Author Archives: Sarah Gesell

SAA Spotlight Award Nominations

Dear Colleagues,

The SAA Spotlight Award Subcommittee invites nominations for the 2018 Spotlight Award.  This award “recognizes the contributions of individuals who work for the good of the archives profession and of archival collections, and whose work would not typically receive public recognition.”  Nominees do not have to be members of SAA.  Please share this message as you think appropriate.  I hope you will consider recognizing a colleague (or yourself!) in this way.  Additional information about the criteria and process is found below.  

Purpose and Criteria for Selection: Established in 2005, the Spotlight Award recognizes the contributions of individuals who work for the good of the archives profession and of archival collections, and whose work would not typically receive public recognition. The nominee(s) should have achieved distinction in one or more of the following ways:

*   Participating in special projects.
*   Exhibiting tireless committee or advocacy work.
*   Responding effectively to an unforeseen or pressing need or emergency.
*   Contributing innovative or creative ideas to the profession.
*   Performing extraordinary volunteerism.
*   Quietly but effectively promoting the profession.

Eligibility:  Awarded to an individual archivist or a group of up to five archivists who have collaborated on a project. Preference is given to archivists working in smaller repositories, especially those without institutional support for professional activities.

Prize:  A certificate and complimentary registration for the individual recipient or group (of up to five individuals) to the SAA Annual Meeting occurring in the year in which the award is presented.

Submission Deadline and Nomination Form:  Deadline: February 28, 2018.  Please complete the nomination form (https://app.smarterselect.com/programs/45541-Society-Of-American-Archivists).

Best regards,

Jody Hoks
SAA Spotlight Award Subcommittee

Introduction to TARO Workshop

Registration is now open for this TARO full or half-day workshop hosted at Rice University on Monday, February 12, 2018.

This workshop will teach the hands-on basic skills needed to participate in TARO, including basic XML familiarity and editing, EAD familiarity, how to upload files to TARO, and troubleshooting. The full day is recommended for those with little or no TARO, EAD, or XML experience. The half-day (afternoon only) is recommended as a refresher for those who might feel rusty and/or have work environment changes which have changed their approach to TARO (such as using collection management software now instead of hand-encoding XML).

This workshop is open to anyone but is focused on TARO guidelines and workflows. This is not an intensive EAD course, which is offered as a two-day workshop by SAA (http://www2.archivists.org/profeducation/course-catalog/encoded-archival-description-ead3) or an intensive XML class, but will show the basics to get you started and share resources to help you once you return to your workplace.

Find out more and register: https://societyofsouthwestarchivists.wildapricot.org/event-2734149

Operation Photo Rescue

Help save flood-damaged family photos with Preservation Houston and Operation Photo Rescue

Volunteer shifts available 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, December 9 and 10

Sign up for a volunteer shift now

Preservation Houston needs your help reclaiming family photos that were casualties of Hurricane Harvey. PH is partnering in a special program with Operation Photo Rescue (OPR), a group of volunteer photographers, graphic designers and photo restorers who repair personal photographs that have been damaged by unforeseen circumstances. As OPR says, “Insurance doesn’t restore memories . . . but we do!”

Volunteers are needed for a variety of roles, including checking people in and helping them with the necessary paperwork, sorting damaged photos and assisting the volunteer photographers. Three-hour shifts are available beginning at 8:30 a.m. on Saturday, December 9, and Sunday, December 10. The event will be held at the Heights Clocktower, 611 West 22nd Street in the Heights. Volunteer online and indicate the shift(s) you can work and your preferred job. Volunteers must be able to work an entire three-hour shift.

During the Houston sessions, digital copies will be made of damaged photographs and the original photos will be returned immediately to the owner. The digital images will be sent to volunteer restorers around the United States who will repair, reprint and return the restored photographs at no cost to the people who own them.

Volunteers are needed to help in every step of the process. Photographers who would like to volunteer for the program should e-mail Preservation Houston with the subject line “Volunteer for OPR” or call (713) 510-3990 during regular business hours.

Appointments will be required to submit photos for restoration. Preservation Houston will send out an announcement when online registration opens. Because of the incredible number of photos damaged during Harvey and other recent disasters, OPR can accept a maximum of ten (10) photos per household.

Thank you for volunteering and helping recover family treasures. We look forward to working with you on December 9 and 10.

Personal Digital Archiving 2018 – Call for Proposals/Save the Date

Save the Date!
Personal Digital Archiving 2018 #pda18
April 23-25 2018 in Houston, TX

Hosted by the University of Houston Libraries

PDA is the only conference focused on the personal digital archive, including projects and presentations from both individuals and organizations. Personal Digital Archiving 2018 invites proposals on a variety of relevant topics, including:

  • Examples of successful projects or learning experiences related to personal digital archives
  • Why personal digital archives matter to individuals, communities, and organizations
  • Distinctions between personal information management and the archive
  • Key threats to personal digital archives, including cost, disaster, technology change, and social threats
  • Applying selection criteria or other management tools for personal digital archives
  • The digital archive during a person’s life and after death
  • Management tools and techniques for personal digital archives

PDA is a 2-day, single-track conference featuring shorter sessions and panel discussion, followed by a day of in-depth workshops and events. Early registration (opening soon) will be just $60 for students / $90 for non-students. More information about the conference will be posted at the event website as it becomes available.

Share & invite others on Facebook.

CALL FOR PROPOSALS

Deadline for submission of proposals: December 22, 2017

Notification of acceptance: Mid-January 2018

For PDA 2018, we seek to create a balanced mix of personal information management and personal digital archiving, in addition to a showcase for exciting and innovative projects and programs. We strongly encourage proposals from a wide-range of people and organizations. These may include but are not limited to: community organizations focused on gathering oral histories or other local collections, academia, graduate students of all levels in all related disciplines, those preserving familial material, activist groups, hobbyists, tool developers, and information professionals such as archivists, librarians, and curators. For proposals focusing on sharing practice, please note that we are not seeking “perfect” archiving solutions and strongly encourage proposals discussing “good enough” preservation and challenges or roadblocks to archiving this content.

Submit your proposal here

AHA! Holiday Party and Meeting 2017

AHA-holidaymeeting2017

The AHA! Holiday Party and Meeting will take place on Wednesday, December 13 at 6:00 pm at the McGovern Historical Center, 8272 El Rio St. Suite 190 Houston, TX 77054.

This year, we will host a round-robin style event for members to share current archival projects, recent accomplishment, or future plans.

AHA! will supply the main dish, drinks, and tableware for the party, but please feel free to bring your favorite side dish or dessert to share.

CALL FOR CANDIDATE NOMINATIONS!
Nominations (including self-nominations) are now being accepted for AHA! officers, incluiding Secretary, Treasurer, or Vice-President. Contact Emily Vinson with your nomination.

CANDIDATES, AGENDA, MINUTES
Check out the AHA 2018 Slate bios for the election (note that nominations are accepted up until the time of the election), the AHA_Winter2017_agenda, and the AHA_Summer2017_minutes_20170719 courtesy of AHA Secretary Lisa Cruces.

DUES!
Sandra Yates, AHA! Treasurer, will be collecting membership dues for next year (and beyond). Dues are $10 and can be paid by cash, check, or credit card ($1 convenience fee). If you can’t make it to the meeting, contact Sandra.

Archie Motley Memorial Scholarship Applications Solicited

Archie Motley Memorial Scholarship Applications Solicited

MAC is soliciting applications for the 2018 Archie Motley Memorial Scholarship for Minority Students (http://www.midwestarchives.org/motley). The scholarship is designed to provide financial assistance to minority students pursuing graduate education in archival administration and to encourage ethnic diversification of the MAC membership and of the archival profession as a whole. Two $750 scholarships, accompanied by one-year memberships to MAC, will be awarded.

In order to be eligible for a scholarship, the applicant must be of African, American Indian, Asian or Pacific Islander, or Latino decent; must be a student currently enrolled in or accepted in a graduate, multicourse program in archival administration; and must have a grade point average of at least 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale) in his or her academic program.

If the program is not listed in the SAA Directory of Archival Education, http://www2.archivists.org/dae, the applicant must provide proof of the multicourse standard by submitting copies of course descriptions from the institution’s current departmental catalog. Applicants are not required to be residents of or attend school in the MAC region.

Applications are due March 1, 2018 and must include the following documents:

Completed applications should be sent to:

Rachel Howard
Digital Initiatives Librarian
University of Louisville Libraries
Archives and Special Collections
Louisville, KY  40292
Telephone: 502-852-4476
Email: rachel.howard@louisville.edu

Applications must be emailed or postmarked by March 1, 2018.

Awards will be announced no later than June 1, 2018.

Call for AHA! Nominations

The AHA! nomination committee is accepting nominations (including self-nominations) for AHA! officers, including the positions of Secretary, Treasurer, and Vice-President (President-elect). This is a fantastic opportunity to help shape the future of AHA! and further its goal to develop and increase collaboration and communication across the Houston area. Furthermore, serving as an officer provides members with a valuable leadership experience.

All members of AHA! are eligible to run for an officer position, terms are one year. The election will take place at the December meeting (date forthcoming). Please submit all nominations to Emily Vinson, evinson@uh.edu

Please see below for pertinent bylaws related to officer responsibilities and elections, complete AHA! bylaws can be accessed on the AHA! website.

Article IV: Organization

  1. Officers
  2. Elected officers of the organization shall be the President, Vice-President (President-elect), Secretary, and Treasurer.
  3. Termof Office
  4. Each officer serves a one-year term of office starting after the elections at the December meeting.
  5. Should an officer other than the President be unable to complete their one-year term, a special election will be held at the next meeting to replace the officer for the duration of the term. Should the President have to leave office, the Vice-President will act as president until the end of the President’s term of office and the following year.
  6. Duties
  7. President coordinates the organization’s meetings; presides at all meetings and seeks members to serve on committees.
  8. Vice-President assumes the presidential duties in the absence of the President; maintains the membership rolls; and notifies all members of the meetings. The VicePresident coordinates Archives Month activities. The Vice-President also serves as co-signer for bank accounts and other assets of the association.
  9. Secretary takes minutes of all meetings of the organization and maintains a copy of the current by-laws.
  10. Treasureris custodian of all funds; receives all membership dues; and reports to the organization at meetings on the financial standing of the organization.
  11. Committees
  12. The President is authorized to establish special committees to work on projects.
  13. Webmaster and Hospitality are recurring committee positions. Committee members may be confirmed by the President.
  14. Committees shall report to the membership on their progress at each meeting.

Article V: Elections 

  1. Elections for Secretary, Treasurer, and Vice-President will be held every year at the December meeting.
  2. Nominations
  3. A nomination committee consisting of the acting President and at least two members of the organization will nominate members for office. Only members in good standing are eligible for nomination.
  4. Nominations can be made and seconded from the floor prior to the election of each officer.
  5. No person shall be elected to any office or named to any position of responsibility who is not present at the said election and who has not freely offered his or her name for the purpose.
  6. Voting shall be by secret ballot when there is more than one candidate for a particular office.
  7. Election shall be by a simple majority.

HMRC Event: How to Research a Historic Property

November 11, 2017   11am-1pm

The Houston Metropolitan Research Center’s Architectural Archivist will present on the basics of how to research a historic property.  This will include how to date buildings, find original residents, and which local organizations can help.

Highlighting HMRC’s value to building research, this event will also include an Architectural Orientation to the Texas Room to introduce the public to our collections and how to access them through the reference desk.

This program goes beyond our monthly Texas Room Orientation to focus primarily on HMRC’s architectural collections.  Customers will learn about architectural drawings, archival collections, books, and other materials that are useful in historic building research.

Parking is available under the Central Library building, with entry on Lamar Street.  For questions, please contact Samantha Bruer at samantha.bruer@houstontx.gov or 832-393-1376.

Preservation 101 Lecture

Library: Heights Neighborhood Library

Date: 10/26/2017

Room: Heights Library Meeting Room

Time: 6:30PM – 7:30PM

Type: Featured Event, Lecture, Workshops & Training

Age Group: adults, young adults ages 18-35 years, seniors

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Preservation 101 – The Houston Metropolitan Research Center invites you to join us in celebrating Archives Month 2017 with a Preservation 101 program at the Heights Neighborhood Library.  This talk will cover preservation fundamentals, how and why the library the preserves its collections, and give some ideas that might be useful in your own home. Learn best practices and tips for storage and handling of family documents and photos. This talk is part of a series of presentations put on by the Houston Metropolitan Research Center to celebrate Archives Month 2017.

http://houstonlibrary.org/learn-explore/library-events/hmrc-lecture-12

Preserving School Memories Lecture

HMRC Lecture

Library: Heights Neighborhood Library

Date: 10/19/2017

Room: Heights Library Meeting Room

Time: 6:30PM – 7:30PM

Type: Featured Event, Lecture, Workshops & Training

Age Group: adults, young adults ages 18-35 years, seniors

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Preserving School Memories: Storing and Maintaining School Memorabilia – The Houston Metropolitan Research Center invites you to participate in a program about preserving your memorabilia at the Heights Branch as a part of our Archives Month festivities. Memorabilia comes in many different forms – trophies, letterman jackets, ribbons, etc. –  and provides a unique challenge to preserve it for future generations. This program will discuss common types of school memorabilia and ways to preserve them. Examples will be shown from our school memorabilia collections. This talk is part of a series of presentations put on by the Houston Metropolitan Research Center to celebrate Archives Month 2017.

http://houstonlibrary.org/learn-explore/library-events/hmrc-lecture-11