Category Archives: Announcements

Announcement: Sam Houston Regional Library and Research Center: Family History Day

The Sam Houston Regional Library and Research Center in Liberty presents a free workshop on Saturday, April 18, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. on tracing your family lineage back to the era of the American Revolution in 1776. Guest speakers from the Texas Society DAR and Texas State Library and Archives Commission will discuss the resources they offer to help me and women uncover overlooked patriots. This program is free and open to the public.

Registration required at samhoustoncenter@tsl.texas.gov or 936-336-8821.

For more information visit this link.

Event: Spring Members Meeting

We invite all AHA! members and friends to attend our spring members meeting next Wednesday, April 1, 2026 at 12:00 p.m. CDT. AHA! board members will share updates on ongoing initiatives and upcoming programming. AHA! members will also have the opportunity to vote in a special election for a new AHA! Vice President. Finally, we are excited to welcome Miguell Ceasar, Division Manager of Special Collections at the Houston Public Library, as our guest speaker!

At HPL, Miguell oversees four key collections: the African American History Research Center, Hispanic History Research Center, Houston History Research Center, and Family History Research Center. With 21 years of experience in archives and libraries, he is dedicated to preserving Houston’s diverse histories through a variety of materials, including books, photographs, and oral histories.

A significant aspect of Miguell’s role involves leading digitization efforts to enhance accessibility and preservation. He also ensures the preservation of historic buildings and archival storage, implementing tailored measures for various formats. In addition to his management duties, he regularly presents to stakeholders, including executive leaders and City Council Members, showcasing recent acquisitions and the ongoing needs of the collections. Miguell holds a Bachelor’s in Business Administration, a Master of Community Development from Prairie View A&M University, and a Master of Library Science & Information from Texas Woman’s University.

During our meeting, Miguell will present on his experiences with community-centered archival approaches and the post-custodial model within Houston’s Black community.

We hope you’ll make plans to join us and look forward to seeing you online!

Meeting Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88363665225?pwd=xRw1ZqbbPydMcRNIpQfXu8pKhrOiYa.1
Meeting ID: 883 6366 5225 Passcode: 555475

Announcement: Old Weird Houston Raffle!

Old Weird Houston is only a week away and we are excited to share that we will be having a raffle! Donate $5 or more and get an AHA! Zine plus a FREE raffle entry! Raffle prizes include: a $100 Phoenicia Gift Card, an Astros backpack, a MFAH art book, weird cat cards, Cruiser Coffee, Archival Starter Kit!! Raffle entries will run from 12-3PM and drawings begin 3PM. Cash needed to participate! Additional pictures of the prizes are below!

Event: UH Center for Public History- Fleshing the Archive a talk by Dr. Maria Cotera 2/25 at 2pm

Join UH’s Center for Public History for Fleshing the Archive: An Intimate Genealogy of Chicana Knowledge Praxis a talk by Dr. Maria Cotera (UT, Austin) on preserving Chicana feminist knowledge of the 1970s and memory work.

Where: Student Center South, Space City Room- 4555 University Drive, Houston, Texas 77204

You can register for the event here

Announcement: Old Weird Houston 2026 Musical Headliner

It is officially one month until AHA! gets weird at #OldWeirdHouston! We’re excited to share that Houston’s own Rock Romano will be our headlining musical act! Rock Romano is a multi-hyphenate artist, guitarist, bassist, record producer, and audio engineer. As owner of Red Shack Recording Studio in the Heights, Rock has helped cultivate the Houston music scene for nearly 40 years.

Join us at The Orange Show for Visionary Art Headquarters, 2334 Gulf Terminal, on Saturday, March 21, from 12:00 PM to 5:00 PM. The afternoon will feature engaging lectures, live music, food, and a steady flow of history-hungry visitors from across the city.

There is still time to sign up to be a volunteer, vendor, or sponsor! Fill out our participation form to let us know how you want to help. See you there!

Announcement: SAA Workshop- Project Management: Fundamental and Advanced

The Texas Historical Records Advisory Board (THRAB) invites applications for free registration to attend the two-day, in-person workshop Project Management: Fundamental and Advanced from the Society of American Archivists (SAA) on April 13-14. This workshop will be held at the Lorenzo de Zavala State Archives and Library Building in Austin from 9:00a.m. – 5:00p.m. each day. THRAB will provide free registration for the course only. Travel, meals, parking, and lodging are the responsibility of the participants. Please note this workshop was previously announced with March dates and has been rescheduled. Anyone who has already applied will be kept on the list. No need to reapply.

Form to apply: https://forms.office.com/r/9NfbkaRryg

Deadline to apply: March 13, 2026

Professional Opportunity: 2026 BitCurator Forum

The BitCurator Consortium (BCC) invites proposals for the 2026 BitCurator Forum to be held virtually on June 17th, 2026.

The 2026 conference theme, Hitting Reset, reflects the challenges and changes of the past several years and the importance of pausing to reflect on our practices before moving forward. This theme invites us to reassess how we work, what we prioritize, and how we adapt in a rapidly evolving professional landscape. Hitting Reset also encourages us to respond intentionally to new opportunities, expanding responsibilities, and changing environments. Within the context of digital archives tools and practices, how are you “hitting reset” in areas including, but not limited to, the following:

Human-centered practices
Budgeting and resource allocation
Organizational responsibilities and obligations
Digital forensics and data recovery or rescue
Sustainability of digital preservation practices in an AI-driven world

We welcome proposals that explore reflection, reinvention, and practical approaches to moving forward with intention.

This year’s call is for 5 or 10 minute “lightning talks.” Lightning talks are a great format for case studies, digital archives “success stories” or “tales of woe,” research updates, practices and procedures, and short demos or how-tos. Options include:

One presenter for 5 minutes
Up to two presenters for 10 minutes

The Forum Committee welcomes participation from organizations and individuals working outside of academic and special collections libraries and archives, members from BIPOC communities, students, and new professionals. For more information, see the Call for Proposals page on our website.

Submission deadline: Sunday, March 8th, 2026

The BitCurator Forum is open to all. You do not need to be a BCC member or BitCurator user to submit a proposal and/or attend the event.

BitCurator Consortium

BitCurator Forum 2026

Event: 2026 NACCS Tejas Foco Annual Conference

The NACCS (The National Association for Chicana and Chicano Studies) Tejas Foco is a regional conference that attends to community and academic interests around issues that affect Chicanx in the state of Texas. It is an interdisciplinary conference that brings together community leaders, Kl 2 teachers, undergraduate and graduate students, and college faculty and staff. The participants who attend the NACCS Tejas Foco not only reflect the racial/ethnic diversity of Texas, but they also represent multiple rural and urban points from across the state. The NACCS Tejas Foco provides college and K-12 administrators, faculty, and students to connect with outstanding faculty and community leaders from across the state.

You can find more information and register here.

Announcement: Old Weird Houston 3/21 from 12:00-5:00 pm

We are excited to invite you to participate in the 3rd iteration of Old, Weird, Houston, a one-of-a-kind local history fair celebrating the people, places, stories, and archives that make Houston so Houston.

The event will take place at The Orange Show Headquarters, 2334 Gulf Terminal, on Saturday, March 21, from 12:00 PM to 5:00 PM. The afternoon will feature engaging lectures, live music, food, and a steady flow of history-hungry visitors from across the city.

We are currently accepting tabling participants from museums, archives, historical organizations, collectors, researchers, artists, and anyone working to preserve and share Houston’s past. We also need volunteers for our welcome booth, oral history station, and more. Please fill out our participation form if you are able to table and/or volunteer at the event

Table Information:

Members of the Archivists of the Houston Area (AHA!) may reserve a table free of charge
Non members: $50 for one 8 ft table

All proceeds directly support scholarships for the Archivists of the Houston Area and ongoing preservation efforts at the Orange Show Center for Visionary Art.

If you are interested in participating or would like additional details, we would love to hear from you. Space is limited, and tables are reserved on a first come basis.Thank you for helping us keep Houston’s history vibrant and alive!

Krista M. Hollis

Chair, AHA! Programming Committee

Reminder: End of Year Potluck and Tour

Please join us for the End of Year Potluck and Tour!

We will be hosting our final event of 2025 at the Moore Memorial Public Library. Join us as we tour the historically beautiful library with a potluck afterwards. Bring your Drivers License to get a library card! You are also welcome to bring $10 for annual membership dues.

Date: Saturday, December 13, 2025

Time: 12PM

Location: Moore Memorial Public Library 1701 9th Avenue N Texas City, TX 77590

Free Parking in front of the library!