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The Society of American Archivists recognized and celebrated outstanding archival achievements for the calendar year 2001 at an awards ceremony held August 22, 2002, during its 66th annual meeting at the Sheraton in Birmingham, Alabama. Subcommittees of the Awards Committee, which was chaired by Alexandra Gressitt, and Bill Brock, selected recipients of the SAA-sponsored awards. SAA heartily congratulates all of the award winners.
DUKE UNIVERSITY is the recipient of the Society of American Archivists' 2002 Distinguished Service Award. Established in 1964, the award recognizes a North American archival institution that has provided outstanding public service and has made an exemplary contribution to the archival profession. David Ferriero, Duke University Vice Provost for Library Affairs, and Robert Byrd, Director of Rare Book, Manuscripts and Special Collections, received the award on behalf of the institution.
Duke has long been a leader in regional, national, and international archival efforts in descriptive standards, cutting-edge cooperative projects, and professional development and involvement. Duke was a very early implementer of Encoded Archival Description and helped to refine the standard. In addition, Duke staff produced a best-selling archival publication, Encoded Archival Description Tag Library, which was published by SAA in 1998. For almost a decade the Digital Scriptorium has led the development of best practices for online digital collections. As one nominator said, "Duke University is a model for other universities in how it develops its archives, hires and supports archivists, and commits itself to the principles that are at the heart of the archival profession."
Previous recipients of the Distinguished Service Award include the Master's of Archival Studies Program at the University of British Columbia, the Alan Mason Chesney Medical Archives at Johns Hopkins University, The Research Libraries Group, Oberlin College Archives, and the Billy Graham Archives.
Retired systems administrator JOAN WINTERS (pictured at left) and retired associate librarian LOUISE ADDIS, both of the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center, are the recipients of the Society of American Archivists' 2002 J. Franklin Jameson Archival Advocacy Award. Established in 1990, this prestigious award, named in honor of an historian and advocate for the archival profession, recognizes individuals and/or organizations that promote greater public awareness of archival activities and programs.
Ms. Winters and Ms. Addis not only grasped the historical dimension of their participation in the working group that created the first Web server in the United States, but also instinctively did the right things at the right times to ensure that records of that project survived. Ms. Winters' diligent safeguarding of superseded Web pages and system documentation along with Ms. Addis scrupulous maintenance of electronic meeting minutes and her firmly articulated record-keeping guidelines for the working group created one of the most significant windows into the history of the Web in the United States. The Society of American Archivists lauds Ms. Winters and Ms. Addis for their farsighted efforts and sustained commitment to promoting archival activities when they confronted the issues associated with the rapid evolution of information technology.
Past award recipients of the Jameson Award have included former Senator Thomas F. Eagleton (D-MO), Senator Mark Hatfield (R-OR), The Mellon Foundation, Hudson's Bay Company, and New York City philanthropist Richard Benson, Newsday, and Kraft Foods.
The VERMONT STATE ARCHIVES received the Society of American Archivists' 2002 Philip M. Hamer and Elizabeth Hamer Kegan Award for increasing public awareness about a specific body of documents. The award, established in 1973, honors the memory of two SAA Fellows and former presidents. Vermont State Archivist Gregory Sanford accepted the award.
The Vermont State Archives' impressive Web site, "Continuing Issues of Government and Governance," uses technology as an extension of a traditional archival publication program, but is not limited to merely posting electronic versions of finding aids or state records. In a proactive and unique approach, the staff of the Vermont State Archives made the extra effort to identify materials from the holdings of the State Archives relevant to current issues and topics and then post that material to this Web site (http://vermont-archives.org/governance/govern.htm). It is a dynamic publication. The Web site is now an active outreach tool known and used by legislators, the press, and the public.
Previous recipients of the Hamer Kegan Award include Jeffrey D. Marshall for his publication, A War of the People: Vermont Civil War Letters (which documents the lives and attitudes of rank-and-file Vermont soldiers), the American Heritage Center at University of Wyoming, New York Public Library, Minnesota Historical Society, and Delaware Public Archives.
The Society of American Archivists' 2002 Fellows' Posner Award was presented to TERRY COOK, professor in the Archival Studies Programme at the University of Manitoba and an archival consultant, for his article, " 'The Imperative of Challenging Absolutes' in Graduate Archival Education Programs: Issues for Educators and the Profession," published in volume 63 of the American Archivist. The award, established in 1982 by the Fellows of the Society of American Archivists and named for former SAA president Ernst Posner, recognizes an outstanding essay dealing with some facet of archival administration, history, theory, and/or methodology published in the latest volume of SAA's semi-annual journal.
Mr. Cook's article, which was published in a special issue on graduate archival education, reflects on various themes presented at a 1999 archival education conference and of the state of archival education at the beginning of the twentieth-first century. It provides a model summary, acknowledging the variety of perspectives presented in the other thought-provoking articles in the special issue. Mr. Cook uses his platform to go well beyond a summation of conference papers and offers a keen discussion of the relationships among research, education, and practice.
In this well-written essay, he argues that archival educators should ask not only, "What does an archivist need to know?" but also, "How does an archivist need to think, and why?" For Mr. Cook, this "approach advocates…a blend of the humanist and cultural perspective that is (or should be) at the heart of any university education, with professional knowledge and practical competence." He presents a research agenda that notes the needs for varied types of research, and research in varied settings. His broad, humanist essay illustrates how faculty, students, and practitioners can be partners in advancing the archival profession. While observing that, "Research by archivists in daily work is not the same as archival research," Mr. Cook establishes a continuing role for the practicing archivist in the archival research agenda. He further notes that, "It is important for the profession to remember that the opposite of practical is impractical, not theoretical. Theory is rather the complement to practice, and theory and practice should interact and cross-fertilize each other…"
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The Society of American Archivists' 2002 Waldo Gifford Leland Award for writing of superior excellence and usefulness in the field of archival history, theory, or practice was presented to RICHARD J. COX of the University of Pittsburgh for his provocative monograph, Managing Records for Evidence and Information (Quorum Books, 2001). Established in 1959, the award is named for one of North America's archival pioneers and SAA's second president.
Describing the work as an exploration of the fundamental principles of archives and records management that must be understood before records policy can be set, Cox asks records professionals to re-examine basic concepts, beginning with the definition of a record. Drawing upon a wide range of resources—archival theory past and present, his own research, and insights gleaned from other disciplines—Cox turns his keen analysis to other vital issues that should inform the setting of records policy: the place of technology in defining and managing records; the central role of sound records appraisal and maintenance criteria; the importance of advocacy for the records enterprise; and the need to better prepare future generations of records professionals. Some will differ with some of his conclusions, but few will disagree that his presentation is forceful, well informed, and impossible to ignore. Cox challenges archivists to be bold enough to think along these essential lines with him, to ask big questions about what archivists do and why. Managing Records as Evidence and Information is a vibrant contribution to professional discourse.
Cox, a SAA Fellow, is a second-time recipient of this award, having won it in 1991 for his book, American Archival Analysis: The Recent Development of the Archival Profession in the United States. Other previous recipients include Charles Dollar for Authentic Electronic Records: Strategies for Long-Term Access, James O'Toole of Boston College for The Records of American Business, and Anne Kenney & Steve Chapman of Cornell University for Digital Imaging for Libraries and Archives.
The Society of American Archivists' 2002 Preservation Publication Award was presented to ROBERT E. SCHNARE, JR. for his publication, Bibliography of Preservation Literature, 1983-1996 (Scarecrow Press, Inc., 2001). Established in 1993, the award recognizes the author or editor of an outstanding work, published in North America, that advances the theory or practice of preservation in archival institutions. Mr. Schnare, director of the library at the U.S. Naval War College.
This extensive annotated bibliography—and the excellent essay on preservation management that is included—addresses the pragmatic concerns of modern collection preservation. The book provides access to the best strategies and advice currently available. On both the title page and in his preface, Mr. Schnare credits and acknowledges the contributions of the late Susan G. Swartzburg and George M. Cunha in the genesis and development of the book. It is a wonderful tribute to these pioneers and leading lights in the archives and library preservation field. The archival community is grateful for this collective accomplishment, but especially to Mr. Schnare for bringing the work to fruition.
Past recipients of the Preservation Publication Award include Gregory S. Hunter for Preserving Digital Information: A How-To-Do-It Manual, Eléonore Kissel and Erin Vigneau for Architectural Photoreproductions: A Manual for Identification and Care, and James M. Reilly for The Storage Guide for Color Photographic Materials.
The Society of American Archivists' 2002 Theodore Calvin Pease Award was presented to RETO TSCHAN of the University of British Columbia for his student paper, "A Comparison of Jenkinson and Schellenberg on Appraisal." Established in 1987, the award is named for the first editor of SAA's semi-annual journal, American Archivist, and recognizes superior writing achievement by a student enrolled in archival administration classes or engaged in formal archival internship programs. Mr. Tschan received a certificate and cash prize. In addition, his paper will be published in a forthcoming issue of the American Archivist.
Mr. Tschan's award-winning paper was prepared for a course on "Selection and Acquisition of Archival Documents" taught by Professor Terry Eastwood in the Master of Archival Studies Program at the School of Library, Archival and Information Studies, University of British Columbia. The paper examines the thinking of Hilary Jenkinson and T.R. Schellenberg, two towering figures in twentieth-century archival theory, on the subject of appraisal. After carefully reviewing the logic of the starkly different approaches to appraisal taken by Jenkinson and Schellenberg, the paper examines how their writings have influenced current debates on appraisal, particularly in relation to the challenges posed by the appraisal and management of electronic records. The result is a fresh analysis of familiar themes and ideas and a thoughtful application of these ideas to current archival thinking and practice. One member of the committee described it as "a very creative re-examination of fundamental principles as they are evolving and being applied in new circumstances," and added, "the paper shows a very thorough understanding of the issues, creatively re-evaluates basic source materials, and carries the discussion very competently and usefully into the present."
PETRINA D. JACKSON of the School of Information Sciences at the University of Pittsburgh is the recipient of the Society of American Archivists' 2002 Harold T. Pinkett Minority Student Award. The award recognizes minority undergraduate and graduate students of African, Asian, Hispanic or Native American descent who through scholastic achievement manifest an interest in becoming professional archivists and active members of SAA. The award, established in 1993, honors the late Dr. Harold T. Pinkett, an SAA Fellow who served with distinction during his long tenure at the National Archives and Records Administration. The award included complimentary registration to the annual meeting.
Ms. Jackson, a student in the archives/ preservation track in the M.L.I.S. program, is the second student from the University of Pittsburgh to capture the award. Tywanna Marie Whorley received it 1999.
Three newcomers to the archival profession, IAN GRAHAM, VALERIE J. FREY, and CHARITY ANNE GALBREATH, received the Society of American Archivists' 2002 Colonial Dames Scholarship Award. Established in 1974, the award enables new archivists each year to attend the Modern Archives Institute of the National Archives and Records Administration. Each scholarship covers up to $1,200 of the total tuition, travel, and housing expenses associated with attending the institute. To be eligible for this scholarship an individual must have been employed less than two years as an archivist and work in an archives or manuscripts collection where a fair percentage of the repository's holdings predate 1825. The award is funded by the Colonial Dames of America, Chapter III, Washington, D.C.
Ian Graham, special collections and archives assistant at Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine, attended the winter institute. Both Valerie J. Frey, manuscripts archivist at the Georgia Historical Society in Savannah, and Charity Anne Galbreath, processing archivist at the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Mass., attended the summer institute.