UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH

 

SCHOOL OF LIBRARY AND INFORMATION SCIENCE

 

Fall 2000 Term

 

 

LIS 2221                    Archives and Manuscripts Management

Instructor:                    Richard J. Cox

Office Number:          LIS 648

 

Telephone:                 412-624-3245

 

E-mail:                        rcox@mail.sis.pitt.edu

 

Homepage:                http://www.sis.pitt.edu/~rcox

 

Office Hours:              By appointment; generally, I will be in my office Monday through Wednesdays and available for walk-ins.

 

 

Course Rationale

 

This course introduces students to the theoretical principles, methodologies, and practical administration of archives and manuscripts, the institutional programs that care for these materials, and the professional community that supports this work.  A considerable emphasis in this course is on the history and changing nature of recordkeeping.  It is essential that individuals preparing for careers in records management, information resources management, knowledge management, and archival administration understand what a record is, how the concept of a record has changed or remained the same, and how systems governing the creation and use of records have changed and are changing.  Archival and current records relate to, but are not exclusive to, the concept of “documents” many information professions now use to characterize their work (for an orientation to the documents approach students can examine my syllabus for the LIS 2000 Understanding Information course). Readings on this topic have been assigned throughout the course, and there will be class discussions of these readings.

 

Course Goals

 

Students will learn about the differences and similarities between archivists, records managers, librarians, and practitioners in related information fields; how organizational records and personal manuscripts share common traits and principles as records; the importance of records in the modern information age; what records management is and what records professionals do; the history and development of recordkeeping systems; the place of records professionals in the information professions; how archives and records management is broadly applied in a variety of institutional settings (government, corporate, college and university, and non-profit); and records management as an important function in archival administration.

 

This course will also prepare students to take more advanced courses in archival and records administration and to be able to work effectively in environments that include archival and historical records programs.  The course is an introduction only, and students seriously considering careers in archival and related records work must plan to take additional courses offered by the School.  There are courses in archival appraisal; archival representation; archival access and advocacy; library and archives preservation; preservation management; digital preservation; and records and information resources management.  The instructor can provide additional information about the archival science concentration to those students who are interested or consult his personal homepage with a link to a description of the archives and records specialization.

 

Course Outline

 

This course has five parts. 

 

§         Part One provides an introduction to the nature of historical manuscripts and records, the programs that care for such materials, the archives profession, and this profession's relationship to other information and historical disciplines.

 

§         Part Two is an analysis of the history of recordkeeping.  Students will learn about the historical context of the development of information technology, understanding that the recent development of the computer and its uses in recordkeeping is but another phase in the evolution of information systems supporting records creation, maintenance, and use.

 

§         Part Three introduces students to the basic concepts and principles archivists and records managers have developed to reflect and capture the nature of records and archives.  Key concerns, sometimes taken for granted, will be considered, such as the definition of a record.  In this part there will also be a consideration of the basic principles supporting the management of records.  Students will consider how records are defined and the differences between recordkeeping and information systems, the basic notion of the life cycle of records and how the life cycle concept has been challenged, how records have been traditionally managed, and the basic administration of records management programs and how the administration of these programs is likely to change.  This section also includes some orientation to the field of records management and its relationship to archives and its broader place in the information professions.  Records management emerged from the archives profession, separated into its own professional discipline, and has evolved (according to some) into information resources management and knowledge management.  This course will consider the implications of the identity of the records field and the primary nature of its business and responsibilities.

 

§         Part Four is the main focus of this course.  It provides an in-depth introduction to the basics of administering archives or historical records programs and the fundamental archival principles, theories, and practices that support this administration.  This part of the course focuses on the key principles underlying archival work. There are other courses offered in this school that concentrate on the more important of the basic archival functions, so what is being provided in this course is very introductory; however, in order to understand these functions it is necessary to understand these principles and concepts. Each class session will provide an overview of the general aspects of this function and relate it to the requirements for administrating a historical records program.  Students should gain some concept of the theory (the why) that shapes these functions and their application (the how) to the running of any archival program.  Students will also learn about the management of archival programs.

 

§         Part Five will briefly summarize the course, examine the future of the archives profession, and provide information on career opportunities and archival education options.  We will consider the present nature of the issues before the archival profession.

 

Course Requirements and Grading: General. 

 

Course requirements include the following:

 

§         adequate preparation to discuss required reading assignments and full participation in class discussions

 

§         research and writing of a major (25-35 page) paper reviewing and evaluating the existing literature in any aspect of the history, basic principles, or core functions of an archival or historical records program; analyzing a current, critical, or contested archival and records management topic, such as authentic electronic records or records and accountable information management systems; or reviewing and evaluating the existing literature in any aspect of the history, basic principles, or core functions of archives and records management (see below for more information).

 

 

Class participation sometimes causes problems for students.  Class participation is critical because it enables the Instructor to assess verbal communication and interpersonal skills (something always asked about in references for prospective employers), as well as enriching the learning environment of the classroom.  This grade will be dependent on the instructor's evaluation of the student's participation in class and other opportunities to assess the student's progress (such as individual meetings and discussions).  To facilitate this evaluation, students will be occasionally called upon to discuss specific readings during the course, relating the content of the publications to the week's topic; every student will have the opportunity to participate in these discussions. 

 

Course Requirements and Grading: The Major Paper on An Archival Function

 

The major paper is intended to enable the student to do in-depth reading and study on a single aspect of archival administration.  These papers should consist of at least four parts:

 

 

 

 

 

Students must show evidence of having read thoroughly at least twenty articles and, if appropriate, several monographs or textbooks for this paper.  In reality, students will probably need to scan the professional literature on any given topic far beyond this quantity of publications in order to identify the most important writings, research, and theory on the topic.  Students should plan on meeting with the instructor to discuss their paper in order to evaluate their progress; this meeting can be in-person or via e-mail. 

 

Students can consider one of the following subjects or a more defined topic such as the following:

 

 

 

 

 

 

In each of these areas, there are major debates and continuing discussions about theory, methodology, and professional issues.  Students also could focus on the contributions of a major figure or figures in these debates or major issues, such as David Bearman, Terry Cook, Luciana Duranti, Margaret Hedstrom, James O’Toole, and T. R. Schellenberg.

 

Students may also elect to write a paper on some aspect of a core archival principle or element of a basic definition.  For example, archives students might research any aspect of the definitions of record-keeping requirements, such as the

 

·        notion of a "reliable" record or record-keeping system;

 

·        "structure" of a document; concept of a record's "integrity";

 

·        notion of the "auditability" of records systems;

 

·        or some other aspect of records and recordkeeping systems either buttressed by or challenged by the use of modern information technologies. 

 

Students interested in this would be required to write papers on these basic concepts as reflected (or not reflected as the case may be) in the traditional archival and records management literature. 

 

These topics are also excellent candidates for work throughout the three-term program in preparation for a publishable article in the professional literature. A number of publications have emanated from students in the University of Pittsburgh archives and records management courses, including, for example, Kimberly J. Barata, “Questioning Aesthetics: Are Archivists Qualified to Make Appraisal or Reappraisal Decisions Based on Aesthetic Judgments?”  Provenance 12, nos. 1 and 2 (1994): 63-82; Kimberly J. Barata, “Managing Intellectual Assets: The Identification, Capture, Maintenance, and Use of the Records of Federally Sponsored Scientific Research,” Archival Issues 21, no. 2 (1996): 129-143; Wendy Duff.  “Steadying the Weathervane: Use as a Factor in Appraisal Criteria,” Provenance 12, nos. 1 and 2 (1994): 83-129; Jennifer A. Marshall, "Documentation Strategies in the Twenty-First Century?: Rethinking Institutional Priorities and Professional Limitations," Archival Issues 23, no. 1 (1998): 59-74; David S. Miller, “Oral History: Provenance and Intellectual Access,” Provenance 12, nos. 1 and 2 (1994): 129-150; Diane Shannon, “Privacy Issues Affecting Lesbian and Gay Archival Collections,” Provenance 12, nos. 1 and 2 (1994): 21-62 and David Wallace, “Archivists, Recordkeeping, and the Declassification of Records: What We Can Learn from Contemporary Histories,” American Archivist 56 (Fall 1993): 794-814.  The instructor may identify papers completed for this course possessing possibilities for expansion into a publishable article in a subsequent archives course.  Students should make every effort to contribute to their professional literature as this is both an attribute of a serious professional and helpful in future job searches and career development.

 

Course Requirements and Grading: Doctoral Students

 

The primary assignment for doctoral students taking this course is to prepare a major publishable paper of 25-35 pages on any aspect of archives and manuscripts management approved by the Instructor.  Papers completed by doctoral students should possess greater depth in reading, understanding, methodology, and other aspects characterizing a scholarly essay.  The doctoral student should be able to explain why and how the paper fits into a longer plan of study leading to the dissertation topic.  Doctoral students must identify their topic by the third class session.  They must also participate in class discussions.

 

Course Requirements: Deadlines for the Major Paper

 

Students will be required to inform the instructor of their choice of topic by the fifth class. Students who are working at archives/historical manuscript repositories or records management programs may select the option of writing an analysis of some aspect of their employing institution; if the student is interested in this, he or she must be prepared to reflect the relevant literature and must present to the instructor a proposal for his approval, also due by the fifth class.  The final paper is due on week 14 of the course.  Papers only describing a particular institution's activities will not be acceptable for this course; such papers must place the institution or program into its professional and historical context, reflecting a strong foundation in the appropriate professional literature.

 

Course Requirements: General Requirements for Writing Papers

 

All the various papers should be well written, footnoted, and prepared according to the most recent edition of the Chicago Manual of Style.  Citations should conform to the recent edition of the Chicago Manual of Style. It is the student's responsibility to meet these requirements, representing graduate level work.   While the Instructor is open to advising students about the preparation of such papers, the student taking courses at the graduate level is expected to be able to prepare acceptable essays conforming to a particular style manual.  However, there are a number of issues students should keep in mind as they write their papers, including the following:

 

§         Explain why you are selecting a particular published or unpublished source: is it representative, atypical, or what?

 

§         Make sure you do not make broad assumptions without searching the literature to support such a view.

 

§         Do not make broad statements that are the subject of another disciplinary areas' research; examine such literature to support your assertions.

 

§         Identify the authority of the individuals you cite in your papers; consider their background and the perspective they may represent.

 

§         Make sure the paper has a logical structure with a thesis or focus.

 

§         Proof for careless spelling and grammatical mistakes.

 

§         Do not try to develop a paper by stringing extensive quotations throughout the paper; instead, you should summarize and evaluate the sources you cite.  It is more important that you reflect your thinking about the topic.

 

§         Make sure you have done adequate bibliographic searches.

 

§         Do not rely too heavily on assigned readings provided in the course syllabus.

 

§         Visit with the course instructor if you think you are missing an important area or to discuss leads to relevant literature.

 

§         Distinguish between research and opinion-based literature.

 

§         Make sure you note the time periods essays and books were published; do not treat as current an essay published in 1977 unless you have substantial evidence that it represents a current viewpoint.

 

§         You do not need to footnote every reference to every publication.

 

§         Do not cite class notes as authorities in your papers.

 

§         Make sure you have examined the mainstream archival or records management literature.

 

During the last class, some students may be asked to make presentations about their research. 

 

Course Requirements: Advice on Selecting a Paper Topic

 

Because many students struggle in the identification of an appropriate topic for the major paper, the instructor is offering some additional guidance about the assignment. The student should seek to narrow his or her topic as much as possible.  In other words, the student should avoid selecting a subject as broad as "archival arrangement and description," a topic that has been discussed in hundreds of articles, numerous books, and many special reports.  A much better focused subject would be something like a "comparison of authority control concepts and perspectives in library and archival science."  Students should expect to be continually narrowing or focusing their paper topics as the course progresses, and this will require that students begin in-depth reading (beyond the course reading assignments) as soon as the course starts. 

 

Students sometimes also struggle to determine how to prepare and present their major papers.  There are examples of published essays students could examine and use as general guides.  Some students will write essays that are reviews of the published literature on a particular topic; I urge students to look at my "American Archival History: Its Development, Needs, and Opportunities," American Archivist 46 (Winter 1983): 31-41 as an example of this kind of essay.  Other students might wish to write essays that compare basic archival functions to related or similar functions in other fields; an example of this type of essay is my "Researching Archival Reference as an Information Function," RQ 31 (Spring 1992): 387-97.  Finally, some students might endeavor to write about a particular archival concept; an example of this is James O'Toole, "On the Idea of Permanence," American Archivist 52 (Winter 1989): 10-25.

 

Students who are committed to the concentration in archival studies in the MLIS program should plan on (if possible) researching an area that can be explored through the course of the three- term program.  For example, a student interested in macro-appraisal approaches could prepare a preliminary general paper on this topic in this class, expand the paper in the Archival Appraisal course offered in the Spring Term by analyzing how macro- appraisal has been utilized in science, technology, and medical archives, and explore this matter still further by completing a related fieldwork in an area archives in the Summer Term.  There may be the possibility for a student to finish the program with a publishable paper based on a thorough review of the archival and other appropriate literature and research application in a particular area repository. 

 

Course Requirements: Class Participation and Discussion

 

Class discussion will primarily focus on the readings required for this course. Each week's list of readings also includes some basic questions to guide the student in his or her thinking. However, students will also be required to read weekly the discussion on an electronic bulletin board that is devoted to archival theory and practice.  To subscribe to the Archives ListServ, students need to obtain an electronic mail account from the SIS Labs and then do the following:

 

To subscribe, send e-mail to listserv@listserv.muohio.edu

In body of message: SUB ARCHIVES firstname lastname

 

You will receive a response that you have been subscribed and additional information on how to post messages and other activities.  You can join the list via the World Wide Web by going to http://listserv.muohio.edu/SCRIPTS/WA.EXE?SUBED1=archives&A=1 and following the instructions.

 

Students should review the network postings prior to class and be prepared to comment on them during the first part of each class.  Students should bear in mind that the Archives ListServ is not completely representative of the American archival community; rather it reflects archivists who have ready access to the Internet and the small self-selected portion participating in its discussions.  Students should also keep in mind that postings to the ListServ are not comparable to published research or conference presentations, but they tend to be more like chitchat in the employees' lounge.  Still, the Archives ListServ can provide a glimpse into some of the opinions held by and attitudes reflected by archivists in this country.  It also often features notices on recent publications, projects, and other activities that might be of use to archives students.  Students can also search the Archives of the Archives & Archivists listserv at http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/archives.html to examine past discussions.

 

Course Requirements and Grading: Incompletes

 

Students will not pass the course unless they have satisfactorily met all the requirements described in this syllabus.  Students may opt to take an incomplete provided the following criteria are met: 1) the instructor is informed of the student's interest or need to do this by week twelve of the course; 2) the incomplete assignments are completed within four weeks of the end of the course.  Extenuating circumstances or other valid reasons for not making up the course assignments will be considered by the instructor, but the student will be required to provide evidence of the severity of the circumstances preventing the student from completing the assignments.

 

No incomplete grades will be given for this course, unless there are dramatic or emergency circumstances affecting a student's ability to meet course requirements.  If an incomplete is necessary, students will have until January 7, 2001 to complete the requirements.

 

Course Readings and Book Purchases

 

Students are expected to read a number of books and many journal articles and reports in order to gain a firm understanding of the nature of archival knowledge as well its continuing evolution.  Students should use this program as an opportunity both to develop their own knowledge as well as to build a professional library for their own future use.

 

One basic textbook is being recommended.  Judith Ellis, ed., Keeping Archives,  2nd ed. Rev. (Melbourne, Australia: D. W. Thorpe, 1993) is the best basic archives text students could read.  Students are expected to be thoroughly familiar with this and the other required readings listed under each session. Ellis provides a good orientation to the archival profession and practice. Students should bear in mind that no basic textbook on archival studies can be effective apart from the other professional literature.  While there are classics in the field, the nature of archival theory, methodology, and practice is changing very rapidly.  Students should order the Ellis volume directly from the Society of American Archivists in order to obtain a reasonable price and to ensure prompt acquisition; the SAA publications list is available at http://archivists.org/catalog/catalog/index.html.

 

Students are also expected to read other volumes: David Bearman, Archival Methods (1989) and Electronic Evidence: Strategies for Managing Records in Contemporary Organizations (1994).  Electronic Evidence can be purchased directly from the publisher, Archives and Museum Informatics, located in Pittsburgh (ordering information is available at http://www.archimuse.com/publishing/elec_evid.html) while Archival Methods is available free via the publisher's Web site at http://www.archimuse.com/publishing/archival_methods/ James O'Toole, Understanding Archives and Manuscripts (1990) and Thomas Wilsted and William Nolte, Managing Archives and Manuscripts Repositories (1991) are both available through the Society of American Archivists at significantly reduced prices. 

 

Other books to be read can be ordered from the online bookstore of the student's choice, such as Amazon.com, or acquired at a local bookstore. The Instructor encourages students to purchase as many archives texts and related publications as possible to support the development of personal professional libraries.  Students can save money on these purchases by acquiring these texts through one of the online bookstores.  Students might also check at second hand bookstores in and around Pittsburgh or through one of the online second hand bookstores, such as www.powell’s.com.

 

These other books include

 

 

 

 

 

 

All readings are also available on reserve at the SIS Library. 

 

Students should also acquire a copy of Lewis J. and Lynn L. Bellardo, A Glossary for Archivists, Manuscript Curators and Records Managers (1992) -- also available through the SAA -- and become familiar with professional terminology. There will be discussions of the basic terminology, and students should be prepared to address such matters in their written assignments.

 

The Instructor will also add readings to the course as new publications become available or as class discussion or student interest suggests the need to consider other articles, studies, and reports.  In addition, the instructor will place on reserve newsletters, announcements, conference advertisements, and other related material for the perusal of the archives students; the Instructor will indicate when a particular item is available and whether it is a requirement to be examined.  Students should check with the SIS Library staff for a box labeled "Recent Items of Professional Interest" with the appropriate course number.

 

"Recommended Readings," listed weekly, have not been put on reserve.  They are provided in order to guide students to related and other important readings.

 

The Course

 

PART ONE: INTRODUCTION

 

Week One (8/29/00)       

Orientation to the Course; Review of Course Requirements

 

Week Two (9/5/00) The Importance of Records to Each of Us; The Nature of Archival Knowledge; Preliminary Thoughts About Educating Records Professionals

 

      Required Readings

 

Roy Rosenzweig and David Thelen, The Presence of the Past: Popular Use of History in American Life (New York: Columbia University Press, 1998).

 

Luciana Duranti, "The Archival Body of Knowledge: Archival Theory, Method, and Practice, and Graduate and Continuing Education," Journal of Education for Library and Information Science 34 (Winter 1993): 8-24.

 

J. Michael Pemberton and Christine R. Nugent, "Information Studies: Emergent Field, Convergent Curriculum," Journal of Education for Library and Information Science 36 (Spring 1995): 126-138.

 

Tyler O. Walters, "Rediscovering the Theoretical Base of Records Management and Its Implications for Graduate Education: Searching for the New School of Information Studies," Journal of Education for Library and Information Science 36 (Spring 1995): 139-154.

 

Richard J. Cox, "The Masters of Archival Studies and American Education Standards: An Argument for the Continued Development of Graduate Archival Education in the United States," Archivaria 36 (Autumn 1993): 221-31.

 

Richard J. Cox, "An Analysis of Archival Research, 1970-1992, and the Role and Function of the American Archivist," American Archivist 57 (Spring 1994): 278-288.

 

Mary Sue Stephenson, "Deciding Not to Build the Wall: Research and the Archival Profession," Archivaria 32 (1991): 145-151.

 

Students should also examine the papers and other resources at the Working Meeting of Graduate Archival Educators at http://www2.sis.pitt.edu/~gaeconf/.  The Working Meeting of Graduate Archival Educators was sponsored by The Archival Studies Program The Department of Library and Information Science School of Information Sciences University of Pittsburgh and The Society of American Archivists with funding from The Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation August 24, 1999. The theme of the Working Meeting of Graduate Archival Educators was “research in and research about graduate level archival education.” The two major topics addressed were “ (1) to begin to assess how effective graduate level archival programs are in preparing their graduates to work as records professionals and (2) to identify the process and problems associated with establishing research programs within graduate archival education programs.”  Papers by educators Terry Eastwood, Anne Gilliland-Swetland, Peter Wosh, Elizabeth Yakel, David Wallace, Sue McKemmish, Eric Ketelaar, Angelika Menne-Haritz, Richard J. Cox, and Terry Cook make up the conference proceedings and are scheduled for publication in a future issue of the American Archivist.  The origins of this conference stem from a growing dissatisfaction by some archival educators about the existing mechanism for deliberations about graduate education within existing professional structures like the Society of American Archivists.  The growth and increasing maturity of North American graduate programs had outraced the annual reporting session of the Archival Educators Roundtable at the Society of American Archivists and the continuing work of the Society’s Committee on Education and Professional Development.  The 1999 conference was the second of such meetings, the first being held in San Diego in 1996.

 

Students should also examine the National Forum on Archival Continuing Education (NFACE) (http://www.coshrc.org/nface/) web site.  “The Council of State Historical Records Coordinators (COSHRC), in partnership with the American Association for State and Local History (AASLH), has undertaken a project to organize and present a National Forum on Archival Continuing Education (NFACE). COSHRC and AASLH received funds from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission in November 1998 to support planning for this Forum. The goals of the Forum were to: Inform these organizations about what educational services and information resources are already available; Encourage collaboration and coordination among providers in developing additional offerings that address gaps in existing educational opportunities, and Improve the accessibility to information resources about best practices in the care of historical records that support these educational efforts, and Develop an action agenda for archival continuing education in the next decade. This agenda will be shared with federal funding agencies, resource allocators, and key stakeholders in archival continuing education.”  The NFACE project builds from a 1998 COSHRC report, Where History Begins, building a profile of both repositories and the individuals working in these repositories.  This report suggested that there existed professional archivists and manuscript curators, allied professionals with records responsibilities, and people with responsibilities with a minimum of training or education. The conference held in late April 2000 to examine the training needs of this diversity of individuals working in historical records repositories developed an agenda including the establishment of a nationwide clearinghouse of information to support the development, delivery, and accessibility of archival continuing education; pursuing partnerships and cooperation among professional archival organizations and with organizations serving allied professions;  creating a “diverse and well-educated next generation of archival leadership”;  improving the “quality and accessibility of archival continuing education and information resources” for “grass-roots organizations and the volunteers who work to collect and preserve historical records in community-based organizations,”  “individuals from diverse communities or who work with records documenting diversity,” and “allied professionals, including public librarians and museums curators, who bear responsibility for historical records as an adjunct to their primary duties”; improving the “quality and availability of archival continuing education by incorporating effective adult learning methods, leveraging appropriate technologies, and exploring non-traditional approaches to delivery”; providing a “firm foundation for ongoing assessment and analysis of archival continuing education needs by initiating research and evaluation of existing survey data and ensuring the collection of data to support longitudinal analysis”;  developing “collaborative approaches to providing archival continuing education on specific topics or issues for which limited or no educational opportunities currently exist”;  strengthening “electronic records training by developing collaborative projects in support of the existing NHPRC initiative on electronic records”; developing “collaborative approaches to providing archival continuing education in specific geographic regions particularly west of the Mississippi, in which individuals and repositories are located at great distances from each other and from potential sources of education and assistance”; and identifying “sources for both short-term and sustainable funding for collaborative archival education initiatives.”

 

 

PART TWO:             HISTORY OF ARCHIVES AND RECORDS AND RECORDKEEPING SYSTEMS

 

 

Week Three.  (9/12/00)       

Orientation to the History of Archives; Ancient to Early Modern Archives

 

            Required Readings

 

McKemmish, "Introducing Archives and Archival Programs," in Ellis, chapter 1

 

Luciana Duranti, "The Odyssey of Records Managers," Records Management Quarterly (July 1989): 3-6, 8-11; (October 1989): 3-6, 8-11.  You can also read this two-part essay online at http://www-chs.cowan.edu.au/scis/mb/RecEnv/reader/html/module_01_02.htm and http://www-chs.cowan.edu.au/scis/mb/RecEnv/reader/html/module_01_03.htm.

 

James O'Toole, Understanding Archives and Manuscripts (Chicago: Society of American Archivists, 1990).

 

M. T. Clanchy, "'Tenacious Letters':  Archives and Memory in the Middle Ages," Archivaria 11 (Winter 1980/81):  115-25.  If possible, obtain M. T. Clanchy, From Memory to Written Record: England, 1066- 1307 (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1979; rev. ed. 1991 Blackwell) for your personal library and read chapters two, three, four, five, and nine (although the Geary book ought to be your reading priority).

 

Lawrence J. McCrank, "Documenting Reconquest and Reform: The Growth of Archives in the Medieval Crown of Aragon," American Archivist 56 (Spring 1993): 256-318.

 

Patrick J. Geary, Phantoms of Remembrance: Memory and Oblivion at the End of the First Millennium (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1994).

 

Denise Schmandt-Besserat, "The Earliest Precursor of Writing," in William S-Y. Wang, ed., The Emergence of Language: Development and Evolution (New York: W.H. Freeman and Co., 1991), pp. 31-45.

 

James M. O'Toole, "Herodotus and the Written Record," Archivaria 33 (1991-92): 148-160.

 

David Cressy, "'A constant intercourse of letters': The Transatlantic Flow of Information," in Coming Over: Migration and Communication Between England and New England in the Seventeenth Century (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1987), pp. 213-34.

 

James H. Cassedy, "Colonial Bills of Mortality, 1700-1775," in Demography in Early America: Beginnings of the Statistical Mind, 1600-1800 (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1969), pp. 117-147 or Patricia Cline Cohen, "Colonial Counting," in A Calculating People: The Spread of Numeracy in Early America (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1982), pp. 47-80.

 

Week Four (9/19/00)

Nineteenth Century Archival Development and Recordkeeping

 

            Required Readings

 

Maynard Brichford, "The Origins of Modern European Archival Theory," Midwestern Archivist 7, no. 2 (1982): 87-101.

 

Richard C. Berner, "Historical Development of Archival Theory and Practices in the United States," Midwestern Archivist 7 (no. 2, 1982): 103-17.

 

JoAnne Yates, Control Through Communication: The Rise of System in American Management (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1989), chapters one through three and conclusion.

 

David D. Van Tassel, Recording America's Past: An Interpretation of the Development of Historical Studies in America 1607-1884 (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1960), chapter eleven.

 

Walter Muir Whitehill, Independent Historical Societies: An Enquiry Into Their Research and Publication Functions and Their Financial Future (Boston: Boston Athenaeum, 1962), chapter eighteen.

           

Margo J. Anderson, The American Census: A Social History (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1988), chapters four and five.

 

Margarey W. Davies, Woman's Place Is At the Typewriter: Office Work and Office Workers 1870-1930 (Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1982) and James R. Beniger, The Control Revolution: Technological and Economic Origins of the Information Society (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1986).  Examine for discussions about office technologies.

 

 

Week Five (9/26/00)       

Twentieth Century Revolution in Recordkeeping and Archival Development

 

            Required Readings

 

E. Wayne Carp, Family Matters: Secrecy and Disclosure in the History of Adoption (Cambridge: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1998).

 

David Bearman and Margaret Hedstrom. "Reinventing Archives for Electronic Records: Alternative Service Delivery Options." Electronic Records Management Program Strategies, ed. Margaret Hedstrom (Pittsburgh, PA: Archives and Museum Informatics, 1993), pp.  82-98.

 

Terry Cook, "Electronic Records, Paper Minds: The Revolution in Information Management and Archives in the Post-Custodial and Post- Modernist Era," Archives and Manuscripts 22 (November 1994): 300-328 and Terry Cook, "Easy to Byte, Harder to Chew: The Second Generation of Electronic Records Archives," Archivaria 33 (Winter 1991-92): 202-216.

 

David Osborne and Ted Gaebler, Reinventing Government: How the Entrepreneurial Spirit is Transforming the Public Sector (1993).  Read as much as is necessary to understand the principles of "reinventing" or Michael Hammer and James Champy, Reengineering the Corporation: A Manifesto for Business Revolution (1993).  Read as much as is necessary to understand the principles of “reinventing” and "reengineering."

 

Ernst Posner, American State Archives (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1964), chapter one.

 

Donald R. McCoy, The National Archives: America's Ministry of Documents 1934-1968 (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1978), chapters one, three, five, six, seven, twelve, seventeen, and twenty.

 

Victor Gondos, Jr., J. Franklin Jameson and the Birth of the National Archives 1906-1926 (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1981), chapters two, four, five, and eight.

 

TOPIC FOR LONG PAPER IS DUE ON WEEK FIVE OF CLASS .  Each student should submit a two-page description of the topic, its importance to the archival profession, the bibliographic searches to be done or underway, examples of writings to be used, and any related issues or concepts to be explored.

 

 

Week Six (10/3/00)

What Does the Future Hold for the Record and the Records Professional?  A Speculative Side Trip Providing a Framework for Understanding Archival Principles and Practices

 

            Required Reading

 

William J. Mitchell, City of Bits: Space, Place, and the Infobahn (Cambridge: MIT Press, 1995).  You can read this as an electronic book at http://mitpress.mit.edu/e-books/City_of_Bits/.

 

Read any articles or books on the purpose and nature of professions and come prepared to discuss them.  William Sullivan, Work & Integrity: The Crisis & Promise of Professionalism in America (New York: HarperBusiness, 1995) is now out of print but second hand copies may be available.  This is one of the finest statements on the nature of professionals that can be read.

 

Anne J. Gilliland-Swetland, Enduring Paradigm, New Opportunities: The Value of the Archival Perspective in the Digital Environment (Washington, D.C.: Council on Library and Information Resources, February 2000), also available full-text at http://www.clir.org/pubs/abstract/pub89abst.html.

 

Browse through James A. Dewar, “The Information Age and the Printing Press: Looking Backward to See Ahead,” Ubiquity 25 (August 15 - 21, 2000),
available at http://www.acm.org/ubiquity/views/j_dewar_1.html.  Using Elizabeth Eisenstein’s history of the printing press, Dewar, a senior mathematician at RAND, suggests that there are “compelling” parallels between the printing press era and the contemporary Information Age.  He concludes that there will be “changes in the information age. . . as dramatic as those in the Middle Ages in Europe,” the “future of the information age will be dominated by unintended consequences,” “it will be decades before we see the full effects of the information age,” and “the above factors combine to arguer for: a) keeping the Internet unregulated, and b) taking a much more experimental approach to information policy.”

 

 

PART THREE ARCHIVAL CONCEPTS AND PRINCIPLES

 

 

Week Seven (10/10/00)     

Basic and Essential Archival Concepts: Fonds; Provenance; Original Order; Function; Records Life Cycle vs. Continuum; Recordkeeping Warrant

 

            Required Readings

 

Maynard Brichford, "The Provenance of Provenance in Germanic Areas," Provenance 7 (Fall 1989): 54-70.

 

Terry Cook, "The Concept of the Archival Fonds: Theory, Description, and Provenance in the Post-Custodial Era," in The Archival Fonds: From Theory to Practice, ed. Terry Eastwood ([Ottawa: Bureau of Canadian Archivists, 1992), pp. 31-85.

 

Nancy Bartlett, "Respect des Fonds: The Origins of the Modern Archival Principle of Provenance," Primary Sources & Original Works 1, nos. 1/2 (1991): 107-115.

 

David A. Bearman and Richard H. Lytle, "The Power of the Principle of Provenance," Archivaria 21 (Winter 1985-86): 14-27.

 

Michael Buckland, "On the Nature of Records Management Theory," American Archivist 57 (Spring 1994): 346-351.  For a recent counterpoint to this kind of weak theory argument, students might want to read Luciana Duranti, “Meeting the Challenge of Contemporary Records: Does It Require a Role Change for the Archivist?” American Archivist 63 (Spring/Summer 2000): 7-14 (however, the Duranti essay is not required).

 

Frank Boles, "Disrespecting Original Order," American Archivist 45 (Winter 1982): 26-32.

 

Chris Hurley, "What, If Anything, Is a Function?" Archives and Manuscripts 21, no. 2 (1993): 208-220.

 

Jay Atherton.  "From Life Cycle to Continuum: Some Thoughts on the Records Management-Archives Relationship," Archivaria 21 (Winter 1985- 86): 43-51.

 

Eldon Frost, "A Weak Link in the Chain: Records Scheduling as a Source of Archival Acquisition," Archivaria 33 (Winter 1991-92): 78-86.

 

Ira Penn, "Understanding the Life Cycle Concept of Records Management," Records Management Quarterly 17 (July 1983): 5-8, 41.

           

JoAnne Yates and Wanda J. Orlikowski, "Genres of Organizational Communication: A Structurational Approach to Studying Communication and Media," Academy of Management Review 17, no. 2 (1992): 299-326.

 

Michel Duchein, "Theoretical Problems and Practical Problems of 'Respect des Fonds' in Archival Science," Archivaria 16 (Summer 1983): 64- 82.

 

Students should visit Monash University Records Continuum Research Group http://www.sims.monash.edu.au/rcrg/about/index.html.  The Monash University Records Continuum Research Group (RCRG) is looking at methods of analysis enabling records to be controlled at different points in time throughout their lifespan. This includes the way records are represented, used, retrieved and disseminated. The group is also looking into how continuum models apply to information management and data archiving.  The Group has three areas of research – metadata control, continuum modeling, and recordkeeping and legal systems.  This is a very useful site for individuals wishing both to understand more completely the continuum concept but also for those desiring to comprehend the broader importance of records for modern organizations.

 

     

Week Eight (10/17/00)     

The Concept of the Archival Record

 

            Required Readings

 

 

Lester J. Cappon, "Historical Manuscripts as Archives: Some Definitions and Their Applications," American Archivist 19 (April 1956): 101- 10.

 

Glenda Acland, "Managing the Record Rather Than the Relic," Archives and Manuscripts 20, no. 1 (1992): 57-63.

 

David Bearman, "Record-Keeping Systems," Archivaria 36 (Autumn 1993): 16-36; or chapter two in his Electronic Evidence: Strategies for Managing Records in Contemporary Organizations (Pittsburgh: Archives and Museum Informatics, 1994).

 

Richard J. Cox, "The Record: Is It Evolving?"  Records & Retrieval Report 10 (March 1994): 1-16. 

 

Richard J. Cox, "The Record in the Manuscript Collection," Archives and Manuscripts 24 (May 1996): 46-61.

 

David Roberts, "Defining Electronic Records, Documents and Data," Archives and Manuscripts 22 (May 1994): 14-26.

 

Hugh Taylor, "My Very Act and Deed: Some Reflections on the Role of Textual Records in the Conduct of Affairs," American Archivist 51 (Fall 1988): 457-469.

 

Luciana Duranti, "Reliability and Authenticity: The Concepts and Their Implications," Archivaria 39 (Spring 1995): 5-10.

 

Linda Schamber, "What is a Document?  Rethinking the Concept in Uneasy Times," Journal of the American Society for Information Science 47 (September 1996): 669-671.

 

David B. Gracy, "Archivists, You Are What People Think You Keep," American Archivist 52 (Winter 1989): 72-78.

 

Piers Cain, "Data Warehouses as Producers of Archival Records," Journal of the Society of Archivists 16, no. 2 (1995): 167-171.

 

Marion Reynolds, "Unassailable Evidence: The Nexus Between Recordkeeping and Public Sector Accountability," Archives and Manuscripts 21 (January 1992).

 

Sue McKemmish and Frank Upward, "The Archival Document: A Submission to the Inquiry Into Australia As An Information Society," Archives and Manuscripts 19, no. 1 (1991): 17-31.

 

Sue McKemmish, "Recordkeeping, Accountability and Continuity: The Australian Reality," in Archival Documents: Providing Accountability Through Recordkeeping, eds. Sue McKemmish and Frank Upward (Melbourne: Ancora Press, 1993), pp. 9-26.

 

Also review the homepages for the University of Pittsburgh Recordkeeping Functional Requirements Project at the following: http://www.sis.pitt.edu/~nhprc and the University of British Columbia’s project InterPARES Project at http://www.interpares.org/ is a major international research initiative in which archival scholars, computer engineering scholars, national archival institutions and private industry representatives will collaborate to develop the theoretical and methodological knowledge required for the permanent preservation of authentic records created in electronic systems.

 

 

PART FOUR  BASIC ARCHIVAL FUNCTIONS AND MANAGEMENT OF ARCHIVAL PROGRAMS

 

Week Nine (10/24/00)     

Institutional Administration and Planning; Public Programs and Advocacy

 

            Required Readings

 

Schwirtlich, "Getting Organized," in Ellis, chapter 2

 

Pederson, "User Education and Public Relations," in Ellis, chapter 11

 

Thomas Wilsted and William Nolte.  Managing Archival and Manuscript Repositories (Chicago: Society of American Archivists, 1991). 

 

Paul H. McCarthy, "The Management of Archives: A Research Agenda," American Archivist 51 (Winter/Spring 1988): 52-69.

 

Terry Cook, "Viewing the World Upside Down: Reflections on the Theoretical Underpinnings of Archival Public Programming," Archivaria 31 (Winter 1990-91): 123-34.

 

Gabrielle Blais and David Enns, "From Paper Archives to People Archives: Public Programming in the Management of Archives," Archivaria 31 (Winter 1990-91): 101-13.

 

Frank G. Burke, "Archival Cooperation," American Archivist 46 (Summer 1983): 293-305.

 

Page Putnam Miller, "Archival Issues and Programs: The Central Role of Advocacy," Public Historian 8 (Summer 1986): 57-70.

 

Virginia Stewart, "Transactions in Archival Consulting," Midwestern Archivist10 (no. 2, 1985): 107-15.

 

Richard J. Cox, "Fund-Raising for Historical Records Programs: An Underdeveloped Archival Function," Provenance 6 (Fall 1988): 1-19.

 

Richard J. Cox, "Archives and Archivists in the Twenty-First Century: What Will We Become?"  Archival Issues 20, no. 2 (1995): 97-113.

 

Bruce W. Dearstyne, "What is the Use of Archives?  A Challenge for the Profession," American Archivist 50 (Spring 1987):  76-87.

 

Larry J. Hackman, "From Assessment to Action:  Toward a Usable Past in the Empire State," Public Historian 7 (Summer 1985):  23-34.

 

Students should visit Library and Archival Exhibitions on the Web. http://www.sil.si.edu/SILPublications/Online-Exhibitions/online-exhibitions-title.htm This site features links to online exhibitions that have been created by libraries, archives, and historical societies, as well as to museum online exhibitions with a significant focus on library and archival materials.  These online exhibitions draw their inspiration and content primarily from library and archival materials, including, for example: printed books, book illustrations, manuscripts, photographs, printed ephemera, posters, archival audio and video recordings, artist's books, and the book arts (engraving, marbling, and bookbinding, etc.). The online exhibitions in this guide are listed alphabetically by title. A keyword search engine for this site is currently under development, to facilitate access to individual exhibitions by subject, geographic location, and institution.

 

 

     

Week Ten (10/31/00)

Identification and Retention (Appraisal) of Archival and Historical Records

 

            Required Readings

 

Schwirtlich and Reed, "Managing the Acquisition Process," in Ellis, chapter 5

 

Reed, "Appraisal and Disposal," in Ellis, chapter 6

 

                        Brunton and Robinson, "Accessioning," in Ellis, chapter 7

 

                        Bearman, Archival Methods, Chapter 1

 

Richard J. Cox and Helen W. Samuels, "The Archivist's First Responsibility:  A Research Agenda to Improve the Identification and Retention of Records of Enduring Value," American Archivist 51 (Winter/Spring 1988):  28-42.

 

Frank Boles and Young, Julia Marks. "Exploring the Black Box:  The Appraisal of University Administrative Records," American Archivist 48 (Spring 1985):  121-40.

 

Terry Cook, "Many are called but few are chosen: Appraisal Guidelines for Sampling and Selecting Case Files," Archivaria 32 (Summer 1991): 25-50.

 

Richard J. Cox, "The Documentation Strategy and Archival Appraisal Principles: A Different Perspective," Archivaria 38 (Fall 1994): 11-36.

 

Richard J. Cox, "The Archival Documentation Strategy: A Brief Intellectual History, 1984-1994 and Practical Description,"  Janus

no. 2 (1995): 76-93.

 

Luciana Duranti,  “The Concept of Appraisal and Archival Theory.”  American Archivist 57 (Spring 1994): 328-344; response by Frank Boles and Mark A. Greene,  “Et Tu Schellenberg?  Thoughts on the Dagger of American Appraisal Theory.”  American Archivist 59 (Summer1996): 298-310.

 

Judith E. Endelman, "Looking Backward to Plan for the Future: Collection Analysis for Manuscript Repositories," American Archivist 50 (Summer 1987): 340-55.

 

Faye Phillips, "Developing Collecting Policies for Manuscript Collections," American Archivist 47 (Winter 1984): 30-41.

 

Helen W. Samuels, "Who Controls the Past," American Archivist 49 (Spring 1986): 109-24.

 

David J. Klaassen, "The Archival Intersection: Cooperation Between Collecting Repositories and Nonprofit Organizations," Midwestern Archivist 15, no. 1 (1990): 25-38.

 

For examples of archival appraisal reports, visit the Texas State Library and Archives Commission website (http://www.tsl.state.tx.us/arc/appraisal/).  This website includes “Records Appraisal Reports [that] are comprehensive accounts of the process of appraising the records of an agency and of the resulting appraisal decisions. The reports can be read to determine (as of the date of the report) which records of an agency are of archival value; which records the Texas State Library and Archives Commission holds; which records the agency maintains and for how long; and which records are not archival. The last category does not include appraisals of all the records created by the agency, but rather, only those series having a reasonable possibility of being archival.”

 

 

 

Week Eleven (11/7/00).      

Preservation Management and Security of Archives

 

            Required Readings

 

                        Bearman, Archival Methods, Chapter 2

 

                        Harvey, "Preservation," in Ellis, chapter 3

 

Paul Conway, "Archival Preservation Practice in a Nationwide Context," American Archivist 53 (Spring 1990): 204-222.

 

Alan Calmes; Schofer, Ralph; and Eberhardt, Keith R.  "Theory and Practice of Paper Preservation for Archives," Restaurator 9 (no. 2, 1988): 96- 110.

 

James M. O'Toole, "On the Idea of Permanence," American Archivist 52 (Winter 1989): 10-25.

 

Preserving Digital Information: Report of the Task Force on Archiving of Digital Information (Washington, DC: Commission on Preservation and Access and The Research Libraries Group, Inc., 1996); available at http://www.clir.org/pubs/abstract/pub63.html.

 

Mary Lynn Ritzenthaler, "Holdings Maintenance at the National Archives of the United States," Restaurator 10 (1989): 151-59.

 

Nancy E. Gwinn, "The Fragility of Paper: Can Our Historical Record Be Saved?"  The Public Historian 13 (Summer 1991): 33-53.

 

Richard J. Cox, "Selecting Historical Records for Microfilming: Some Suggested Procedures for Repositories," Library & Archival Security 9, no. 2 (1989): 21-41.

 

A good resource is Preservation of electronic information: a bibliography http://homes.ukoln.ac.uk/%7Elismd/preservation.html by Michael Day
UKOLN: The UK Office for Library and Information Networking,
University of Bath, Bath, BA2 7AY, United Kingdom.

 

Another good resource is Conservation OnLine: Resources for Conservation Professionals http://palimpsest.stanford.edu/.  Conservation OnLine: Resources for Conservation Professionals.  CoOL, a project of the Preservation Department of Stanford University Libraries, is a full text library of conservation information, covering a wide spectrum of topics of interest to those involved with the conservation of library, archives and museum materials.

 

Browse Sherelyn Ogden, ed., Preservation of Library and Archival Materials: A Manual, 3rd ed. Rev. (Andover, Massachusetts: Northeast Document Conservation Center, 1999) is available online at http://www.nedcc.org/plam3/manhome.htm.  The manual, long a standard one in preservation management circles, includes sections on planning and prioritizing, the environment, emergency management, storage and handling, reformatting, and conservation procedures.

Week Twelve (11/14/00)     

Archival Representation (Arrangement and Description); Recordkeeping Systems as Systems: Functional Requirements, Production Rules, and Metadata

 

            Required Readings

 

Roberts, "Using Computers and Document Imaging," in Ellis, chapter 12

 

Roberts, "Managing Records in Special Formats," in Ellis, chapter 13

 

Brunton and Robinson, "Arrangement and Description," in Ellis, chapter 8

 

                        Edgecombe, "Finding Aids," in Ellis, chapter 9

 

                        Bearman, Archival Methods, Chapters 3 and 5

 

                        Bearman, Electronic Evidence, Chapter 8

 

Avra Michelson, "Description and Reference in the Age of Automation,” American Archivist 50 (Spring 1987):  192-208.

 

David Wallace, "Managing the Present: Metadata as Archival Description," Archivaria 39 (Spring 1995): 11-21.

 

Heather MacNeil, "Metadata Strategies and Archival Description: Comparing Apples to Oranges," Archivaria 39 (Spring 1995): 22-32.

 

Wendy Duff, "Will Metadata Replace Archival Description? A Commentary," Archivaria 39 (Spring 1995): 33-38.

 

Daniel V. Pitti, “Encoded Archival Description: The Development of an Encoding Standard for Archival Finding Aids,” American Archivist 60 (Summer 1997): 268-283.  Browse in the two special issues of this journal, Summer and Fall 1997, to get a sense of what EAD is, its purpose, and its use.

 

Steven L. Hensen, "The Use of Standards in the Application of the AMC Format," American Archivist 49 (Winter 1986): 31-40.

 

Nancy Sahli, "Interpretation and Application of the AMC Format," American Archivist 49 (Winter 1986): 9-20.

 

Helen W. Slotkin and Karen T. Lynch, "An Analysis of Processing Procedures: The Adaptable Approach," American Archivist 45 (Spring 1982): 155-63. 

 

Max J. Evans, "Authority Control: An Alternative to the Record Group Concept," American Archivist 49 (Summer 1986): 249-61.

 

David Bearman, "Archives and Manuscript Control with Bibliographic Utilities: Challenges and Opportunities," American Archivist 52 (Winter 1989): 26-39.

 

David Bearman, Electronic Evidence, chapter seven ("Information Technology Standards and Archives").

 

David Bearman, "Diplomatics, Weberian Bureaucracy, and the Management of Electronic Records in Europe and America," American Archivist 55 (Winter 1992): 168-180; or chapter nine in his Electronic Evidence.

 

Mark Brogan, "Regulation and the Market: A Micro-Economic Analysis of Strategies for Electronic Archives Management," Archives and Manuscripts 22 (November 1994): 384-94.

 

Students should visit the website of the Encoded Archival Description Round Table of the Society of American Archivists  (http://jefferson.village.virginia.edu/ead/products.html).  The EAD Round Table provides information on activities of the round table, background information on Encoded Archival Description, technical aspects supporting EAD, and reading lists.  “The EAD Roundtable of the Society of American Archivists is intended to promote the implementation and use of the EAD.DTD (Encoded Archival Description Document Type Definition) for dissemination of archival information. To this end, we aim to put persons in touch with appropriate information concerning converting existing archival finding aids to EAD format, use of software for markup, parsing, indexing, and document delivery, and the current status of EAD development.”

 

Browse Introduction to Archival Organization and Description: Access to Cultural Heritage, written by Michael J. Fox, Peter L. Wilkerson, Suzanne R. Warren, Timothy Ericson, Kris Kiesling, and Helen Tibbo, and published by the Getty Information Institute is another example.  The online publication, available at http://www.schistory.org/getty/, includes information on the theory, practice, standards, workflow, and the future of archival arrangement and description.  The publication also includes additional resources on publications, glossary, and other Web resources.

 

Week Thirteen (11/21/00)            Reference and Access

 

      Required Readings

 

                        Bearman, Archival Methods, Chapter 4

 

                        McCausland, "Access and Reference Services," in Ellis, chapter 10

 

Lawrence Dowler, "The Role of Use in Defining Archival Practice and Principles:  A Research Agenda for the Availability and Use of Records," American Archivist 51 (Winter/Spring 1988):  74-86.

                       

Paul Conway, "Facts and Frameworks:  An Approach to Studying the Users of Archives,"  American Archivist 49 (Fall 1986):  393-407.

 

Elsie T. Freeman, "In the Eye of the Beholder: Archives Administration from the User's Point of View," American Archivist 47 (Spring1984): 111-23.

 

Mary Jo Pugh, "The Illusion of Omniscience:  Subject Access and the Reference Archivist," American Archivist 45 (Winter 1982):  33-44.

                       

Linda M. Matthews, "Copyright and the Duplication of Personal Papers in Archival Repositories," Library Trends 32 (Fall 1983):  223-40 or Kenneth D. Crews, "Unpublished Manuscripts and the Right of Fair Use: Copyright Law and the Strategic Management of Information Resources," Rare Books & Manuscripts Librarianship 5, no. 2 (1990): 61-70.

 

Students should also visit the homepage of the National Security Archive at http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/.  The National Security Archive combines a unique range of functions in one non-governmental, non-profit institution. The Archive is simultaneously a research institute on international affairs, a library and archive of declassified U.S. documents obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, a public interest law firm defending and expanding public access to government information through the FOIA, and an indexer and publisher of the documents in books, microfiche, and electronic formats. The Archive's approximately $1.5 million per year budget comes from publication revenues and from private philanthropists such as the Carnegie Corporation, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, and the Ford Foundation.  The National Security Archive was founded in 1985 by a group of journalists and scholars who had obtained documentation from the U.S. government under the Freedom of Information Act and sought a centralized repository for these materials. Over the years, the Archive has become the world's largest non-governmental library of declassified documents. Located on the seventh floor of the George Washington University's Gelman Library in Washington, D.C., the Archive is designed to apply the latest in computerized indexing technology to the massive amount of material already released by the U.S. government on international affairs, make them accessible to researchers and the public, and go beyond that base to build comprehensive collections of documents on specific topics of greatest interest to scholars and the public.

 

PART FIVE              PRESENT ISSUES AND FUTURE DIRECTIONS

 

Week Fourteen (11/28/00)

Present nature of the issues before the archival profession; relationship of the archival profession to other professions and disciplines; similarities and differences between archives and libraries.

 

            Required Readings

 

Larry J. Hackman, "A Perspective on American Archives,"  Public Historian 8 (Summer 1986):  5-23 and "Toward the Year 2000,"  Public Historian 8 (Summer 1986):  89-95.

 

Richard J. Cox, "Archivists and Professionalism in the United States Revisited: A Review Essay," Midwestern Archivist 15, no. 1 (1990): 5-15.

 

Richard Kesner, "Automated Information Management:  Is There a Role for the Archivist in the Office of the Future?" Archivaria 19 (Winter 1984-85): 162-72.

 

Elena S. Danielson, "The Ethics of Access," American Archivist 52 (Winter 1989): 52-62.

 

David E. Horn,  "The Development of Ethics in Archival Practice," American Archivist 52 (Winter 1989): 64-71.

 

Lawrence J. McCrank, ed., Archives and Library Administration: Divergent Traditions and Common Concerns (New York:  Haworth Press, 1986).  Also published as Journal of Library Administration, 7 (Summer/Fall 1986).  Browse.

 

Mattie U. Russell, "The Influence of Historians on the Archival Profession in the United States,” American Archivist 46 (Summer 1983): 277- 85.

 

Richard J. Cox, American Archival Analysis: The Recent Development of the Archival Profession in the United States (Metuchen: Scarecrow Press, 1990).  Read chapters on professionalism, relations between archivists and public historians, government documents, and analytical bibliography.

           

F. Gerald Ham, "Archival Strategies for the Post-Custodial Era," American Archivist 44 (Winter 1981): 207-16.

 

John A. Fleckner, "'Dear Mary Jane': Some Reflections on Being an Archivist," American Archivist 54 (Winter 1991): 8-13.

 

LONG RESEARCH PAPER IS DUE TO BE HANDED IN AT CLASS FOURTEEN.  Students should hand in their research paper, checking to make sure that all requirements are met.  The papers may be returned the last class.

 

 

Week Fifteen (12/5/00)       

Records and the Internet; Records and the Future of History; Wrap-up: Discussion of student papers; Final consideration of issues raised during the course

 

Required Readings

     

Jeff Rothenberg, "Ensuring the Longevity of Digital Documents," Scientific American 272 (January 1995): 42-47.

 

David Bearman, Electronic Evidence, chapter ten ("New Models for Management of Electronic Records by Archives").

 

Margaret Hedstrom, "Understanding Electronic Incunabula: A Framework for Research on Electronic Records," American Archivist 54 (Summer 1991): 334-355.

 

Richard J. Cox, The First Generation of Electronic Records Archivists in the United States: A Study in Professionalization (Binghamton, NY: Haworth Press, Inc., 1994).  Browse.

 

Charles R. McClure and J. Timothy Sprehe, Analysis and Development of Model Quality Guidelines for Electronic Records Management on State and Federal Websites; Final Report January 1998, at http://slis-two.lis.fsu.edu/~cmcclure/nhprc/nhprc_title.html.

The study, funded by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission, looks at the concern about whether web postings are official government records or not.