Cheshire Academy Student Makes National News for Remarkable Jurassic Discovery

Cheshire Academy senior Aidan Connor ’26 is making headlines across the country this week, with his paleontological discovery featured on Yahoo News and CT Insider. 

The 17-year-old from Southington captured national attention after discovering a 150-million-year-old Jurassic dinosaur bone on the first day of his Montana expedition this past summer – a remarkable find made possible by Cheshire Academy’s Rizzolo-Larson Venture Grant program. 

The story, originally published by CT Insider, was quickly picked up by Yahoo News, bringing Connor’s achievement to a national audience and putting a spotlight on the innovative work being done by Cheshire Academy students beyond the classroom. 

“I was very excited,” said Connor. “Not quite jumping for joy.” 

That calm demeanor belies the significance of Connor’s find. On the very first day of his week-long expedition with the Elevation Science Institute in late July, Connor discovered a finger bone approximately the size of his pinkie – a fossil that may have belonged to a small dinosaur or juvenile from the Jurassic period. 

The media attention highlights not only the significance of Connor’s find but also the quality of experiential learning opportunities available to Cheshire Academy students.  

The Power of the Venture Grant 

Connor’s Montana expedition was made possible through Cheshire Academy’s Rizzolo-Larson Venture Grant, a funding program that provides funding for students to pursue innovative projects and enhance their educational opportunities beyond the classroom.  

Over the years, the program has enabled CA students to study archaeology in Romania, architecture in Germany, and volunteer for dolphin rescue operations – among many other inspiring student adventures – and now, to contribute to paleontological research in the American West. 

For Connor, the grant opened doors to the Elevation Science Institute, an organization that gives teenagers the extraordinary opportunity to contribute to scientific research by helping uncover fossils that have been hidden for millions of years. 

A Week of Discovery and Delicate Work 

The dig site, located southeast of Red Lodge, Montana, proved to be a treasure trove of prehistoric specimens. Connor’s finger bone discovery took approximately an hour to excavate, requiring him to carefully remove the fossil along with about an inch of its surrounding material. Given its small size, the extraction was relatively quick compared to other procedures at the site. 

“It’s very nerve-wracking,” Connor reflected on the painstaking nature of paleontological fieldwork. “A lot of field work, especially paleontology, is trying your hardest not to break very important things.” 

After his initial discovery, Connor spent most of the remaining week “jacketing” two massive backbone fossils that had been previously excavated. 

About the Rizzolo-Larson Venture Grant

The Rizzolo-Larson Venture Grant at Cheshire Academy is designed to empower students to pursue their passions and gain real-world experience in their fields of interest. Grants are awarded to students with compelling proposals for educational experiences outside the traditional classroom setting.  

Recent Venture Grant projects have taken CA students around the globe and into diverse fields of study, from wildlife conservation in South Africa to humanitarian work in Bangladesh, from filmmaking in Chicago to archaeological expeditions in Eastern Europe.