First NHPRC Archival Research Fellowships Awarded

The first group of NHPRC Archival Research Fellows selected to receive fellowship awards are Nancy Deromedi (Bentley Historical Library, Ann Arbor, Michigan), Richard Hollinger (University of Maine Special Collections, Orono, Maine), Elisabeth Kaplan (Charles Babbage Institute, University of Minnesota), and Richard Pearce-Moses (Arizona State Library, Archives and Public Records).

The National Historical Publications and Records Commission Archival Research Fellowship is a three-year program established with an award of $143,000 to manage a new, non-residential archival research fellowship program. The program is administered by representatives from The Massachusetts Historical Society, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Northeastern University, Schlesinger Library at the Radcliffe Institute, and WGBH Educational Foundation.

Fellows are required to conduct research and write about a topic of importance to the archival profession. The grant requires that proposals concerning electronic records be given a higher priority than others. The topics of the first group of fellows are: Nancy Deromedi, Wired Faculty: Research to Assess the Archival Value of Faculty Websites to Document their Functions and Activities at the University of Michigan; Richard Hollinger, The Impact of Electronic Communications on Record Keeping Practices; Elisabeth Kaplan, Electronic Brains and Archival Minds: Archivists and Technology in the Postwar Era; and Richard Pearce-Moses, An Annotated Glossary for Archivists, Manuscript Curators, and Records Managers. This first group of fellows will present their findings in June 2003 in Boston at a symposium that will engage a broad spectrum of individuals.

The project was conceived to advance both basic and applied research and to encourage broad participation in the research process, enabling archivists, curators, and information specialists who work full-time under a 12-month contract the flexibility to conduct research. Up to five fellowships of $10,000 each may be awarded each cycle. Project funding is administered by the Massachusetts Historical Society. Application materials for the next round of funding will be available shortly by contacting Brenda Lawson at the Massachusetts Historical Society, 1154 Boylston Street, Boston, MA, 02215 (phone: 617-646-0502/e-mail: blawson@masshist.org). The project Executive Board consists of Brenda Lawson (Massachusetts Historical Society), Megan Sniffin-Marinoff (MIT), Joan Krizack (Northeastern University), Kathryn Jacob (Schlesinger Library/Radcliffe Institute), and Mary Ide (WGBH).