___Week___

Schedule

Week 1

Manuscripts and Archives:  An Introduction

Introductory lecture regarding the course theme and content, including history and development of archival administration and an overview of concepts and terminology.

Week 2

Collection Development and Documentation Issues

records collections, including the establishment and refinement of collecting parameters, methods of acquiring historical records, an exploration of such approaches as "documentation strategies" and "functional analysis" in collection management activities.

Required reading:

Timothy L. Ericson, "At the 'rim of creative dissatisfaction':  Archivists and Acquisition Development," in American Archival Studies:  Readings in Theory and Practice (Chicago:  The Society of American Archivists, 2000), 177-192.

Helen Willa Samuels, "Who Controls the Past," in American Archival Studies:  Readings in Theory and Practice (Chicago:  The Society of American Archivists, 2000), 193-210.

Tom Hyry, Diane Kaplan, and Christine Weiderman, "Though This Be Madness, yet There Is Method in 't':  Assessing the Value of Faculty Papers and Defining a Collecting Policy," The American Archivist, 65 (Spring/Summer 2002), 56-69.

Ronald L. Becker, "On Deposit: A Handshake and a Lawsuit," The American Archivist, 56 (Spring 1993), 320-328.

Suggested reading:

Cynthia K. Sauer, "Doing the Best We Can?:  The Use of Collection Development Policies and Cooperative Collecting Activities at Manuscript Repositories," The American Archivist, 64 (Fall/Winter 2001), 308-349.

Jennifer A. Marshall, "Toward Common Content:  An Analysis of Online College and University Collecting Policies," The American Archivist, 65 (Fall/Winter, 2002), 231-256.

Helen Willa Samuels, Varsity Letters:  Documenting Modern Colleges and Universities (Metuchen, N.J.: The Society of American Archivists and The Scarecrow Press, Inc., 1992).

Week 3

Appraising and Accessioning Historical Records

Required reading:

Frank Boles, Selecting and Appraising Archives and Manuscripts (Chicago:  Society of American Archivists, 2005)

Richard J. Cox, "The Documentation Strategy and Archival Appraisal Principles:  A Different Perspective," in American Archival Studies:  Readings in Theory and Practice (Chicago:  The Society of American Archivists, 2000), 211-241.

James M. O'Toole, "On the Idea of Uniqueness," in American Archival Studies:  Readings in Theory and Practice (Chicago:  The Society of American Archivists, 2000), 245-277.

Frank Boles and Julia Marks Young, "Exploring the Black Box:  The Appraisal of University Administrative Records," in American Archival Studies:  Readings in Theory and Practice (Chicago:  The Society of American Archivists, 2000), 279-300.

Mark Greene, "'The Surest Proof:  A Utilitarian Approach to Appraisal," in American Archival Studies:  Readings in Theory and Practice (Chicago:  The Society of American Archivists, 2000), 301-342.

Reto Tschan, "A Comparison of Jenkinson and Schellenberg on Appraisal," The American Archivist, 65 (Fall/Winter, 2002), 176-195.

Assignment #1:

Drawing from the assigned readings and class discussion on collection development and documentation issue (Week 2) and appraisal (Week 3), write a short essay (5-10 pages) that demonstrates the significance of defining a collection focus for an archival repository and the importance of appraisal in the process of acquiring historical collections.  This essay should reflect your ideas on documentary and appraisal criteria, supported by the literature.  Since this literature offers contrasting opinions, please offer you assessment of these divergent views.  Essay due on Week 4.

Week 4

Conservation and Preservation

Required reading:

Mary Lynn Ritzenthaler, Preserving Archives and Manuscripts (Chicago:  Society of American Archivists, 1993).

James M. O'Toole, "On the Idea of Permanence," in American Archival Studies:  Readings in Theory and Practice (Chicago:  The Society of American Archivists, 2000), 475-494.

Paul Conway, "Archival Preservation Practice in a Nationwide Context," in American Archival Studies:  Readings in Theory and Practice (Chicago:  The Society of American Archivists, 2000), 495-517.

Week 5

Arrangement and Description I

Archivists and curators must organize historical records according to accepted principles to facilitate their use by researchers.  Various concepts and methods will be reviewed, including hierarchical levels of arrangement and description, components of descriptive guides and inventories, and additional activities to enhance intellectual and physical access to historical records.

Required reading:

Kathleen D. Roe, Arranging and Describing Archives and Manuscripts (Chicago:  Society of American Archivists, 2005).

David A. Bearman and Richard H. Lytle, "The Power of the Principle of Provenance," in American Archival Studies:  Readings in Theory and Practice (Chicago:  The Society of American Archivists, 2000),  345-360.

Describing Archives:  A Content Standard (Chicago:  Society of American Archivists, 2004).  This volume is particularly useful for understanding the various components of archival description and the role of standards.  Since the publication is a manual, its easy to follow and apply  to the creation of an archival description, such as a finding aid, AMC record, or for encoding a finding aid using the Encoded Archival Description (EAD).  Please read the "Statement of Principles" (pp. xi-xv) and skim the remainder of the book.  You will find this volume useful when you construct your finding aid for the processing project.

Michelle Light and Tom Hyry, "Colophons and Annotations:  New Directions for the Finding Aid," The Amedrican Archivist, 65 (Fall/Winter 2002), 216-230.

Suggested reading:

Michael J. Fox and Peter Wilkenson, Introduction to Archival Organization and Description (Getty Information Institute, 1998), which is available on the web at:   http://www.getty.edu/research/conducting_research/standards/introarchives/index.html

Week 6

Arrangement and Description II

In this session each student will be assigned a box of records from the University Archives and they will process the records according to procedures provided in the "Rutgers University Archives Processing Manual."  This exercise will allow students to raise questions and concerns about the entire process and help prepare you for your larger processing project.

Required reading:

Mark A. Greene and Dennis Meissner, "More Product, Less Process  Revamping Traditional Archival Processing," The American Archivist 68 (Fall/Winter 2005), 208-263.

Assignment #2:

Each student will prepare a short "series description" or "scope note" for the records processed during the Week 6 class exercise.  This will also include a container list of folder titles and dates.  Samples will be handed out in class.  This description and list should be constructed as a Word document and submitted to the instructor as an email attachment by Week 8.

Week 7

Reference and Access in Historical Collections

Required reading:

Mary Jo Pugh, Providing Reference Services for Archives and Manuscripts (Chicago: Society of American Archivists, 2005).

Elsie T. Freeman, "In the Eye of the Beholder:  Archives Administration from the User's Point of View," in American Archival Studies:  Readings in Theory and Practice (Chicago:  The Society of American Archivists, 2000), 417-431.

Paul Conway, "Facts and Frameworks:  An Approach to Studying the Users of Archives," in American Archival Studies:  Readings in Theory and Practice (Chicago:  The Society of American Archivists, 2000), 433-448.

Elizabeth Yakel and Laura L. Bost, "Understanding Administrative Use and Users in University Archives," in American Archival Studies:  Readings in Theory and Practice (Chicago:  The Society of American Archivists, 2000), 449-471.

Suggested reading:

Kristin E. Martin, "Analysis of Remote Reference Correspondence at a Large Academic Manuscript Collection," The American Archivist, 64 (Spring/Summer 2001), 17-42.

Wendy M. Duff and Catherine A. Johnson, "A Virtual Expression of Need:  An Analysis of E-mail Reference Questions," The American Archivist, 64 (Spring/Summer 2001), 43-60.

Marcus C. Robyns, "The Archivist as Educator:  Integrating Critical Thinking Skills into Historical Research Methods Instruction," The American Archivist, 64 (Fall/Winter 2001), 363-384.

Week 8

Records Management and Its Relationship to Archival Activities

Records Management can be defined as the process of systematic creation, organization, maintenance, use, and periodic legal disposition of records.  The process includes overseeing the creation and use of forms, correspondence, and other records; setting up filing and indexing systems and other means of ensuring easy, rapid access to the information in records; adopting and using modern technology in information creation, storage, and manipulation, particularly microfilm and automated data processing systems; microfilming of selected paper records for security, ease of access, disposition of bulk paper records after microfilming, and long-term preservation of records of enduring value; while systematically disposing of records that have outlived their usefulness in the daily operations of administrative offices and do not warrant permanent retention.  In this session, Steve Dalina will explore the concepts of records management, examining its application at Rutgers University and focus our attention on the problematic area of electronic records creation, storage, and disposition.

Required reading:

Magia Ghetu, "Two Professions, One Goal," The Information Management Journal (May/June 2004), 62-66, Access this article through the Rutgers' Library Electronic Journals. 

Michael Buckland, "On the Nature of Records Management Theory," The American Archivist 57 (Spring 1994), 346-351.

David Bearman and Margaret Hedstrom, "Reinventing Archives for Electronic Records:  Alternative Service Delivery Options," in American Archival Studies:  Readings in Theory and Practice (Chicago:  The Society of American Archivists, 2000), 549-567

David Bearman, "The Implications of Armstrong v. the Executive Office of the President for the Archival Management of Electronic Records," The American Archivist 56 (Fall 1993), 674-689.

Week 9

History as Moving Images and Sound Recordings

Required reading:

Elisabeth Kaplan and Jeffrey Mifflin, "'Mind and Sight':  Visual Literacy and the Archivist," in American Archival Studies:  Readings in Theory and Practice (Chicago:  The Society of American Archivists, 2000), 73-97.

David Roberts, "Managing Record in Special Formats," chapter 13 in Keeping Archives, 2nd edition.  Edited by Judith Ellis (1993), 385-427.

Please note:  Selected handouts will be distributed including a list of web sources.

Week 10

Archival Automation I: The MARC AMC Format  

Published in 1984, the U.S. MARC format for Archival and Mixed Collections (AMC) has integrated information on primary sources with traditional published materials to enhance access for historical research.  In this session, we will examine the development of the format, its initial adoption by the archival community, and the specific application of the format as an extension of archival descriptive practice.

Required reading:

Kathleen D. Roe, Arranging and Describing Archives and Manuscripts  (Chicago:  Society of American Archivists, 2005).  Appendix E.

Avra Michelson, "Description and Reference in the Age of Automation," in American Archival Studies:  Readings in Theory and Practice (Chicago:  The Society of American Archivists, 2000), 361-379.

Max J. Evans, "Authority Control:  An Alternative to the Record Group Concept," The American Archivist , Vol. 49, No. 3 (Summer 1986), 249-262.

Claire Gabriel, "Subject Access to Archives and Manuscript Collections:  An Historical Overview," Journal of Archival Organization, Vol. 1, No. 4 (2002), pp. 53-63.

Suggested reading:

Helena Zinkham, Patricia D. Cloud, and Hope Mayo, "Providing Access by Form of Material, Genre, and Physical Characteristics:  Benefits and Techniques," The American Archivist , Vol. 52, No. 3 (Summer 1989), 300-319.

Robert P. Spindler and Richard Pearce-Moses, "Does AMC Mean 'Archives Made Confusing'?  Patron Understanding of USMARC AMC Catalog Records," American Archivist, Vol. 56, No. 2 (Spring 1993), 330-341.

Susan L. Malbin, ?Does AMC Really Mean ?Archives Made Confusing?? Retesting Patron Understanding,? Technical Services Quarterly, 16 (1998): 15-32.

Rita L. H. Czeck, "Archival MARC Records and Finding Aids in the Context of End-User Subject Access to Archival Collections," American Archivist, Vol. 61, No. 2 (Fall 1998), 426-440.

Suggested web site:

MARC Standards Web site maintained by the Library of Congress (http://lcweb.loc.gov/marc/) to explore the specific elements (fields, subfields, and indicators) for AMC cataloging.

Week 11

Archival Automation II: The Encoded Archival Description (EAD)

Required reading:

Daniel V. Pitti, "Encoded Archival Description:  The Development of an Encoding Standard for Archival Finding Aids," in American Archival Studies:  Readings in Theory and Practice (Chicago:  The Society of American Archivists, 2000), 395-414.

Steven L. Hensen, "'NISTF II' and EAD: The Evolution of Archival Description," The American Archivist , Vol. 60, No. 3 (Summer 1997), 284-296.

Jihyun Kim, "EAD Encoding and Display:  A Content Analysis," Journal of Archival Organization, Vol. 2, No. 3 (2004): 41-55.

Hannah C. Frost, "Guidelines Counseling: A Comparative Analysis and Evaluation of EAD Implementation Guildelines," Journal of Archival Organization Vol. 1, No. 3 (2002): 73-86.

Bill Stockting, "Time to Settle Down?  EAD Encoding Principles in the Access to Archives Programme (A2A) and the Resarch Libraries Group's Best Practice Guidelines," Journal of Archival Organization Vol. 2, No. 3 (2004): 7-24.

EAD Roundtable of the Society of American Archivist, EAD Help Pages (http://www.archivists.org/saagroups/ead/)

Suggested Web Sites.  The following websites will be useful references:

International Standard Archival Description General (ISAD (G)) -- http://www.ica.org/biblio/cds/isad_g_2e.pdf

Week 12

Legal Issues in Archives: Copyright/Privacy and Confidentiality

Required reading:

Menzi L. Behrnd-Klodt and Peter J. Wosh, ed., Privacy & Confidentiality Perspectives:  Archivists & Archival Records (Chicago:  The Society of American Archivists, 2005).  Please read the following articles:

Judith Schwarz, "The Archivists Balancing Act: Helping Researchers While Protecting Individual Privacy," 82-92.

Sara S. Hodson, "In Secret Kept, In Silence Sealed.  Privacy in the Papers of Authors and Celebrities," 131-148

Sarah Rowe-Sims, Sandra Boyd, and H. T. Holmes, "Balancing Privacy and Access: Opening the Mississippi State Sovereignty Commission Records," 159-174.

Suggested reading:

Tamar G. Chute and Ellen D. Swain, "Navigating Ambiguous Waters:  Providing Access to Student Records in the University Archives," The American Archivist, 67 (Fall/Winter, 2004), 212-233.

Diane E. Kaplan, "The Stanley Milgram Papers: A Case Study on Appraisal and Access to Confidential Data Files," The American Archivist, 59 (Summer 1996), 288-297

Jodi L. Allison-Bunnell, "Access in the Time of Salinger: Fair Use and the Papers of Katherine Anne Porter," The American Archivist 58 (Summer 1995), 270-282.

Glenn Dingwall, "Trusting Archivists:  The Role of Archival Ethics Codes in Establishing Public Faith," The American Archivist, 67 (Spring/Summer, 2004), 11-30.

Suggested web site:

Consult the following websites that contain information concerning current copyright concerns:  http://fairuse.stanford.edu and http://www.copyright.gov/.  The Stanford site in particular contains a number of useful links, and you should also read the commentary by Peter Hirtle.

Week 13

Required reading:

There is a growing body of literature on digital projects and the technical recommendations for digitization.  The following are suggested articles and links to projects or guidelines developed for specific digital library projects as they relate to primary sources:

Bradley Westbrook, "Prospecting Virtual Collections," Journal of Archival Organization 1 (1), 2002, 73-80.

William E. Landis, "Nuts and Bolts:  Implementing Descriptive Standards to Enable Virtual Collections," Journal of Archival Organization 1 (1), 2002, 81-92.

Robin L. Chandler, "Building Digital Collections at the OAC:  Current Strategies with a View to Future Users," Journal of Archival Organization 1 (1), 2002, 93-103.

Clifford Lynch,  "The Coming Crisis in Preseving Our Digital Cultural Heritage," Journal of Library Administration 38 (Nos. 3/4), 2003.  Access this article through the Rutgers' Library Electronic Journals.

Descriptive Metadata Guidelines for RLG Cultural Materials (2005), available at: http://www.rlg.org/en/pdfs/RLG_desc_metadata.pdf

RLG and OCLC, Trusted Digital Repositories:  Attributes and Responsibilities (May 2002), 1-31.  The report is available at: http://www.rlg.org/longterm/repositories.pdf

Suggested Web sites:

Dublin Core: http://dublincore.org/

METS: http://www.loc.gov/standards/mets/

MODS: http://www.loc.gov/standards/mods/

TEI: http://www.tei-c.org/

OAI: http://www.openarchives.org/

New Jersey Digital Highway: http://www.njdigitalhighway.org

Week 14

Finding aids are due on Week 14.

Week 15

This wrap-up session will explore the issues confronting the archival profession in the 21st century.  The panel of experienced archivists and information professionals, who are also graduates of SCILS, will present their personal and professional views and will address questions that concern the class regarding archival and manuscript administration and what it means to be an archivist.

Required reading:

Randall C. Jimerson, "American Archivists and the Search for Professional Identity," in American Archival Studies:  Readings in Theory and Practice (Chicago:  The Society of American Archivists, 2000), 1-17.

________, "Redefining Archival Identity:  Meeting User Needs in the Information Society," in American Archival Studies:  Readings in Theory and Practice (Chicago:  The Society of American Archivists, 2000), 607-617.

John J. Grabowski, "Keepers, Users, and Funders:  Building an Awareness of Archival Value," in American Archival Studies:  Readings in Theory and Practice (Chicago:  The Society of American Archivists, 2000), 619-629.