Blog and Newsletter

Wilson Museum, Castine, has an opening for a full-time Advancement Coordinator who will expand the current promotional and marketing activities while creating and organizing all development and fundraising efforts with emphasis on membership growth, a major gifts program, planned giving, endowment growth, and campus improvements.

This position requires strong writing skills, including grant writing; computer skills in Microsoft Office Suite, Customer Relationship Management software, Adobe Photoshop, social media; experience in marketing and fundraising techniques with a minimum of a bachelor’s degree or its equivalent.

E-mail cover letter with resume to Patricia Hutchins directoroffice@wilsonmuseum.org

Dear Colleagues,   The American Association for State and Local History is conducting a national survey of history organizations and historic sites to identify trends related to in-person visitation. This survey will allow us to understand more about our visitors and how visitation to our organizations differs based on factors like institution size, location, type, and other criteria. We will distribute the findings of this visitation survey to the entire field later this year, beginning at our Annual Meeting in August of 2019.  Your institution's response is critical.  This survey marks the beginning of a renewed effort by AASLH to better serve history organizations and practitioners through field-wide research. We are building our capacity to gather, analyze, and distribute information about major issues affecting the field. Through this and other research initiatives, and with your help, AASLH hopes to improve its ability to support history organizations in their effort to make the past more meaningful. Please take five minutes to complete this survey and consider sharing this email with any institutions that may be interested in participating in this important effort.    The deadline to complete the survey is March 15th. TAKE THE SURVEY!

Take the Survey

The 2019 New England Archivists Nominating Committee seeks nominations for the following: 

NEW ENGLAND ARCHIVISTS ARCHIVAL ADVOCACY AWARD

If you know an individual or organization that has provided extraordinary support—politically, financially, or through public advocacy—for New England archival programs and records, please consider nominating this person or organization for the NEA Archival Advocacy Award. Nominees need not be a member of NEA and do not even need to be in the New England region to be considered. This is a wonderful opportunity to recognize advocates for archives. See the NEA website for criteria for eligibility, previous award recipients, and more details.

NEW ENGLAND ARCHIVISTS DISTINGUISHED SERVICE AWARD

If you know a colleague who has been a leader in promoting and furthering the objectives of NEA, please consider recognizing them by nominating them for the NEA Distinguished Service Award. This award provides a way to showcase the leadership our members bring to the profession. Please see the NEA website for criteria for eligibility, previous award recipients, and more details. 

Nominations for both awards must be submitted by MARCH 1, 2019. Please send nominations and supporting documentation, as well as any questions, to Ellen Doon, Immediate Past President, at ipp@newenglandarchivists.org

  

Society of American Archivists

Philip M. Hamer and Elizabeth Hamer Kegan Award

The Philip M. Hamer and Elizabeth Hamer Kegan Award Subcommittee of the Society of American Archivists (SAA) seeks nominations for the 2019 award.

This Philip M. Hamer and Elizabeth Hamer Kegan Award recognizes an archivist, editor, group of individuals, or institution that has increased public awareness of a specific body of documents (which can be a specific archival collection or thematic aggregation) through compilation, transcription, exhibition, or public presentation of archives or manuscript materials for educational, instructional, or other public purpose. Work that has impact on a local, regional, national, and/or international level is welcomed.

Recent winners include:

• 2018: Find & Connect, eScholarship Research Centre

• 2017: Center for Home Movies

• 2016: South Asian American Digital Archive

• 2015: The Legacy Center, Drexel University College of Medicine, for Doctor or Doctress?

• 2014: Emma Goldman Papers Project

• 2013: Densho, The Japanese American Legacy Project

• 2012: Immigration History Research Center, University of Minnesota for Digitizing Immigrant Letters

Eligibility:

Individual archivists and editors, groups of individuals, organizations. This award is open to nominees within and outside of the United States, and is not limited to SAA members.

Prize:

A certificate and a cash prize of $500.

Application Deadline:

All nominations shall be submitted to SAA by February 28 of each year.

For more information on this award, including the nomination form, please go to http://www2.archivists.org/governance/handbook/section12-hamer.  

For more information on SAA awards and the nominations process, please go to https://www2.archivists.org/aboutsaa/awardsandscholarships.

Small Museums Scholarships

2019 AASLH Annual Meeting and Online Conference

Philadelphia, PA

DEADLINE: 15 May 2019

The American Association for State and Local History will hold its Annual Meeting and Online Conference in Philadelphia, PA from 28-31 August 2019. This year’s theme, What Are We Waiting For?,examines the personal, communal, and organizational journeys that lead to vibrancy, authenticity, social change and sustainability. 

Unfortunately, many working in our nation’s small museums feel as if we can only dream of attending this meeting. In a perfect world, boards would grant every request to fund our professional development. Institutions of modest means, however, may not have the resources to help us become effective stewards of our community’s memory.

Websites, listservs, and social media constantly offer new sources of technical and psychological support, but nothing is better than sharing challenges, strategies and successes face-to-face. Every year, increasing numbers of Annual Meeting sessions address issues specifically affecting small museums. These sessions can be as practical and wide-ranging as training, marketing, and strategic planning. Other sessions focus on creative ways to forge and re-energize relationships with the surrounding community.

Now in its fourteenth year, AASLH’s Small Museums Committee is offering scholarships to any AASLH members who are full-time, part-time, paid, or volunteer employees of small museums. Each $700 scholarship will cover the cost of both the conference registration and the Small Museums luncheon. Any remaining funds may be used to offset travel and/or lodging expenses. Recipients, though, must submit a post to the AASLH blog, Big Ideas for Small Museums, about their Annual Meeting experience.

To qualify, the applicant must work for a museum with a budget of $250,000 or less. They also must either be an individual AASLH member or work for an institutional member. Application forms are available at www.aaslh.org

The deadline for applications is 15 May. The committee will email award winners by 1 June. For questions, please contact Bruce Teeple, Small Museum Scholarship Subcommittee Chair at mongopawn44@hotmail.com, or Aja Bain, AASLH Program and Publications Coordinator, at abain@aaslh.org

TheJ. Franklin Jameson Archival Advocacy Award Subcommittee of the Society of American Archivists is asking you to create a nomination for the 2019 J. Franklin Jameson Archival Advocacy Award.

https://www2.archivists.org/governance/handbook/section12-jameson

Established in 1989, this award honors an individual, institution, or organization that promotes greater public awareness, appreciation, or support of archival activities or programs.  The individual's or institution's contributions may take the form of advocacy, publicity, legislation, financial support, or a similar action that fosters archival work or raises public consciousness of the importance of archival work.  Contributions should have broad, long-term impact at the regional level or beyond.

Eligibility: Nominees must be from outside the archives profession.  Individuals directly involved in archival work, either as paid or volunteer staff, or institutions or organizations directly responsible for an archival program are not eligible for this award.

Nominations should be sent through the online submission system by February 28, 2019 at https://app.smarterselect.com/programs/45853-Society-Of-American-Archivists.

Recent Winners Include:

2018:  Yvonne Lewis Holley AND Brad Meltzer

2017:   Environmental Data & Governance Initiative (EDGI)

2016:  Lin-Manuel Miranda and Ron Chernow

2015:   Adrena Ifill Blagburn

2014:   LGBT Center of Central PA History Project AND National History Day

2013:   AARP Virginia and Dr. Warren Stewart

2012:   Eve Kahn, Bebe Miller, Phillip Stewart

2011:  “Who Do You Think You Are?” (NBC)

2010:  The Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation

2009:  Ross King (Georgia Historical Records Advisory Board)

Society of American Archivists Distinguished Service Award

Deadline: February 28, 2019

Purpose and Criteria for Selection: The Distinguished Service Award recognizes an archival institution, education program, nonprofit organization, or government organization that has provided outstanding service to its public and has made an exemplary contribution to the archives profession. The institution being nominated should have achieved distinction in one or more of the following ways:

• Demonstrably contributing to archival theory and the development of new archival practice.

• Serving its constituency in an outstanding fashion.

• Showing extraordinary ingenuity and resourcefulness in improving efficiency of operations or methods of work.

• Going well beyond the normal performance requirements expected of an archival agency and thus providing a model for others.

• Developing over a period of years an archives program of such depth and scope as to warrant special recognition

Eligibility: Any archival institution, archival organization, records center, or manuscript repository, archival education program, or nonprofit or government organization providing service or support to the archives community in North America.

Nomination Requirements: In addition to a completed nomination form, each nomination must include letters of support from three SAA members, each representing a different institution. Self-nominations are accepted and encouraged.

Submission Deadline and Nomination Form: Click here to preview the nomination form and/or to start a nomination. All nominations must be submitted by February 28, 2019.

National History Day (NHD) in Maine, is looking for volunteer judges!!

If you are unaware, NHD is a nationally recognized academic program that promotes the study of history in middle and high school classrooms. Participating students develop research papers, exhibits, documentaries, performances, or websites on a topic they select connected to an annual theme.  This year’s theme is “Triumph and Tragedy in History.”  For more information about our program please visit our webpage.

We currently need judges for the following events (registration closes 3 weeks prior to the event):

March 8 Lewiston Regional Contest at Museum LA

March 23 Bangor Regional Contest at John Bapst Memorial High School

April 27 University of Maine State Contest in Orono

Judge registration can be found under the “Contest Registration” header on our webpage (link above)!

No experience required.  There is a judge orientation on the day of the contest.  It’s roughly a 3-4 hour commitment and we provide meals for our judges. This is our first year hosting regional contests, and any help would be appreciated! Please remember that you can judge multiple events.

For more information contact State Coordinator John Taylor (john.m.taylor@maine.edu)

Native American Library Services Grants Now Available

Application Deadline is April 1, 2019

Washington, DC— The Institute of Museum and Library Services is now accepting applications for the Native American Library Services Basic Grants program through Monday, April 1, 2019. Native American Library Services Basic Grants are one-year grants of $6,000 to $10,000, which can include $3,000 in eligible education and assessment activities or travel. The grants are available to federally recognized Native American tribes and Native Alaskan villages and are designed to support existing operations and maintain core services of tribal and Native village libraries. Grants may be used to buy library materials, fund salaries and training, provide internet connectivity and computers, or develop public and private partnerships with other agencies and community-based organizations, among other things. Libraries may request up to $3,000 for staff to attend library courses or training workshops; attend or present at conferences related to library services; or hire consultants for onsite professional library assessments. Application materials can be found on the grant program page. To Learn More Before applying, IMLS recommends interested applicants participate in the following webinars for Native American Basic Grants to learn more: Wednesday, January 23, 4:00 – 5:00 p.m. ET Tuesday, February 12th, 2019, 4:00 – 5:00 p.m. ET IMLS uses the Blackboard Collaborate system. For first-time users of Blackboard, please see the webinar page for technical information. These events will also be recorded and made available on-demand on the IMLS website. Program Contacts: For questions about project activities, eligibility, and allowability of costs, contact: Dr. Sandra Toro, Senior Program Officer 202-653-4662 storo@imls.gov For questions about application requirements and deadlines, contact: Chelsea Cole, Program Specialist 202-653-4719 ccole@imls.gov Sarah Boonie, Program Specialist 202-653-4761 sboonie@imls.gov

About the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) The Institute of Museum and Library Services is the primary source of federal support for the nation's libraries and museums. We advance, support, and empower America’s museums, libraries, and related organizations through grantmaking, research, and policy development. Our vision is a nation where museums and libraries work together to transform the lives of individuals and communities. To learn more, visit www.imls.gov and follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

The University of Maine’s Digital Curation graduate program has a few spots left in these spring online classes:

* DIG 510 (Metadata) shows how metadata standards can help you manage your files and your audience discover information about your collection.

* DIG 550 (Digital Preservation) examines both practical and cutting-edge preservation, to help you rescue your collection from future obsolescence and oblivion.

More on these courses at http://digitalcuration.umaine.edu. They start on 23rd January.

Film and history buffs may be interested to know our DIG 510 professor John Bell just won two of the highly selective NEH digital humanities grants in the last cycle. These grants will support his work at Dartmouth in improving access to early cinema and civil rights footage from across the US. More at:

http://mediaecology.dartmouth.edu/wp/archives/600

http://mediaecology.dartmouth.edu/wp/archives/605