Call to Action #1: Demonstrate the Value of Archives
People seem to sense – almost instinctively – that archives are important. They come in droves to see the founding documents on display at the National Archives in Washington, DC. They comment on “how interesting” it must be to be an archivist. But they can’t quite put their fingers on why it all matters....
Let’s work together on changing that! Here are some ideas for how you might take action to raise awareness of archives this fall.
1. Tell a Story
Develop a brief “story” that explains how the use of archival records had an impact on, or resulted in a positive change for, a person or group.
Your narrative should focus on the outcomes or results of someone using archival records, not on the content of the records. We’re developing a catalog of stories that we can share with each other (and with the public!) on the SAA website to illustrate how archives change lives.
Click here for examples of stories
2. Highlight Your Repository
Take advantage of American Archives Month (October!) to raise awareness of archives – and your own repository – by doing one of the following:
- Contact the website or newsletter editor or public relations person in your own organization with an idea for an article that draws attention to your archives and your records. (If you develop and include in the article a story as described in #1 above, you get extra credit!)
Tips on pitching an article idea
- Invite your local media to visit your repository so that you can familiarize them with your holdings and how they’re used. If the visit results in an article or radio/TV clip that you can share with us, you’ll get extra credit for that, too!
- Identify a particular group of users or constituents who might become strong supporters of your archival collections and give them a tour that focuses on their interests.
Ideas for hosting a repository tour
Tell us about the action(s) you took!
For more ideas on what you can do to help raise awareness of archives this fall, see SAA’s American Archives Month webpage.
Solo Archivists Section
Welcome to the SAA Solo Archivists Section (SAS)! This site can be used to connect to other solo archivists, learn more about our work, find resources, and access our reports and our newsletter, SOLO.
MISSION
To provide education, stimulate communication, and encourage support between archivists working alone or in very small staff situations.
CONTACT US
Section leadership can be reached at soloarchivists.saa@gmail.com. Please contact us with any questions, comments, or ideas for the SAS!
Students and New Archives Professionals (SNAP) Section
The Students and New Archives Professionals (SNAP) Section of SAA
advocates for and addresses the needs of aspiring archivists, students, interns, and early-career archivists by providing a forum to
share their questions and learn from others in the profession.
We accomplish this through our work with student chapters around the country, SNAP chats on Twitter, hosting webinars, and through postings and discussions on our blog about issues and topics of interest and concern to our members, as well as by collaborating with other SAA sections and committees.
To join the SNAP community, simply subscribe to our email list. (You do not need to be a member of SAA to create an SAA profile and subscribe to SNAP’s communications.)
You can learn more about SNAP and join the
discussion through our various social media channels on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and our Wordpress blog or you can reach out to us by email.