Annual Meeting Minutes 2025

AHS Annual Meeting, July 31, 2025 at 1:00PM CT

The meeting opened with a welcome and introduction by Chair, Natalie Worsham. An update from SAA Section Liaison, Krystal Appiah followed.

Steering Committee Member, Kristen Nyitray reported on the Annual Winter Lecture. The lecture was given by Heather MacNeil on February 11 with the title of “Calendars and the information and shaping of knowledge in the Public Record Office of Great Britain, ca. 1850-1950.” 

The newsletter report was given by Steering Committee Member, Melissa Smith. The section’s newsletter, Archival History News, is now in a new format. It can be found on the microsite, at SAA Connect, and at archivalhistorynews.wordpress.com.

Steering Committee Member, Sebastian Modrow presented the Archival History Article Awards. These awards are given for best archival history articles published the previous year (2024). The SAA member award winner was David Olson for “Forms, Formations, and Reforms,” published in The American Archivist. The nonmember award winner was Joel Antonio Blanco Rivera for “Custody, provenance and meaning in the context of state intelligence records: the case of las carpetas in Puerto Rico,” published in Archival Science. Each winner gave remarks.

The election of the incoming steering committee was announced by Natalie Worsham. The roster is Elizabeth Jones-Minsinger as Chair; Katharina Hering as Vice Chair/Chair-Elect; Mollie Frazier, Sharalyn D. Howcroft, and Patrick McGee as Steering Committe Members; and Madelaine Davis as Student/Early Career Member.

Natalie Worsham introduced the invited speaker, Christopher B. Livingston, who is Director of the Historical Research Center (HRC) at California State University, Bakersfield. Livingston highlighted projects and collections at the HRC. The presentation reflected on how archival theory intersects with personal experience and community engagement. Using Shellenberg’s framework of neutrality as a point of departure, it explored how critical race theory and lived experience reveal the limitations of traditional archival approaches. Through a student graduate project and the development of the “Celebrating Black Heritage” and Red Lining initiatives in Kern County, the talk illustrated how community-centered archival work can challenge dominant narratives, amplify marginalized voices, and reshape local memory through inclusive practices. The presentation was followed by a robust Q+A session.

The meeting closed with remarks from incoming Chair (Elizabeth Jones-Minsinger) about what to expect from the coming year.