the SAA board. To the extent that ROPA sponsorship could
result in increased membership in SAA, some of these costs will be offset. The
annual contribution to ROPA will represent only half of one percent of SAA's
total operating budget and is sustainable within that budget. The SAA board
supports ROPA sponsorship because it will help further basic SAA goals in a
timely, cost-efficient manner.
Question: I finished my degree years ago and hear that it is very
difficult to put together the information needed to become SOPA member. Will
this remain a problem in applying for RPA status.
Answer: Over the past several years, SOPA has simplified its
application process, and the ROPA board can be expected to continue to make the
process as user friendly as possible. On the other hand, it will remain
essential that basic levels of training and experience be credibly documented
(see section 2, "Application and Registration") in the proposal.
Question: Why do both SAA and SHA need to approve ROPA for it to
proceed?
Answer: Having multiple sponsors is necessary to make the
organization economically viable and to support an initial drive for new
applications. It also makes sense for both SAA and SHA to be sponsors, given
that a significant number of professionals belong to only SAA or SHA. ROPA must
be broad based to succeed.
Question: I am all for archaeological ethics and would be willing
to support ROPA financially to enhance ethical behavior in the profession.
However, I cannot see exposing myself to a large financial and legal liability
over a frivolous grievance.
Answer: As noted above, every effort is made to screen out
grievances that do not appear to have a solid basis. ROPA would not levy fines
as a penalty. It depends on moral force as a sanction; the worst outcome of a
grievance case would be that an individual's registration would be publicly
revoked. As in many other professions, the grievance process is conducted by
peers rather than lawyers. The grievance process operates within rules that
ensure fair treatment and orderly consideration of evidence.
Question: Can ROPA really make a difference?
Answer: Yes, if a sufficient number of archaeologists
participate, so that registration becomes an expectation both for current
members of the profession and for the students who are studying to enter the
profession. If a "critical mass" of archaeologists becomes registered, it will
be much easier for the profession to police itself. Furthermore, archaeologists
will have much more credibility when they tell the public that responsible use
of the archaeological record requires a basic level of training and adherence
to appropriate standards.
Bill Lipe is the retiring president of SAA and Keith Kintigh is the retiring secretary of SAA.