News

SSA is continuing to participate in the formation of a group with Society of American Archivists, tentatively named the Regional Associations Group. There will be a meeting of group representatives at SAA in New Orleans, working on the structure and goals of the group.

As SSA's Immediate Past President, I will represent SSA, and I welcome your thoughts on this process.
Here is a summary of recent activity --

Recommendations from the 2012 SAA/Regionals Summit included establishing a listserv to ensure ongoing discussion and creating a formal group to take on information-sharing and advocacy initiatives. During the past year, a group of your colleagues, representing multi-state, state, and local regional archives organizations, has been collaborating with three SAA Council members to propose this formal Regional Associations Group. We are hoping that you will represent SSA and continue this conversation with us.

 

As a result of our work, we are proposing a draft statement of purpose, goals, and membership outline. If you have thoughts or concerns about this draft, please email your comments to me at afocke@rice.edu  by July 26.

 

Thank you!

Amanda Focke, CA

SSA Immediate Past President, May 2013- May 2014

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Statement of Purpose

The Regional Associations Group provides an official venue for information exchange amongst the leadership of regional archival organizations, and amongst the Regionals and the Society of American Archivists. The Group serves as a formal entity for fostering collaboration among the Regionals, and between the Regionals and SAA. It offers formal channels to coordinate efforts intra-state, interstate, and with SAA which facilitate streamlining actions, reducing costs, and increasing services to archivists around the nation. Such efforts include but are not limited to advocacy, public awareness, education, disaster planning/recovery, and grant development.

 

Membership composition

The membership of the committee includes one member from each of the regional organizations identified in the list below and two members of SAA. Regional organizations will select their representatives in whatever manner they choose. The SAA vice-president will appoint the SAA representatives. All initial members will be identified by August 1st, 2013. Members will serve two-year terms, except for the initial members, half of whom will serve 1 year terms. Members can only serve two consecutive terms.

 

Goals for initial year: (10/2013-9/2014):

• select leaders for 2013-2014;
• select and implement a communication structure for committee leadership, committee members, and their constituencies.
• develop a 3-year plan for implementing its purpose statement, report this plan to regional and SAA leadership, and compile regional and SAA member comments for use in implementing the plan;
• select at least one collaborative project to be completed and reported upon by July 1, 2014.

 

List of regional associations:

Multi-State

1.      Conference of Inter-Mountain Archivists

2.      Mid-Atlantic Regional Archives Conference

3.      Midwest Archives Conference

4.      New England Archivists

5.      Northwest Archivists, Inc.

6.      Society of Rocky Mountain Archivists

7.      Society of Southwest Archivists

 

Statewide

1.      Association of Hawaii Archivists

2.      Consortium of Iowa Archivists

3.      Delaware Valley Archivists Group (since it covers no entire state but multiple state)

4.      Kentucky Council on Archives

5.      Louisiana Archives and Manuscripts Association

6.      Maine Archives and Museums

7.      Miami Valley Archives Roundtable

8.      Michigan Archival Association

9.      New Hampshire Archives Group

10.      New York Archives Conference

11.      Society of Alabama Archivists

12.      Society of California Archivists

13.      Society of Florida Archivists

14.      Society of Georgia Archivists

15.      Society of Indiana Archivists

16.      Society of Mississippi Archivists

17.      Society of North Carolina Archivists

18.      Society of Ohio Archivists

19.      Society of Tennessee Archivists

20.      South Carolina Archival Association

 

Local (City or Regional within a State)

1.      Archivists of Central Texas

2.      Archivists of the Houston Area

3.      Archivists Round Table of Metropolitan New York, Inc.

4.      Association of St. Louis Area Archivists

5.      Capital Area Archivists of New York

6.      Charleston Archives, Libraries and Museum Council

7.      Chicago Area Archivists

8.      Cleveland Archival Roundtable

9.      Greater New Orleans Archivists

10.      Kansas City Area Archivists

11.      Saint Louis Area Religious Archivists

12.      Seattle Area Archivists

13.      Southeastern Wisconsin Archives Group

14.      Twin Cities Archives Round Table
15.        Central Oklahoma Archivists League

Dear SSA members,

Both the Texas State Library and Archives Commission (TSLAC) and the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC) are calling upon the archival community to lobby our state and federal legislatures for continued funding of their programs. 

TSLAC is seeking funding of its Exceptional Budget Request for its e-records program, that will serve as a much-needed model for archival repositories in the state and that will provide on-going access to records that fall under the Texas Public Information Act or otherwise document our rights, property and heritage.

For TSLAC please call the following numbers: Texas Senator and Finance Committee Chair, Tommy Williams at 512-463-0104, and

Texas Representative and Appropriations Chair, Jim Pitt at 512-463-0516.

 

Follow the protocol below:

1.       State your name, residence, and the organization that you represent.

2.       Ask to speak with the given representative or their legislative and budgetary liaison.

3. Then tell that individual that:  “State agencies are creating records in electronic formats that must be retained permanently for legal, administrative and historical reasons. Right now, the Texas State Library and Archives Commission has no means of transferring and preserving these records. TSLAC needs the exceptional item funding of $450,000 to begin developing a digital archive in order to transfer, manage, preserve and provide access to those records in accordance with state law.”

4.       Thank them for their time and kindly ask that your comments be passed along the representatives on the budget conference committee for their consideration.

SSA member Paul Scott’s message copied below contains additional information. (Thank you, Paul, for again sounding the alarm.)

NHPRC:

In the White House budget proposed for FY14, funding for the NHPRC has been cut approximately 40%, from almost 5 million dollars to 3 million. The next step is for Congress to accept and/or modify the President’s proposed budget, which will begin with the Financial Services sub-committee, then move to the House Appropriations Committee before a full House vote. Unfortunately, there are no longer any Texans on the Financial Services Sub-committee, but Representative John Culberson is on the House Appropriations Committee. He is a history buff and has been supportive of funding for the NHPRC in the past. I will propose a letter on behalf of SSA, but if you would also like to express support for level funding for the NHPRC, please contact his office at Phone: (713) 682-8828/Fax: (713) 680-8070/Phone: (202) 225-2571/Fax: (202) 225-4381.

From SSA member Paul Scott:

“I am in receipt of an e-mail and the attached letter from Monte Monroe, the Chair of the Texas State Historical Association’s Archives Committee, requesting our assistance in making two key members of the State Legislature aware of the necessity to provide the funds in this biennium’s budget to begin the collection and preservation of electronic records of permanent value.  Repeatedly the State Archives has requested this funding, repeatedly the State Legislature has deferred, and it is ready to do so again.  Let me emphasize that we should make phone calls as e-mails are easy to ignore.  It is appropriate to follow-up with an e-mail, but if you do so, mark it urgent as time is growing short.  I thank you for the support you provided on SB 881 and hope that you will also help again.”

Thank you!! 

Amanda Focke

SSA President, May 2012-May 2013

You can follow @SWarchivists and connect with fellow SSAers who follow SSA by using the hashtag #SWarchivists. Enjoy! If you're going to SAA this would be a great way to communicate!