SAA Fellow: Michael Rush

Michael Rush, assistant head of the Manuscript Unit in the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library at Yale University, 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.

Michael has provided progressive leadership in and considerable contributions to the development, revision, and implementation of the Encoded Archival Description (EAD) standard.

It was during his five-year term as co-chair of SAA's Technical Subcommittee for Encoded Archival Description (TS-EAD) where his leadership and technical skills led to the publication of EAD3. His contributions to EAD development are present throughout his many presentations, publications, and training citations. The citations document his involvement in archival encoded description and access, including his EAD Bibliography (2006-2011) that often serves as research documentation on encoded descriptive standards for the archival community.

In addition, Michael demonstrated his initiative and commitment to SAA in a variety of leadership roles. He served on SAA's Standards Committee, chair and member of the Technical Subcommittee on Descriptive Standards, co-chair of the Encoded Archival Description Roundtable, chair and member of the Technical Subcommittee for Encoded Archival Standards (TS-EAS), and member of the Technical Subcommittee for Encoded Archival Context. He created two SAA EAD Web Seminars—EAD3: What's New? and EAD Tips and Tricks.

Other professional contributions include progressive descriptive and management responsibilities at the Massachusetts Historical Society and in his current position at the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library at Yale University. His volunteer work with regional, state, national and international professional organizations document his deep engagement in developing archival encoded description standards.    

His nominator noted that it is "his ability to bring together individuals with different experiences and sets of expertise in pursuit of a common goal,” as his most valuable asset.