Author Archives: Houston Archivist

AHA meeting – April 24 – Archives Digitization Presentation and Roundtable

Please join us for an AHA event in celebration of Preservation Week
Archives digitization presentation and roundtable
Tuesday, April 24, 6-8pm
Rice University, Fondren Library, Kyle Morrow Room

Representatives from University of Houston, Houston Public Library, and Rice University will each present a 10 minute overview of their digitization programs, and then invite open discussion and questions.
Other AHA members who are also engaged in digitization (or would like to be) are encouraged to attend and share their experiences as well. We hope to see you there!

Topics to covered in the overviews:
– what kinds of materials does the repository digitize?
– are they available online? where?
– if material is online, what platform and software are used?
– what is the workflow for such projects?
– how does preservation of these digital objects take place?
–  documentation / guidelines which can be shared
– digitization challenges and victories

Panelists include Roland Lemonius and Amber Seely from Houston Public Library, Valerie Prilop and Nicci Westbrook from the University of Houston, and Amanda Focke, Dara Flinn, and Monica Rivero from Rice University.

Great sessions at TLA!

Greetings all,
There are a number of programs at TLA’s Annual Conference related to Archives and Digital libraries. TLA is held in Houston this year, April 17th-April 20th. We would love to see you there!

Developing a Large-Scale Digital Archives through a Library Consortium
Tue, April 17, 2:00 pm – 3:50 pm
The West Texas Digital Archives, a customized open source repository, contains historical materials including images, text, and video. This program highlights the elements involved in this fruitful collaborative project including the development of content practices, building an online repository, and marketing and sustaining of the archive.
Digital Libraries Round Table (DLRT) business meeting follows the program.

Digitizing Local History: Partnerships and Possibilities
Thu, April 19, 10:00 am – 11:50 am
All history may be local, as some historians claim, but local history is often overlooked. Join academic and public librarians as they discuss their experiences digitizing local history materials during a multi-year training program. Learn what worked, what didn?t, and where you can go for help.
Archives, Genealogy and Local History Round Table business meeting follows the program.

Digitizing Historic Newspapers: What We’ve Learned
Thu, April 19, 1:00 pm – 1:50 pm
Libraries are the primary access points for local newspapers. Speakers outline the Texas Digital Newspaper Program, a partnership among libraries to digitize historical newspapers, and debunk a few myths about digitizing resources. Attendees will find out about resources to help them start and fund their own project.

Metadata Strategies for Getting Objects Online
Fri, April 20 8:00 am – 9:20 am
Does your digitization process always bottleneck at metadata? Do you have a lot of material scanned but a backlog of materials needing metadata? Learn tips and tricks from other librarians who have developed strategies to minimize and reduce the metadata backlog.

Contemporary Collecting: Is Your Archives Keeping up with the Latest Trends?
Fri, April 20, 10:00 am – 11:20 am
In our constantly changing society, archives and cultural institutions should consider collecting materials reflecting modern technologies, trends, and populations. Learn how to develop a selection policy allowing for the acquisition of contemporary materials and to anticipate issues regarding playback mechanisms, migration, and preservation of less common material types.

More information on TLA 2012 conference @ http://www.txla.org/annual-conference

kind regards,
Monica Rivero, DLRT Chair

Job posting: Houston Public Library, HMRC – Archivist I

Job posting: Archivist I, Houston Metropolitan Research Center, Houston Public Library

The Houston Metropolitan Research Center (HMRC) is one of the premier local history libraries in Texas that is dedicated to locating, preserving, and making available to researchers the documentary evidence of Houston’s history. With spectacular and gorgeous renovations, a new architectural wing added from the 1926 original building plans, and sophisticated climate and humidity controls to aide in preservation, HMRC and the Houston Public Library are seeking a creative, innovative, and highly customer service oriented Archivist to assist in researching, acquiring, cataloging, and preserving archival materials.

The Archivist will provide reference and retrieval services for the general public, provide information on library services, activities, facilities, and policies. Process and arrange collections in accordance with professional standards. Contribute to the management of unit records and collections to improve public access. May assist with implementation of the Houston Public Library’s Digitization Program. Participate in outreach efforts including tours and special programs. The Archivist may also assist with supervision of support staff, interns, and volunteers as well as perform other duties as assigned. Requires some evening and weekend work.

Minimum Educational Requirements:
Requires an ALA accredited Master’s degree in Library Science or a Master’s degree in History or another closely related field.

Minimum Experience Requirements:
No Experience is required.

For the complete job posting please visit http://bit.ly/AaCvJZ

Job posting: Houston Public Library, African American Library at the Gregory School, Archivist II

Job posting: Archivist II, African American Library at the Gregory School, Houston Public Library

The African American Library at the Gregory School is an archival and special collections library that is dedicated to documenting the community traditions and history of African Americans in Houston. The Houston Public Library system seeks a creative, innovative, knowledgeable, and highly customer service oriented Archivist II to assist the African American Library. The Archivist II assists in researching, acquiring, cataloging, and preserving archival materials. Provide reference and retrieval services for the general public. Provide information on library services, activities, facilities, and policies. Process, organize, and arrange collections in accordance with professional standards. Contribute to the management of unit records and collections to improve public access. May assist with implementation of the Houston Public Library’s Digitization Program. Participate in outreach efforts including tours and special programs. The Archivist II may also assist with supervision of support staff, interns, and volunteers as well as perform other duties as assigned. Requires some evening and weekend work.

Minimum Educational Requirements:
Requires an ALA accredited Master’s degree in Library Science or a Master’s degree in History or another closely related field.

Minimum Experience Requirements:
One year of experience in archival processing, collecting or research, historical research, library systems, or a closely related field is required.

For the complete job posting please visit http://bit.ly/GIU7NI

AHA meeting (March 22) postponed

Due to scheduling conflicts the March 22 AHA meeting and digital media roundtable discussion has been postponed (location and date TBA).

We’re still looking for participants to share information about digitization projects such as:

– what kinds of materials do you digitize?
– are they available online? where?
– if material is online, what platform / software do you use?
– what is your workflow for such projects?
– do you have documentation / guidelines you could share?
– what challenges have you had? what victories?

Also, do you have questions you would like to hear discussed?
Would you like to present on your own efforts?

Please contact Amanda Focke  – afocke@rice.edu or 713-348-2124

AHA Meeting & Digital Media Roundtable – March 22

Join us for the first AHA meeting of 2012 on Thursday, March 22 at 6 pm at Fondren Library, Rice University.

There will be a roundtable discussion about digital media including Woodson Research Center’s Amanda Focke and Dara Flinn, and Monica Rivero from Rice’s Digital Media Center.

Also, please mail your $10 dues to our treasurer:

Terry Brown
Treasurer, AHA!
872 Augusta Drive
Houston, TX 77057

Upcoming meetings:

Our summer meeting will be on July 12. Vindicator Publisher Carol Skewes will make a presentation on “Submitting News and Photos to the Texas Press.”  This will cover the proper ways to submit election news for publication and how to gain publicity for your archives (location TBA).

October is archives month with a dinner, meeting, and an outing and December 5 with be the date of the December Election Meeting and the famous, fabulous Christmas Party.  Terry Brown of the Houston Symphony Archives has been gracious again to offer to host this meeting.

Symposium: Houston Riot of 1917 and Military Justice Today

The The Fred Parks Law Library at the South Texas College of Law presents the symposium The Largest Murder Trail in American History: Exploring the Houston Riot of 1917 and Its Impact on Military Justice Today.

On August 23, 1917, African-American soldiers stationed at Camp Logan here in Houston rioted after one of their officers was assaulted and arrested by white police officers. The men were tried in three separate courts-martial which resulted in 110 men being found guilty, 19 of whom were executed.  The records are now online and can be found at http://cdm16035.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/landingpage/collection/p15568coll1

Date: March 23, 2012

Time: 8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Location: South Texas College of Law

CLE Credit:  6.75 Hours

Cost: $20 (Box Lunch Included)

Payment at the Door, Cash or Check Only, Please

R.S.V.P. by March 16th: http://www.stcl.edu/library/1917riot/rsvp.html

Homepage: http://www.stcl.edu/library/1917riot/index.html

Introductory Archive Workshop for Religious Communities – San Antonio

The Catholic Library Association is pleased to announce the fifth Introductory Archive Workshop for Religious Communities to be held at the Oblate Renewal Center, San Antonio, TX  from  June 24-29, 2012. The 5-day intensive program is directed toward individuals who are interested in learning about archival theory and practice or who wish to update their archival training.

Unlike other archival workshops, the sessions will focus on the unique types of records found in the archives of men’s and women’s religious communities. These records document not only the communities themselves, but also the evolution of Catholicism in the United States, and its impact on educational, social and charitable institutions that shaped the nation’s history.

The program, directed by professional religious archivists, will include lectures, tours, and opportunities for sharing experiences.

Complete program and registration information and a registration form are posted on the Catholic Library Association website at http://www.cathla.org/events/continuting-education/archives-workshop, or contact the CLA at cla2@cathla.org or phone 312-739-1776 or toll free 855-739-1776.

SAA Hamer Kegan Award

The Philip M. Hamer and Elizabeth Hamer Kegan Award Subcommittee of the Society of American Archivists seeks nominations for the 2012 award.

This award recognizes an archivist, editor, group of individuals, or institution that has increased public awareness of a specific body of documents through compilation, transcription, exhibition, or public presentation of archives or manuscript materials for educational, instructional, or other public purpose. Archives may include photographs, films, and visual archives. Publication may be in hard copy, microfilm, digital, or other circulating medium.

Recent winners include:

• 2011 University of Wisconsin—Milwaukee Libraries March On Milwaukee Civil Rights History Project Team

• 2010 The Giza Archives Project at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

• 2009 Ward M. Canaday Center for Special Collections of the University of Toledo’s “From Institution to Independence”

• 2008 Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and the CBC Digital Archives (Les Archives de Radio-Canada)

Eligibility:

Individual archivists and editors, groups of individuals, organizations.

Application Deadline:

All nominations shall be submitted to the Awards Committee by February 28.

Send nomination/application forms and supporting documentation to:

Hamer Kegan Award Subcommittee
Society of American Archivists
17 North State Street, Suite 1425
Chicago, Illinois 60602-3315

Electronic submissions also are acceptable and should be sent to saahq[at]archivists.org. Please indicate the name of the award or scholarship in the email subject line.  Use standard file applications such as Word, Excel, or Adobe; attachments should not exceed 5MB.

For more information on SAA awards and the nominations process, please go to http://www.archivists.org/recognition/index.asp