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Class Instruction
In addition to the Information Literacy Program offered by the Reference and Instruction Department, we invite faculty to bring their classes to the Special Collections for a hands-on instruction session. All sessions can include examples of books and materials from the 15th to the 21st centuries as well as a hands-on activity that provides students with the opportunity to engage with the materials. The session can be customized according to course needs and can vary in length. Past sessions have included:
- General introduction to research in Archives and Special Collections
- Introduction to primary source research with original materials
- Research on the professional work of past faculty members
- Examination of mass media's presentation of contemporary and historical events
- Review of materials related to a particular era or topic that is represented in the collections, such as women's education or higher education, etc.
- Individual research projects or internships may also be available. Talk to the Archives staff for more information.
Classes from American Studies, Art and History have visited the Archives and Special Collections. We look forward to expanding our instruction program even further! For more information, view the guides on archival practice and the academic field of history. To schedule a class visit or discuss using the College's archival material, please contact us.
Workshops
The Archives and Special Collections offers workshops on popular information management topics. The workshops deliver practical advice that can be implemented in your office and are appropriate for all College employees and students. We are happy to schedule training on request for staff meetings, student groups, individuals or other groups. Scheduled training sessions will occur periodically and will be announced through the proper College channels. Search available workshops alphabetically below. Contact us with questions or to schedule a specific workshop.
Primary Sources Research and Learning Skills: a Hands On Experience
Objective: While undergraduate students may be familiar with the words, “archives” and “primary sources,” many may not realize that they have already had experience using them. Few will have formally conducted research in an archival repository, but they likely have interacted in some way with primary sources.
This workshop is designed to move students beyond the sole use of digital or digitized records to the mixed use of electronic and physical records. Concepts introduced and explored during the lesson include content, context, and significance as they relate to interpreting primary sources. This lesson can be an introductory level exploration of primary sources to an advanced use of archival records in research that can be taught in a single class session or multiple class sessions either in groups or independently. Please contact the Archives to discuss methods of instruction.
Who should attend:
- Interested students
- Interested faculty and staff
What you will learn:
- Archival Intelligence (i.e. Archival procedure, application of domain knowledge and artifactual knowledge
- Basics of digital capture for preservation and access
Archival Services:
- Framework for interpreting documents and their language
- Aid in locating relevant records to research topic
- Aid students in navigating primary sources in digital and physical formats
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Share Your Story: A Toolkit for Creating Digital Collections
Objective: Digitization is not simply making a digital copy of an object. It is a process of collecting, reformatting, cataloging, storing, and sharing digital objects. With this workshop you will learn the fundamentals of each area of the digitization workflow: selection, digital capture, description, and sharing, and leave with a toolkit to get you started on your digitization journey. This workshop is for those that are new to digital collections. This workshop can be introduced in 1-3 class sessions. Archives Librarian is available for consultations.
Who should attend:
- Students of HIST-2101: Introduction to Digital History
- Interested students
- Interested faculty and staff
What you will learn
- Framework for selecting items and copyright considerations
- Basics of digital capture for preservation and access
- Metadata description for historic collections
- How to share your collection with your community near and far
Archival Services:
- Archival Assessment: Ensure that materials are preserved and readily accessible through arrangement, removal of duplicate material, identifying restrictions to access, physical rehousing, and description.
- Archival Processing: How best to format physical material to allow a digital surrogate to be created.
- Technology: What technology is best to use and in what manner should it be used to create user friendly websites and digital surrogates.
Example: ZOOM with the School Bus: PBS Children's Educational Television (1968-2005)
Example: Irish Literature: the modern era (1700-2000)
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Website Development: From Code to Weebly, Wix and WordPress
Objective: This workshop will teach the basics of foundational web technology to create your own functional web pages using Hypertext Markup Language (HTML5). You will learn how to incorporate style information into your pages using Cascading Style Sheets (CSS3). Next, you will learn how to create modern web layouts using the latest web development tools, such as Weebly, Wix and WordPress to create an attractive website that will highlight the content you have created for these and other free platforms. This workshop is for those that are new to web design. This workshop works best when conducted in tandem with an academic course. Archives Librarian and other members of the Learning Commons staff are available for consultations. Please contact the Archives to discuss methods of instruction.
Who should attend:
- Students of HIST-2101: Introduction to Digital History
- Interested students
- Interested faculty and staff
What you will learn:
- Content discovery
- Interactive content
- Presentation of various media
Archival Services:
- Archival Assessment: Ensure that materials are preserved and readily accessible through arrangement, removal of duplicate material, identifying restrictions to access, physical rehousing, and description.
- Technology: What technology is best to use and in what manner should it be used to create user friendly websites and digital surrogates.
Example: ZOOM with the School Bus: PBS Children's Educational Television (1968-2005)
Father and Mother Said: Organizing Familial Records
Objective: From photographs, books, diaries to family tall tales, getting your family history research organized is essential to keeping track of your ancestors and building a strong family tree. This workshop will rescue you from unhelpful habits and get your workspace—virtual or physical. Learn how to organize and your records and search vital records (e.g. immigrant records, birth, marriage and death records) to learn more about your ancestors and how they have shaped your life.
Who should attend:
- Interested students
- Interested faculty and staff
What you will learn:
- Archival Intelligence (i.e. Archival procedure, application of domain knowledge and artifactual knowledge
- Basics of genealogical research
Archival Services:
- Framework for interpreting documents and their language
- Aid in locating relevant records to research topic
- Aid in navigating primary sources in digital and physical formats
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Online and Out of Sight: How to Use Preservica (Staff and Faculty Only)
Objective: Through the course of developing and working with cloud-based solutions for the purpose of document preservation there are some very practical lessons. There are many advantages to be gained from leveraging cloud services, but along with the benefits come additional considerations. Better understand the importance of saving important documents and learn how to upload them into Preservica for records management and permenant retention by the College. For more see:
Who should attend: This workshop should be attended by staff and faculty.
What you will learn:
- Enable greater collaboration and new ways of learnig
- Make it easy for non-expert users to contribute new content
- Preserve all types of content from digitized images, to websites, emails and video
- Manage and safeguard vital institutional records
- Actively preserve for digital documents for future generations
- Respond to public records requests with advanced full-text search
Archival Services:
- Works with vendor to maintain technology
- Aides in locating documents
- Can assist in creating secured areas for documents
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Records and Their Lifecycles: an Overview
Objective: Learn the different stages of a document lifecycle, the distinct phases of a record's existence, from creation to final disposition, and how the document should be handled at each stage from creation to disposition of the record. It is recommended that this workshop be taken before Online and Out of Sight: How to Use Preservica.
Who should attend:
- Interested students
- Interested faculty and staff
What you will learn:
- Document management strategies
- Methods of record disposition
Archival Services:
- Aid in creating management strategy for a department or office
- Aid in the disposition or archival transfer of reco
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Student Groups and Student Activism: What Should Be Save?
Objective: Develop and manage a program for your group's records to ensure that future group members have a resource when they have questions about past events, want to reach out to group alumni for reunions or fundraising. This workshop will also help you determine when to send records to the Archives to retrieve historical images or for future researchers who want to know more about student groups and student life on campus.
Who should attend: Members of student run organizations and clubs.
What you will learn:
- What the resources are to help determine how long to keep your organization or club records
- What to do with records when they are no longer needed by your organization or club
Archival Services:
- Archival Assessments: Identify gaps in your current program, address immediate needs, and receive prioritized recommendations for future activities to ensure a successful ongoing archival program.
- Archival Program Planning: Develop a formal collection policy that codifies management practices, guides decision-making, and promotes programmatic stability and viability.
- Archival Processing: Ensure that materials are preserved and readily accessible through arrangement, removal of duplicate material, identifying restrictions to access, physical rehousing, and description.
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Trash or Treasure: Guidance on Retaining Office Records (Staff and Faculty Only)
Objective: Have you ever wondered, "How long do I need to keep my office records? Can I throw them away when I am done with them?" This workshop provides tools and advice to help you determine how long to keep your records and what to do when you no longer need to hold onto them. Whether you feel like you’re drowning in information or you're concerned that you're keeping records too long or not long enough, this workshop is for you.
Who should attend: All employees who want to effectively manage their office's administrative or program records.
What you will learn:
- What the resources are to help determine how long to keep your office records
- What to do with records when they are no longer needed by your office.
Archival Services:
- Archival Assessments: Identify gaps in your current program, address immediate needs, and receive prioritized recommendations for future activities to ensure a successful ongoing archival program.
- Archival Program Planning: Develop a formal collection policy that codifies management practices, guides decision-making, and promotes programmatic stability and viability.
- Archival Processing: Ensure that materials are preserved and readily accessible through arrangement, removal of duplicate material, identifying restrictions to access, physical rehousing, and description.
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