SAA Fellow: Geof Huth

Geof Huth, chief records officer and chief law librarian at New York State Unified Court System, will be inducted as a 2020 Fellow of the Society of American Archivists (SAA). The distinction of Fellow is the highest honor bestowed on individuals by SAA and is awarded for outstanding contributions to the archives profession.

Huth's presentations, writings, and workshops have kept him in service to the archival profession. From the beginning of his career, Geof has written and published on a range of records and archival topics. He has completed over 250 presentations given to national, regional, state, and local archival and records management organizations. Presentations include records management topics, digital records, disaster recovery, appraisal, advocacy and outreach, mentoring, strategic planning, and special interest topics. His writings have been published in Archival Outlook, the Mid-Atlantic Archivist, and various historical societies and local government association publications.

Geof has worked with SAA for 29 years, beginning with his first committee appointment in 1991. He has held a position continuously in SAA for 19 years from 2001 to the present, and has held multiple leadership positons on SAA’s various sections, committee and boards. His role was pivotal in developing SAA’s Digital Archives Specialist certificate, which was a result of his extensive and long-standing work with digital records. His latest efforts in the archival community include a podcast that he and his wife Karen Trivette began producing in 2018. Titled, An Archivist’s Tale, this weekly podcast, currently exceeding 100 episodes and highlights archivists in conversation with archivists, discussing their work and passions and how they care for the historical record and present the storied past. No doubt, Geof’s contributions will continue to make a lasting impact in the archival community and beyond.

As one supporter noted, “His overarching desire to push colleagues to think more deeply about the profession and ways to make it better, demonstrate the passion that he has for the archival profession and the possibilities it has for its members and stakeholders.”