Strategies for Advancing Hidden Collections

We understand that the six webinars included in the Strategies for Advancing Hidden Collections (SAHC) series only scratch the surface on the issues faced by those dealing with processing Hidden Collections. We hope that the resources assembled below will provide useful information to achieve your project processing goals, supplementing the content of the webinar series.

The below resources have been compiled by a group of experts in the GLAM (Gallery, Library, Archives, Museum) community. We have done our best to present a wide range of solutions and suggestions for a variety of collecting organizations.

Project Coordinator

Joy M. Banks, Consultant

Speakers

• Angela Kipp, Collection Manager, TECHNOSEUM and Administrator, Registrar Trek
• Rosemary Pleva Flynn, Principal Librarian, Library and Information Services Team Lead, Energy and Environmental Research Center (EERC) at the University of North Dakota
• Sarah Leu, Project Archivist, Historical Society of Pennsylvania
• Beth Knazook, Library Juice Academy and Queen's University
• Jessica Bitely, Director of Preservation Services, Northeast Document Conservation Center (NEDCC)
• Yvonne Ng, Senior Archivist, WITNESS
• Ellen Ryan, Head of Special Collections and Archives and Assistant Professor, Idaho State University

Curriculum Committee

• Stephanie Gaub Antequino, Memorabilia Archivist, Planet Hollywood International
• Casey Davis, Project Manager, American Archive of Public Broadcasting
• Tamar Evangelista-Dougherty, Consultant
• Linda Hocking, Curator of Library and Archives, Litchfield Historical Society
• Daniel Johnson, Digital Preservation Librarian, University of Iowa
• Holly Mengel, Manuscripts Cataloging Librarian, University of Pennsylvania
• Matthew Peek, Military Collections Archivist, State Archives of North Carolina
• Kelly Revak, Processing Archivist, Library of Congress

If you have any suggestions for resources that would be appropriate additions the this resources library, please let us know.

Where to begin: Basics of project planning for GLAM organizations

The resources in this section will help lay the foundation for successful project planning and management.

Additional information on the webinar can be found here.

The webinar recording can be accessed here when available.

General

• CLIR 2010 Hidden Collections Symposium
• CLIR 2015 Hidden Collections Symposium & Unconference
• CLIR Hidden Collections Registry
• WebJunction Planning & Coordination Topic Page
• Connecting to Collections Care Resources
• OpenGLAM

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Selecting the best collection management system

Note: Some of these resources may be dated but can still contain useful information. SEE ALSO Collection access: Describing, cataloging, and processing with the future in mind

For all institution types

• CarLibrary.org - Collection Management Systems - A detailed resource discussing all aspects of selecting a management system including a number of links to additional resources. The page also includes a link to a summary table of a wide range of CMS software systems.

For Museums

• Top 10 Mistakes to Avoid When Choosing a Museum Collections Management System - Tips on selecting the right museum CMS software from History Associates, Inc..
• Collections Management Software - A list with additional information on software systems designed specifically for the museum collection management environment from the Museum Association of New York.
• Museum Collections Management Systems: One Size Does NOT Fit All - Masters Thesis by Elana C. Carpinone, Seton Hall University, May 2010
• Collection management systems: Museums and the Web 2011 - A listing and explanation of collection management systems represented at the Museums and the Web 2011 event.

For Libraries

• The Small Libraries Manager's Handbook, edited by Alice Graves. Includes several chapters on system selection.

For Archives

• Archival Management Software - A report for the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) by Lisa Spiro, January 2009

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Collection Prioritization & Assessment

• PACSCL Survey Initiative - Includes information and resources from the Philadelphia Area Consortium of Special Collections Libraries (PACSCL) Consortial Survey Initiative project to assess backlogged archival collections.
• Taking Stock and Making Hay: Archival Collections Assessment - A report from OCLC by Martha O'Hara Conway and Merrilee Proffitt, July 2011.
• Strategy and Priorities for Cataloging the National Woman's Party Collection - A report from the Sewall-Belmont House and Museum that can be used as a sample collection analysis tool
• Benchmarks in Collections Care - The resources page provides access to information on Benchmarks in Collection Care as well as the self assessment checklist to aid in establishing realistic colleciton goals. This is a resource provided by the Collections Trust.
• Survey Instrument for Audio & Moving Image Collections - A resource developed by the Columbia University Libraries to inventory and assess audio and moving image materials.
• Special Collections Materials Survey Instrument - A resource developed by the Columbia University Libraries to evaluate under-processed archival collections.
• Standards and Excellence Program (StEPs) - A self-study program developed by the American Association for State and Local History (AASLH) designed specifically for small to mid-sized organizations.
• American Alliance of Museums (AAM) Assessment Programs - A page describing the Continuum of Excellence to help move organizations towards better stewardship of their collections.
• IMLS Collections Assessment for Preservation Program (CAP) - A grant program through the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). Deadline for applications vary.

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Workflow

• Library Workflow Exchange - A space for libraries to share and find workflows and best practices across institutions.
• Workflows from the Documenting Modern Living project - Examples of workflows from the Documenting Modern Living: Digitizing the Miller House and Garden Collection Tumblr page

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Project Management Tools

• Improve Your Collaboration: 18 Project Management Tools for Marketing Agencies - Not GLAM specific, but a resource by Jami Oetting on selecting a project management tool with some suggested software.
• 14 best free project management software programs 2016: Great project management software tools that don't cost a penny - By Matt Egan and posted on TechWorld, includes software and brief explanations of each.
• 21 Ways to Excel at Project Management - A detailed step by step tool from ProjectSmart for successful project management from beginning to end.

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Building resources and relationships: Determining what and who you need

The resources in this section will help guide project managers through the process of estimating project costs, communicating costs with others, and building relationships for support.

Additional information on the webinar can be found here.

The webinar recording can be accessed here when available.

General

• WebJunction Budgets & Funding Resource Page - Resources, webinars, and other information on budget planning and development for libraries that can be applied to all GLAM organizations.
• Connecting to Collections Care Resources Page - For more information on budgets and increasing collection support, select the Increasing Support for Collections Care from the list.
• MAP Resources for Fund Development - Resources from the MAP for Nonprofits, serving nonprofits through provision of consulting and training.
• Free Management Library All About Nonprofit Fundraising Resources - A extensive listing of resources for nonprofits from the Free Management Library, a service of Authenticity Consulting, LLC.

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Buy-in from Board of Directors, Community, Volunteers

• Community Involvement in Museums, Archives and Libraries: Toolkit for improving practice - A pdf resource developed by COGS (Communities and Organizations - Growth and Support) for Yorkshire Museums Council, 2002. The toolkit includes a number of practical resources and guides for strengthening community involvement.

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Calculating processing time, staff time, and estimating supply costs

• Computing the Total Cost of Archival Processing - A technical leaflet by Thomas Wilsted produced by the Mid-Atlantic Regional Archives Conference (MARAC), 1989.
• George Washington University Digitization Cost Calculator - (unavailable)
• Cost Finding Exercise - Word Document Download. An exercise by Elizabeth Rose completed during her masters work at Southern Connecticut State University. The exercise considers the direct and indirect costs of processing an archival collection and includes references for additional information.
• Beneficial Shocks: The Place of Processing-Cost Analysis in Archival Administration - Research article by Paul Ericksen and Robert Shuster from American Archivist, Winter 1995. Includes discussion of both theoretical analysis and practical application.
• Rates of Processing Manuscripts and Arhives - PDF download. An article by Karen Temple Lynch and Thomas E. Lynch from The Midwestern Archivist, p. 25-35, Vol. VII, No. 1, 1982 available through JSTOR. Provides an analysis of processing rates from various grant proposals and considers how variable levels of processing affect cost.
• Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library (Yale University) Processing Estimates - A guidelines developed in 2015 to consider the cost to process, arrange, and describe collections of personal papers.
• The Cost of Processing - A blog post from 2010 by Emily Walters from North Carolina State University Libraries reflecting on estimating costs for their Changing the Landscape: Exposing the Legacy of Modernist Architects and Landscape Architects multi-year project.
• Costs of Cataloging - A chapter by Felix Reichmann in Library Trends 2 (1953) providing historical context for cataloging cost analysis.
• Cost Analysis of an Automated and Manual Cataloging and Book Processing System - An article by Joselyn Druschel from the Journal of Library Automation (Vol. 14, no. 1, March 1981). Showing the historical argument for automating cataloging and processing to reduce cost.
• Assessing the Cost and Value of Bibliographic Control - An article by Erin Stalbert and Christopher Cronin from Library Resources & Technical Services (Vol. 55, No. 3, 2011) published by the Association for Library Collections & Technical Services (ALCTS). Provides a detailed discussion of the past and present issues with estimating cataloging costs.
• Improving Library Management by Using Cost Analysis Tools: A Case Study for Cataloguing Processes - Article by Lorena Siguenza-Guzman, Alexandra Van den Abbeele, and Dirk Cattrysse from LIBER Quarterly, the Journal of the Association of European Research Libraries. This was originally presented at the LIBER conference in 2013 and discusses the application of TDABC (Time-Driven Activity-Based Costing) procedures in libraries.
• RBMS Page on Cataloging - Includes thoughts and definitions on cataloging from the Rare Books and Manuscripts Section (RBMS) of the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL. A discussion of cataloging metrics is included as well as a resource list.

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Communicating to people who need to approve the project

• 8 Best Practices for Stakeholder Engagement - An article by John Parker from Enfocus Solutions (2012). Offers practical suggestions to engage and communicate with project stakeholders.
• Active Stakeholder Participation: An Agile Best Practice - A detailed discussion of stakeholder engagement from Agile Modeling including definitions and useful charts.
• Programming on a Shoestring Budget - Video presentation from David Mixdorf from South Sioux City Public Library (NE) presented in February 2013 for the Big Talk from Small Libraries online conference.
• Template for Strategic Communications Plan - Practical template developed for use by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation including worksheets to develop a new plan.

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Funding Sources and Grant Writing

• Grant Opportunities - A listing of available grants compiled by Past Perfect Museum Software.
• Library Grants blog - A blog maintained by Stephanie Gerding and Pam MacKellar, authors of Winning Grants: A How-To-Do-It Manual for Librarians with Multimedia Tutorials and Grant Development Tools. Updated regularly with available opportunities.
• IMLS Museums for America grant - A grant program from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) with the goal to "strengthen the ability of an individual museum to serve its public."
• Connecting to Collections Care Funding for Collections Care - A webinar recorded November 2010 presented by Debra Hess Norris and Lee Price. The webinar page also includes related books for additional resources.
• Connecting to Collections Care Fundraising for Collections Care - A webinar series recorded in 2013 with sessions on Fundamentals, Finding Support, Cultivating Donors and Members, Writing Proposals, and Creative Fundraising. The series page includes additional links to resources, slides, and sample documents.
• Funding & Fundraising for Small Libraries - An on-demand downloadable webinar from the LibraryJournal series Best Practices from America's Best Small Libraries. Presented in 2015 by Mary Beth Stenger and Cheryl Clay (registration required). A review of the webinar is available from Didi Yunginger.
• Ten points to increase your grant writing success - A one page technical bulletin by Cecil Carter from the Oklahoma Museums Association (January 2008).

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Making the most of people: Recruitment, retention, and recognition

The resources in this section consider how volunteers, interns, and staff fit into the project picture.

Additional information on the webinar can be found here.

The webinar recording can be accessed here when available.

Teens and Student Workers

• No Budget? No Time? No Problem! - Blog post from the Ohio Library Council by RoseMary Honnold discussing how community teens can be engaged in the work of collections.
• To the Big Stage on a Small Budget: From Special Collections to Archive 2.0 - A presentation by Julie Pinnell for the 2016 Big Talk From Small Libraries online conference discussing the use of Doane College students to process the college archive.
• Archival Internships: Creating Real World Learning Beyond the Classroom - An article from the College & University Libraries Section (CULS) of the Kansas Library Association by Lorraine Madway (CULS Proceedings, Vol. 1, 2011, no. 1). Presents findings from the internship program at Wichita State University Libraries and offers practical advice for establishing an internship program.
• Undergraduate Library Internships and Professional Success - A downloadable pdf poster by staff at Gettysburg College reporting on the impact undergraduate library internships had on the development of student career goals.
• Training Future Librarians and Enhancing Digital and Print Collections: M-LEAD II Comes to a Successful End - A 2015 report by Kim Loconto on the IMLS funded Museum Library Education and Digitization [M-LEAD] grant which allowed interns to gain a wide range of experiences with practical, hands-on projects.
• Creating a Successful (and Legal) Internship Program - A 2015 article from Business News Daily by Nicole Fallon Taylor. A basic overview for creating an internship program that will be beneficial to the intern, productive for the organization, and meet current employment laws.
• Best Practices for Internships as Components of Graduate Archival Education - A downloadable best practices guide from the Society of American Archivists (SAA).

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Volunteers and Staff

• Connecting to Collections Care Staff and Volunteer Management for Collections Care - Webinar 6 in the Collections Care Basics: Where Do I Begin? webinar series. Originally presented by Donia Conn in 2013. The webinar section contains links to the recording, PowerPoint presentation, and a number of additional readings and resources related to the topic.
• Seeding Engagement and Cultivating Volunteers through Crowdsourcing - A Connecting to Collections Care webinar originally presented in July 2016 by Meghan Ferriter. Dr. Ferriter shares the crowdsourcing experience of the Smithsonian Transcription Center (TC) and how their experience can be adapted to other projects.
• Human Resources Recorded Webinars - A series of webinars from the American Alliance of Museums (AAM) on a variety of topics related to staff and volunteers.
• American Association for Museum Volunteers (AAMV) - An association supporting the museum volunteer management community. Their website includes some resources freely available to non-members.
• Volunteer Page for the Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History - Provides an example of a well-designed volunteer page including a link to the Yale Peabody volunteer application.
• Involving the Public in Your Preservation Efforts - A Connecting to Collections Care webinar from 2013 showcasing work from a number of institutions in celebration of Preservation Week. The page contains links to referenced projects and resources.
• Best Practices for Volunteers in Archives - A downloadable resource by the Society of American Archivists (SAA.
• Building a successful museum volunteer services program - A technical bulletin by Robbin Davis produced by the Oklahoma Museums Association (July 2007).
• Taproot+ - A connection service claiming to be "the best way for nonprofits to find pro bono help and for skilled volunteers to provide it."

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Celebrating Success

• How to Celebrate Project Success with a Distributed Team - A resource compiled with input from a Virtual Facilitators Forum on LinkedIn to help build teams even when members are dispersed.
• How to Celebrate Success Throughout Your Projects - A 2008 blog post from Making Things Happen on developing an environment of ongoing celebration of success.

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Ethics of Hiring

• SHRM Code of Ethical and Professional Standards in Human Resource Management - From the Society for Human Resources Management (SHRM), guidelines for ethical Human Resources management. Includes a comprehensive guide for developing your own organizational Code of Ethics.
• Why the Path to Good Ethics Starts in Human Resources - A 2013 blog post from Chris MacDonald on Company Culture.
• Guidelines for Academic Requestors - Guidelines specifically related to the ethical hiring of Turkers through Amazon Mechanical Turk for outsourced academic projects but could be applied more broadly.

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Collection access: Describing, cataloging, and processing with the future in mind

The resources available in this section try to provide guidance on the sometimes complicated world of description and processing. We understand that while GLAM organizations have many things in common, processing is often handled differently depending on the field. As we learn to work together, we hope that exploring best practices from different areas will help us move towards greater interoperability in the future.

Additional information on the webinar can be found here.

The webinar recording can be accessed here when available.

Communities

• AutoCat - A general cataloging listserv, primarily for libraries but open to everyone.
• OCLCCAT - An OCLC sponsored cataloging listserv open to everyone.
• Metadata Support Group - A Slack forum sponsored by the Digital Library Federation (DLF). Requires registration and a Slack account but not membership in DLF.
• SAA Lone Arrangers listserv - Hosted by the Society of American Archivists (SAA) and open to members and non-members.
• AASLH Nomenclature Community - A space for those using or interested in using the Nomenclature 4.0 resource from the American Association for State and Local History (AASLH).
• Connecting to Collections Care Forum - A space to ask questions about collections care and receive answers from peers and forum monitors. Requires registration for participation.

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General

• Metadata for All: Descriptive Standards and Metadata Sharing Across Libraries, Archives, and Museums - An article from First Monday, a peer reviewed journal on the internet, by Mary W. Elings and Gunter Waibel (Vol. 12, No. 3, 5 March 2007).
• Linked Data for Libraries, Archives, and Museums - A book and website on getting the most from your metadata.
• Archival Management Software: A Report for the Council on Library and Information Resources - A pdf 2009 report for the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) by Lisa Spiro
• AASLH Audio Recording: Building Digital Archives: Lessons Learned From Four Crowdsourced Online Projects - An audio download of the session from the 2014 Annual Meeting of the AASLH.
• Gallery Systems Free Collections Management Resources - A collection of free collections management resources compiled by GallerySystems.
• Collections Access and the use of technology in museums - A report by the Norfolk Museums and Archaeology Service, 2012.
• Collections Trust: Benchmarks in Collections Care - Self-Assessment checklist developed by Collections Trust to encourage thinking about collection care activity during the organizations planning cycle.
• Connecting to Collections Care Resources - An extensive collection of resources arranged by topic.

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Institutional Ethics

• American Alliance of Museums (AAM) Code of Ethics for Museums
• American Library Association (ALA) Professional Ethics
• Society of American Archivists (SAA) Core Values Statement and Code of Ethics
• ALA-SAA Joint Statement on Access: Guidelines for Access to Original Research Materials
• Art Dealers Association of America (ADAA) Code of Ethics and Professional Practices

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Cataloging and Metadata Standards

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Data Management Tools

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Collection Management Systems

The below systems are not an endorsement of the product by CLIR, just suggestions to highlight the range of systems available. This is not a comprehensive list of all systems available. We tried to include low cost and/or open source system options when possible.

How to choose

SEE ALSO: 1.2 Selecting the Best Content Management System

• Selecting a Cloud-Based Museum Collections Management System - Five area to consider when selecting a system from History Associates, Inc.
• How Do We Select a Collections Management System? - An article from History Associates, Inc. on the process of system selection from contacting a vendor to data migration.
• Top 10 Mistakes to Avoid When Choosing a Museum Collections Management System - A downloadable report from History Associates, Inc. to highlight the most common mistakes they've seen when selecting a CMS. Can be applied to all GLAM organizations.
• How to Choose the Right ILS for Your Library - Chapter in The Small Library Manager's Handbook (book).
• Choosing the Right CMS - A downloadable guide from GallerySystems that provides 5 steps for the selection process as well as sample worksheets, checklists, and links to additional resources.

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Gallery

• Airtable
• Axiell Group
• Collector Systems
• CuadraSTAR
• eHive
• EmbARK
• The Museum System (TMS)

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Library

• General recommendations for smaller institutions - From the Church & Synagogue Library Association
• Axiell Group
• CONTENTdm - For digital objects
• CuadraSTAR
• Inmagic
• Libib
• LibraryWorld
• Mandarin
• Readerware
• ResourceMate
• TinyCat
• Veridian

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Archive

• Archivists’ Toolkit- Available for download, but no longer being updated
• ArchivesSpace
• AtoM
• Axiell Group
• Collective Access
• CONTENTdm - For digital objects
• CuadraSTAR
• Proficio
• Veridian

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Museum

• Airtable
• Axiell Group
• CollectionSpace
• Collective Access
• Collector Systems
• CuadraSTAR
• eHive
• EmbARK
• Mukurtu - Designed with indigenous communities in mind
• PastPerfect
• Proficio
• The Museum System (TMS)

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Online Exhibits

• eHive
• eMuseum
• Jekyll
• OMEKA
• Mirador - For collections that support the International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) API
• WordPress

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Controlled Vocabularies and Thesauri

• The Getty Research Institute Vocabularies
• AASLH Nomenclature Committee
• Photographic Process Controlled Vocabulary
• Library of Congress Authorities
• LC Linked Data Service: Authorities and Vocabularies
• American Institute for Conservation Lexicon Terms
• International Code of Botanical Nomenclature
• ORCID
• Parks Canada Descriptive and Visual Dictionary of Objects

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Tutorials and Online Learning

There are many options for online learning. The following list is a sampling of free or low cost options to enhance understanding of cataloging and processing techniques.

• Association for Library Collection & Technical Services (ALCTS) YouTube Channel, Cataloging topic
• Caring for Digital Materials: Preventing a Digital Dark Age - A Connecting to Collections Care Webinar Series
• Codecademy
• OCLC Tutorials
• OCLC Cataloging Skills Training Calendar - Includes some fee based training
• OCLC documentation, practices, and programs
• Basic Cataloging Resources from CARLI (Consortium of Academic Research Libraries in Illinois)
• Cataloging Course - A YouTube introduction to cataloging by LibTec203]
• 20+ Awesome Free Online Librarian Courses
• WebJunction Integrated Library Systems & Databases Topic
• FRBR and TMS: Applying a Conceptual Organizational Model for Cataloguing Photographic Archives
• SLC Cheat Sheets - A collection of cataloging cheat sheets for a wide range of material types mostly developed by Mac Elrod and hosted by Special Libraries Cataloging (SLC).

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Overcoming project hurdles: Approaches to identifying and managing collection red flags

Additional information on the webinar can be found here.

The webinar recording can be accessed here when available.

Closing the loop: Project assessment and leveraging goals for future planning

Additional information on the webinar can be found here.

The webinar recording can be accessed here when available.