SAA Council July Meeting Highlights

August 26, 2026—The Society of American Archivists (SAA) Council met in-person in New Orleans and online via Zoom on July 29. Highlights and key actions from the meeting are as follows:

• FY27 Budget
  • Council reviewed a material error in the FY27 budget approved in May.
  • No amended budget was approved at this meeting.
  • Council directed staff and finance leadership to prepare corrected analyses and additional information for a special Council meeting focused on the FY27 budget.
• Ratified the SAA Council’s May Meeting minutes (0726-II-A-Minutes).
• Ratified Council interim actions, including (0726-II-B-CouncilInterim):
  • Approved SAA Foundation Board appointments and reappointments. 
  • Approved the standing rules of the Task Force on the Future of the Annual Meeting.
  • Approved updated standing rules pertaining to a representative to the International Council on Archives’ Experts Group on Archival Description.
• Ratified Council’s Executive Committee’s interim actions, (0726-II-C-ExecCmteInterim) including:
  • Approved an advocacy effort, SAA Joins Cultural Organizations to Press for IMLS Funding.
  • Approved a position statement regarding the nomination of Bradford P. Wilson as Archivist of the United States. 
• Received an update about the implementation of Phase II of the SAA Strategic Plan (2026–2028), following a small pilot with select SAA component groups, which will enable SAA component groups to map their activities to the broader SAA Strategic Plan.
• Approved proposed revisions to the Guidelines for Reappraisal and Deaccessioning (0726-V-A-1).
• Received a report from the Archival Worker Labor Task Force (0726-VI-E-AWLTF).
• Recognized the contributions of outgoing Council members Selena Ortega-Chiolero, Alison Clemens, and Ricky Punzalan, and outgoing President Derek Mosley.
• Welcomed new Council Members Alexis Antracoli, Jessica Tai, and Gregory Wiedeman, as well as new Vice President Alison Clemens.
• Discussed the sites of future Annual Meetings, including Chicago in 2027 and Detroit in 2029 (the contract for 2028 is not yet finalized).  

Upcoming Council Meeting
The next Council meeting will be held on November 16–19, 2026, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. CT. Register for the meeting here!

Document Submission Deadlines
To support adequate review time, materials for the next Council meeting are due by October 12, 2026. Submissions received after this date may be postponed or considered for interim action. 
Submit materials to saagovernance@archivists.org.

For questions or concerns, reach out to the SAA Governance Team: saagovernance@archivists.org. 

Additional inquiries may be directed to:

• SAA President Brenda Gunn: president@archivists.org
• Chief Executive Officer Jacqualine Price Osafo: SAACEO@archivists.org