The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) is offering a series of webcasts that present the findings from the latest SPEC surveys and allow webcast participants to discuss trends with the survey authors. A 45-minute webcast will follow the publication of each SPEC Kit in 2015.
The second webcast in this series will cover the Community-based Collections survey (SPEC Kit 347), an exploration of collections that have been amassed not by one individual but by a collective, which may take the form of a museum, ethnic or cultural organization, or other diaspora group active in the documentation of its past. In addition to more traditional roles such as caring for the physical collection, in working with community-based collections libraries are navigating new territory with the integration and stewardship of these active and directly connected communities. An ongoing commitment to community engagement—with some level of shared governance or other collaborative activity to build, process, or publicize the collection—is often a key part of acquiring community-based collections.
This study covers ARL member library activities that support community groups in the collection, documentation, and stewardship of their shared heritage, including public outreach and educational initiatives relating to the collection.
The 'Community-based Collections' webcast will review survey findings reported by ARL member libraries in March 2015. The survey and SPEC Kit authors will provide a snapshot of community-based collections at ARL member libraries; discuss community stewardship practices; and review rewards and challenges reported by survey respondents.
The webcast will also include a discussion of promising trends and conclude with a question-and-answer session. Read the freely available executive summary of the survey results in advance and have your questions ready!
The webcast is scheduled for August 12, 2015, from 1:00–1:45 p.m. eastern daylight time. Interested parties may visit https://arl.formstack.com/forms/spec_webcast_2 to register online. All registrations are due by August 5, 2015.
