Forty-Five Earn Digital Archives Specialist Certificates from Society of American Archivists

Forty-five archivists earned the Digital Archives Specialist (DAS) certificate from the Society of American Archivists (SAA) after completing required coursework and passing a comprehensive examination in March. SAA’s DAS certificate program was developed by experts in the field of digital archives and provides archivists with the information and tools needed to manage the demands of born-digital records.

DAS certificate holders must complete nine courses from four tiers: Foundational, Tactical and Strategic, Tools and Services, and Transformational, and pass the comprehensive examination. DAS certificate holders have the skills to understand the nature of electronic records; define requirements, roles, and responsibilities related to digital archives; formulate strategies for appraising, describing, managing, organizing, and preserving digital archives; plan for new tools and technologies and integrate them into existing functions to appraise, capture, preserve, and provide access to digital collections; curate, store, and retrieve original masters and access copies of digital archives; and provide reliable service related to electronic records and digital archives.

The new Digital Archives Specialists are: Bertha Adams (Philadelphia Museum of Art), Paula Aloisio (Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study), Tony Black (Texas State Library and Archives Commission), Hillary Bober (Dallas Museum of Art), Colleen Bradley-Sanders (Sothern Methodist University), Jennifer Brancato (University of Dayton), Mary E. Burtzloff (National Archives at Kansas City), Laura A. Capell (University of Miami Libraries), Anna Clarkson (Baltimore Museum of Art),  Julia C. Corrin  (Arkansas State University), Robert Fahs (National Archives at College Park), Brett Fisher (Chapman University), Dara Flinn (Rice University), Amanda Focke (Rice University), Jennifer Gotwals (Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study), Tammy Hamilton (Hershey Community Archives), Sean Heyliger (African American Museum and Library of Oakland), Christina Horton (Wells Fargo & Co. Archives), Sarah Jacobson (Texas State Library and Archives Commission), Nicole Joniec (Library Company of Philadelphia), Irwin Lachoff (Xavier University of Louisiana), Melissa Laney (Anti-Defamation League), Catherine Lea Holbrook (Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study), Thadius Love (Smithsonian Institution, National Air and Space Museum), Kevin Miller (Pepperdine University), Catherine Obrion (Supreme Court of Virginia Law Library), Angela Ossar (Texas State Library and Archives Commission), Annie Paprocki (United Nations), Nanette Pfiester (Texas State Library and Archives Commission), Sarah Powell (Museum of Fine Arts, Houston), Rebecca Romanchuk (Texas State Library and Archives Commission), Laura Saegert (Texas State Library and Archives Commission), Renee M. Savits (The Library of Virginia), Lorraine Stuart (Museum of Fine Arts, Houston), Eira M. Tansey (University of Cincinnati), Jessica Tucker (Texas State Library and Archives Commission), Mark J. Vassar (Harvard University), Emily Vigor (University of California, Berkeley), Margaret C. Welch (Northeast Museum Services Center), Erica Wilson (Texas State Library and Archives Commission), Tonia Wood (Texas State Library and Archives Commission), Kent Woynowski (The Historic New Orleans Collection), Julie Wroblewski (Benedictine University), Shannon Yule (The Frick Collection and Frick Art Reference Library), and Bonnie Zuber (Texas State Library and Archives Commission).

A total of ninety-two people have earned Digital Archives Specialist certificates since the program began in October 2011. Currently, there are more than six hundred participants in SAA’s DAS program who are working toward earning a certificate. For more information, visit www2.archivists.org/prof-education/das or contact SAA Education Director Solveig De Sutter (sdesutter@archivists.org).