SAA Foundation 2025 Catalyst Grant Program Recipients

Escondido Public Library Pioneer Room  

The Escondido Latinos Oral History project aims to document the rich, yet underrepresented, history of Escondido's Hispanic and Latino community through oral histories and related materials. This initiative, led by the Pioneer Room and partner organizations, adheres to Oral History Association and Baylor University standards. Participants will undergo a screening, pre-interview, and final interview, with access to plain-language consent forms and interview questions. They can review and edit their transcripts and have interviews conducted in their preferred language. Transcriptions will be available in English and Spanish, and archival processing will follow DACS standards. Project materials will be in both English and Spanish to engage the community.  

The University of Minnesota Libraries   

The Mapping the Artist's Archive and Personal Library: The Legacy of Harriet Bart project aims to map conceptual artist Harriet Bart's personal library to her broader archive. Bart's library, integral to her creative process, holds significant personal and professional meaning. The project will create an annotated bibliography within an ASpace Finding Aid, cross-referencing her library with her artworks. This effort seeks to preserve Bart's artistic approach, highlighting the connection between her reading habits and creative output. The project emphasizes the value of mapping personal libraries to archives, enhancing discoverability and interpretation, and contributes to discussions on the preservation of artists' libraries.  

The Lithuanian Archives Project (LAP)

The Uncovered History: A Case Study on Post-WWII Migration of a Lithuanian Migrant's Journey to the West project aims to digitize journals from a Lithuanian migrant who traveled to the West after World War II. The migrant believed they could return home once Lithuania was rebuilt. The Lithuanian Archives Project (LAP) will also collect oral history from the journal's author, who is still alive. The collection will include diary entries, photographs, and postcards, providing a comprehensive view of the migrant's experience. This resource will be accessible to scholars studying assimilation and resilience, offering a personal perspective on post-war migration.  

Callaloo Foundation Inc.   

The Audiovisual Assessment of the Callaloo Electronic, Audio, and Video Archival items project evaluates the digital assets of Dr. Charles Rowell and Callaloo literary journal. This final phase of the archive review aims to enhance The Callaloo Foundation's understanding of these collections, aiding in their archival placement or acquisition. Insights from experts and testimonials highlight the importance of preserving these cultural treasures for future generations.  

Washington State University Vancouver   

The Making Shockwave Archives Accessible project, led by the Electronic Literature Lab at Washington State University Vancouver, aims to document and make accessible 78 born-digital literature, art, and game works created in Shockwave and archived in The NEXT. This initiative involves creating formal video documentation, called Traversals, for each work and making these accessible on their exhibition spaces. Building on the Pathfinders methodology, funded by a 2013 NEH grant, the project includes works from various collections dating back to the mid-1990s, published in online journals and by publishers like Voyager Company and Eastgate Systems. The NEXT, currently holding 46 collections with 2,439 works, ensures all pieces are archived, restored, and documented for public access.   

The Institute for Public Ethnomusicology   

The Louisiana Décima Project, starting in 2023, aims to revitalize Isleño Spanish, a unique dialect from coastal southeast Louisiana, which faces extinction. This initiative, in collaboration with University of California, Davis, digitizes over 100 hours of field recordings, the most extensive documentation of Isleño Spanish and its folk songs, the décima. The project involves researchers, educators, and community members, focusing on creating accessible resources for Spanish speakers and learners. By combining web design, digital archives, linguistics, and ethnomusicology, the project seeks to develop educational materials, a web-based resource, and outreach efforts to support Isleño Spanish education and cultural preservation.  

Internet Archives  

The National Summit on Digital Local News Preservation aims to unite archivists, librarians, scholars, journalists, and news organizations to tackle the challenges of preserving local news. The event will feature guest speakers, workshops, discussion groups, and brainstorming sessions, culminating in recommendations for local news preservation. These findings will support a training program through Internet Archive's Community Webs, an international network of over 220 cultural heritage organizations dedicated to web archiving. The Summit is part of Internet Archive's broader efforts to address digital local news preservation, leveraging partnerships across journalism and cultural heritage sectors. 

Congratulations to all the awardees for their dedication and hard work in advancing the field of archival work. Thanks to the generous donors who have supported the SAA Foundation's Catalyst Fund, these projects are able to make a lasting impact on the profession.