Collection Development and Management Commons^™

The Record, Issue 2, Bank Street College Of Education. Archives

The Record

The second quarterly newsletter from the Bank Street Archives

Biz Of Digital - Implementing Digital Systems For The Lewis University Archives And The Creation Of An Institutional Repository, Jason Smith

Library Staff Articles

No abstract provided.

Making Decisions Across Collections: The Prioritization Matrix, Annie Benefiel, Andrea Van Dyke

Scholarship and Professional Work

No abstract provided.

The Record, Issue 1, Bank Street College Of Education. Archives

The Record

The first quarterly newsletter from the Bank Street Archives

Appraising Records, Maureen Cresci Callahan, David Staniunas

Published Works

This chapter operationalizes archival appraisal as a values-driven, lifecycle activity that begins in pre-custodial conversations and continues through transfer, accessioning, stabilization, description, migration/reformatting, and, when warranted, deaccessioning. It reframes appraisal as both selection and retention, not merely separation, and offers guiding principles: assess long-term research value, preserve context, and acknowledge the rarity of true uniqueness. The authors translate strategy into practice through functional analysis and scaled prioritization (e.g., adaptations of the Minnesota Method), showing how to map organizational or personal functions to record types to widen evidentiary breadth. Practical tools include creator interviews, top-level surveys of born-digital environments, and structured …

Appraisal And Acquisition Strategies In Collecting Repositories, Maureen Cresci Callahan, David Staniunas

Published Works

This chapter explores the principles, values, and practices that shape intentional collecting and acquisitions work in archival repositories. The authors argue that acquisitions are a form of public service, requiring archivists to engage actively and responsibly with communities to diversify the historical record and counteract the biases of passive or unexamined collecting. Drawing on case studies from institutions such as Northeastern University, the Minnesota Historical Society, and the New York State Archives, the chapter outlines models and strategies for building trust with donors, navigating power dynamics, and aligning acquisitions with institutional mission and capacity. Topics include advisory boards, documentation strategy, …

Harnessing Synergy: Galloping Together To Achieve Common Goals, Katie Richardson Mlis, Kathryn Renton Phd, Janice Gunther Martin Phd, Katrin Boniface Abd

Journal of Western Archives

“Harnessing Synergy: Galloping Together to Achieve Common Goals'' is a case study focusing on how the Head of Cal Poly Pomona University Library Special Collections and Archives joined forces with the founding board members of the Equine History Collective to drive research and advancement in the study of equine history–a key collecting area of the University Library Special Collections and Archives unit. Through sharing expertise, jointly producing events, and developing longer-term strategies together, these collaborative efforts have enhanced outreach of Cal Poly Pomona Special Collections and Archives and associated scholarly activities, enriched perspectives on equine cultural heritage, and facilitated innovative …

Safeguarding Ecological Knowledge From The Effects Of Climate Change: An Archival Approach, Daena Jean Carrillo

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Creating resources that facilitate the preservation of community-based archives and ecological knowledge in the Louisiana coastal region is integral to its survival amongst the effects of climate change. Research and records created and stored within the Louisiana coastal region have a higher predisposition to the drastic and pervasive effects of climate change and natural disasters. Modern archivists can insert themselves into the work of climate change action through their advocacy of safeguarding collections that have been created by communities and individuals through raw scientific and observational data and unpublished research. Just as archivists continue to frame their professional work around …

Physical Preservation Of 35 Mm Slides: Methods And Standards, Julia Meier

SLIS Connecting

With 35 mm slides being such a widely popular format throughout the 20th century, it is no wonder why they hold a great deal of history from that era within their tiny frames. As pieces of history, 35 mm slides are valuable documentary materials, and to keep the history they contain alive, they must be physically preserved. The purpose of this content analysis study was to gather and determine physical preservation methods and standards for the preservation of 35 mm slides from peer-reviewed journals and other published sources from 1980-2021.

Making Love Easier: Automating Communication For Better Relationship Building For Web Archives, Emily Collier

2024 R&I Day

Starting in Fall of 2023, Ruth Bryan and Emily Collier began researching sustainability for the Web Archiving Program, which led them to building communication channels with the University of Kentucky Office of Public Relations and Marketing Web Content Development group. By tightening this channel, we hope to initiate the archival mindset right at the moment of content creation, as well as limit gaps in our web archives collection as the PR team is directly involved in monitoring sites that go live and expire. Part of this tightening of communication has been finding ways to automate alerts when changes are made …

Will Our Future Selves Thank Us? An Examination Of Born-Digital Curation Practices At The University Of Kentucky Libraries, Sarah Dorpinghaus, Ruth E. Bryan, Megan M. Mummey, Emily B. Collier

Library Presentations

University of Kentucky archivists share practical tips, tools, and mental frameworks to identify gaps, pitfalls, and opportunities in stewarding born-digital collections. Topics include managing a shifting digital preservation landscape, instituting comprehensive appraisal practices while considering environmental impact, curating born-digital and web-based university records, and aligning resources with future collection needs.

Mcgovern Historical Center Collections, Matt Richardson

TMC Library Newsletter (2015-)

The team at the McGovern Historical Center has been working its way through collections new and old and has posted several updated descriptions online.

Storyville: A Study Of Artifacts, Martha Quinn Fentress

SLIS Connecting

Operating from 1897 to 1917, sixteen blocks from the French Quarter district of New Orleans, Louisiana, several buildings were created to establish a legal red light district known as “Storyville.” The area was named after its creator, Alderman Sidney Story, who enacted the applicable ordinances and helped to establish the district. The creation of Storyville was meant to bring regulation to the sex trade and organized crime. The creation of the sixteen blocks of the district was influenced by a diverse range of experiences, ranging from cheap "cribs," vibrant music halls, saloons, and lavish mansions filled with "top dollar" ladies. …

A Collection Analysis Of The Tana Hoban Papers In The De Grummond Children’S Literature Collection, Constance Martin

SLIS Connecting

The de Grummond holdings of Tana Hoban’s work contain items she donated from 1982 to 1991 as well as copies of her books received from other donors. These materials include correspondence; biographical materials; her diaries; and some of her work as a commercial photographer, including photos and advertisements. There are also promotional items for her books and items related to a 1973 educational filmstrip series for which Hoban served on the creative development team (Brown, 2021; (“Tana Hoban Papers,” n.d.). Copies of physical books are augmented by book dummies she created for books that were published later and some that …

Ask An Archivist: Preserve Your Story, Raegan Stearns

LWLC Faculty Research

"Ask an Archivist: Preserve Your Story" is a workshop presented by Raegan C. Stearns, University Archivist, on the basics of caring for physical and digital objects.  It is directed towards family historians and offers introductory preservation tips. "Ask an Archivist: Preserve Your Story" was presented on May 11, 2023 at the Montgomery Interpretive Center on Alabama State University's campus as part of the Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail's Preservation Workshop Academy.

Amplifying Unheard Voices: A Community-Based Approach To Preserving Black History In The Inland Empire, Eric L. Milenkiewicz

Library Faculty Publications & Presentations

This presentation discusses the "Bridges That Carried Us Over Project: Documenting Black History in the Inland Empire," a community-based, collaborative initiative between three local area universities designed to capture the accounts, experiences, and personal narratives from members of the Black community in San Bernardino and Riverside counties.

Digital Library Of Georgia (December 2022), Mandy L. Mastrovita

Georgia Library Quarterly

No abstract provided.

Ut Archival Collections At The Mcgovern Historical Center, Matt Richardson

TMC Library Newsletter (2015-)

No abstract provided.

How Disillusioned Debate Documentarians Discovered The Silver Lining, Gypsy Moody, Chuck Hodgin

Library Faculty Scholarship

Belmont University was chosen to host the final presidential debate of the 2020 election. Undeterred by even the COVID-19 pandemic, administration was determined to forge ahead with holding this historic event at Belmont. They formed a committee to document the event and archive its materials. As IR managers, we thanked our lucky stars for this huge opportunity and potential spotlight for our relatively unheralded IR. We were tasked with writing a scalable preservation policy and collecting and archiving physical and digital Debate materials. Unfortunately, our pursuit of these goals revealed that the university had some work to do before we …

Mcgovern Medical Medallions Ready For Research, Sandra Yates

TMC Library Newsletter (2015-)

Archivists at the McGovern Historical Center are proud to announce the availability of the MS 200 John P. McGovern Medical Medallions Collection.

This collection consists of medallions commemorating people, conferences, and other events in the history of medicine. While many of the these were produced as commemorative items in the 1960s and 1970s, others date back as far as the late 1700s.

Archives And Cemeteries, Jeffery Hirschy, Ph.D.

SLIS Connecting

After a conversation on alternative definitions of archives in LIS 646: Introduction to Archival Theory, Mandy Hornsby, of the Biloxi Public Library, invited classmates to a tour of the Old Biloxi Cemetery in Biloxi, Mississippi. These types of valuable experiences offer connecting with students and fostering a sense of community here at the School of Library and Information Science.

Archiving Feminist Truth In Trump’S Wake Of Lies, Julie Shayne

Humboldt Journal of Social Relations

This article is about an assignment I do in one of my Gender, Women, and Sexuality Studies social movement classes. I revised the assignment the first time teaching the class after Trump lost the 2020 election. For the assignment, students work in groups to research local feminist and gender justice organizations and deposit all of their original materials – recordings, photos, flyers, etc. – into a digital, open access archive I co-created several years ago with librarians and staff on my campus. In 2021 I had my students do the “post-Trump” edition where they researched local organizations about how their …

Ledgers Of The W.T. Carter And Brother Lumber Company: An Archival Processing Project, Christopher Cameron Cotton

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The W.T. Carter and Brother Lumber Company began in 1898 and operated until 1968 when it was sold to the U.S. Plywood Corporation. The Polk County, Texas company harvested longleaf pine during a crucial period of development for the Texas economy. The lumber industry was the state’s first large scale commercial enterprise not dependent on farming and provided a model for future extractive industries in the state. The W.T. Carter and Brother Lumber Company town of Camden, Texas exemplifies rural implementations of the company town system in the Texas lumber industry. This public history thesis provides a brief history of …

Tmc History Featured On Video From The Mcgovern Historical Center, Sandra Yates

TMC Library Newsletter (2015-)

The McGovern Historical Center staff created a video that contains clips from four films and one phonograph record preserved in the archives, dating from 1947-1969. The video showcase highlights the early history of the Texas Medical Center.

Archivesspace Adventures: A Migration, Adam Stephen Guy Smith, Heidi J. Southworth

Library Services Publications

On February 4, 2019, the University Archives and Southern Minnesota Historical Center at Minnesota State University, Mankato successfully launched a new archival tool for our patrons called ArchivesSpace. While this at first glance may not seem like a big deal, the journey that the archives undertook to transform this search tool from a set of static HTML pages (all 700+ of them) to an easy-to-use search engine contained danger around every corner. The team had to fend off lions, tigers, and bears and had to blaze a path through a thick forest of metadata and archival records. The journey traveled …

The Veins That Lighten Dearth: Documenting Hidden Collections In Rural California, Jillian M. Ewalt

Marian Library Faculty Publications

This case study discusses an archival consulting project to document and preserve hidden collections in rural northern California. The paper provides an overview of the collecting institution (the Mother Lode Land Trust), the collections and their historical context, and the consulting process. The author highlights processing strategies to improve preservation and description while developing a post-custodial approach to managing collections in a rural, community-based archives setting.

Mapping Renewal: How An Unexpected Interdisciplinary Collaboration Transformed A Digital Humanities Project, Elise Tanner, Geoffrey Joseph

Digital Initiatives Symposium

Funded by a National Endowment for Humanities (NEH) Humanities Collections and Reference Resources Foundations Grant, the UA Little Rock Center for Arkansas History and Culture’s “Mapping Renewal” pilot project focused on creating access to and providing spatial context to archival materials related to racial segregation and urban renewal in the city of Little Rock, Arkansas, from 1954-1989. An unplanned interdisciplinary collaboration with the UA Little Rock Arkansas Economic Development Institute (AEDI) has proven to be an invaluable partnership. One team member from each department will demonstrate the Mapping Renewal website and discuss how the collaborative process has changed and shaped …

Institutional Repository And Archives Partnerships And Futures, Elizabeth James, Lindsey M. Harper, Lori Thompson, Gretchen R. Beach

Librarian Research

A reality of dwindling resources in archives, as well as in higher education more broadly, is that the ability to purchase and maintain a specialized archives management and content management software is often out of reach. For Marshall University Special Collections, the solution to make finding aids and other digital archival materials accessible online required evaluating software already available at the university. Marshall Digital Scholar (MDS), an instance of the bepress institutional repository software, was chosen for its immediate availability, robust discovery services within the repository and through outside search engines, statistic tracking capability, metadata flexibility, support for multiple file …

From Power To Partner: Harnessing Institutional Digital Collections For Community Archives Projects, Annie Benefiel

Conference Proceedings

Archival professional dialogue increasingly includes discussion of the power and responsibility of archivists to challenge outdated modes of collection development that focus on documenting the history of the privileged. While these discussions can be uncomfortable for some, the energy they spark is undeniable. In this presentation an archivist and digital collections librarian in a mid-sized university discusses how she has leveraged her power and privilege to develop a more inclusive digital collection development policy, which empowers collaboration and aims to diversify the perspectives present in the library's digital primary sources. The presentation covers the development of a new policy as …

Archon To Aspace: Adventures In Archives Migration, Adam Stephen Guy Smith, Heidi J. Southworth, Tom Tran, Daniel Vang

Library Services Publications

In August 2018, the University Archives and Southern Minnesota Historical Center at Minnesota State University, Mankato decided to migrate our finding aids and collection information from a hidden ARCHON database to a publicly available ArchivesSpace instance. This time sensitive decision was made with no budget available and in the midst of both a library system migration (Aleph to Alma/Primo) and an entire University website migration that affected us more than we initially thought. Three migrations is no big deal, right? This session will talk about our migration from design to implementation to “Oops! Where did that go?” We will share …