Preparing for the Future: A Long-Range Preservation Plan for the College Archives and Special Collections at St. Olaf College
To hire a qualified museum consultant to conduct a general preservation needs assessment survey and long range collections preservation plan.
$4,500,000 the first year and $6,500,000 the second year are for history programs and projects operated or conducted by or through local, county, regional, or other historical or cultural organizations or for activities to preserve significant historic and cultural resources. Funds are to be distributed through a competitive grant process. The Minnesota Historical Society must administer these funds using established grant mechanisms, with assistance from the advisory committee created under Laws 2009, chapter 172, article 4, section 2, subdivision 4, paragraph (b), item (ii).
Available upon request. grants@mnhs.org
?Staff competencies and confidence associated with effectively and efficiently carrying out the work has increased from a self-reported ?very low? to ?very high?. Library staff took an informal survey three times: before we submitted the grant proposal; after the day-long meeting with Ms. Feige; and after receiving and reading the final Long-Range Preservation Plan. Rating options were: very low, low, moderate, high, and very high.
?Staff from all areas of Special Collections and Archives (those tasked with metadata, intellectual control, and instruction, as well as those tasked with preservation and strategy) came away with valuable experience they will apply at St. Olaf College and in the profession at large.
?One student took part in an internship-level experience, working as a junior peer among professionals in her chosen field.
?Staff finished the project with clear plans and targets for both seeking future funds and creating timelines for that work.
?We now have a tool (the spreadsheet ? located in Appendix 1 of the Long-Range Preservation Plan) that we can use to sort and re-prioritize work based on changing circumstances. However, we can also input future projects into the tool?s structure. The Long-Range Preservation Plan gives us valuable knowledge and planning tools that will benefit the college for the next five years and into the future.
?Through this project, we have gained a detailed snapshot of our organization at this juncture in history. We have documentation of work we have accomplished to date which positions us for the future.
Available upon request, grants@mnhs.org