For a number of summers Southwestern Adventist University has been conducting a dinosaur excavation research project in the Lance Formation of eastern Wyoming. Early in the morning participants begin tedious, detailed work to excavate dinosaur bones while using cutting-edge technology to note the location of every bone and miscellaneous fragment. The bones found in this rich quarry come primarily from huge Edmontosaurus, a duck-billed dinosaur; massive Triceratops; Pachycephalosaurus, bone heads; Tyrannosaurus Rex; and other theropods. This is one of the largest and richest dinosaur quarries in the world.

The primary research thrust is to locate and carefully record the exact location of each bone, to excavate, and to stabilize each bone for transport to the lab for additional preservation. A number of techniques that have not been utilized before or in combination make this project a state-of-the-art research effort. High-precision GPS equipment is used to determine the location of each bone, GIS software helps to analyze and produce an integrated picture, and a web-based system catalogs each bone found so that the results may be available for researchers worldwide.

The Dino Dig Field Research Scholarship was established by friends of the Southwestern Dinosaur Project.

Scholarship award requirements

This scholarship is awarded to students who will be participating in the dig and taking the corresponding class.

Students Recipients 

2019-2020 -Amy Amigon, Andrew Elias, Caleb Hinde, Danylle Langley, Stephanie Molina, Allan Quear, Shelby Renee Spears 

2016-2017 -Xuexin Liu, Alyssa Pelto, Duong Phan, Jonathan Quinones, Jonathan Sister, Mark Streit, Benraimel Velazquez, Nathan Ward, Rebekah Wilson

2015-2016 - Joanna Hernandez, Sabrina Illingworth

2012-2013 - April Chisholm

2010-2011 - Darren LaMadrid, Karl Olson, Kaitlyn Stoddard, Sara Tenney