Georgia’s Healthy Collections Initiative

Georgia Archives Georgia Association of Museums and Galleries (GAMG) Georgia Department of Economic Development Georgia Emergency Management Agency (GEMA) Georgia Humanities Council Georgia Public Library Service Historic Preservation Division, Department of Natural Resources Lyrasis Society of Georgia Archivists (SGA)

SAA Annual ConferenceAustin, TX

Aug. 13, 2009

Project Goals Identify all collections-holding institutions in

Georgia Expand the Georgia Archives’ online

Historical & Cultural Organizations Directory Develop and test a survey instrument to

assess collections care and emergency preparedness

Incorporate a stair-step chart so repositories can track their level of collections care

Characteristics of Institutions Surveyed Total population of 643

organizations in database; test sent to 117 84 institutions completed survey

72% return Six major institution types Size: small/medium/large

Determined by overall budget size

Types of Institutions Surveyed

(primary function/service) Archives (12) Public Libraries (15) Academic Libraries (16) Historical Societies (7) Museums (29) Archaeological Repositories/Scientific

Research Collections (0)

Institutional Size Determined by

budget Small

<$500,000 Medium

$500,000 to $5 million

Large >$5 million

58%

10%

32%

Small

Medium

Large

Institutions by Size and Type

0 5 10 15 20

Archives

PublicLibraries

AcademicLibraries

HistoricalSocieties

Museums

SmallMediumLarge

Preservation Stair-Step

19 out of the 60 survey questions were designed as “Stair-Step” questions

Step 1: Minimal

Step 2: Basic

Step 3: Advanced

Step 4: Comprehensive

Preservation Stair-Step Levels

Step 1: Establishing Preservation Awareness

There is minimal preservation activity, and the institution is just beginning to develop an awareness of preservation needs.

Preservation Stair-Step Levels

Step 2: Building a Basic Preservation Program

Some activities in place including environmental & light controls, emergency planning, staff awareness, but no formal planning has been done.

Preservation Stair-Step Levels

Step 3: Advancing Preservation Within Your Organization

More formal planning efforts have been undertaken and resources are allocated to preservation; as well as ongoing activities in various categories

Preservation Stair-Step Levels

Step 4: Achieving Comprehensive Preservation of Collections

Well-established program that addresses all major preservation needs and issues; trained staff, formal planning, allocated resources, grants obtained

Stair-Step Categories Intellectual Control Preservation Management Environmental Control Emergency Planning Collections Care Expenditures and Funding Advocacy and Training

Importance Survey Survey sent to advisory committee

and colleagues Participants asked to rate overall

categories AND individual questions (Stair-Step questions only)

Results confirmed existing weighting, with the exception of Collections Care

Stair-Step Results Step 1 (.50 - 1.59) 1 institution

Step 2 (1.60 – 2.59) 48 institutions

Step 3 (2.60 - 3.59) 29 institutions

Step 4 (3.60 – 4.00) 1 institution

Stair-Step Results by Type of Institution

0 5 10 15 20

Archives

Public Libraries

Academic Libraries

Historical Societies

Museums

Step 1Step 2Step 3Step 4

Stair-Step Results bySize of Institution

0 10 20 30 40

Large

Medium

Small

Step 1Step 2Step 3Step 4

Institutional Reports Customized report with their overall stair-

step level, and the level for each section Boiler plate overview of each category

with bulleted recommendations that that corresponds to stair-step

Links to resources embedded in report Planning phase – reports generated

manually

Test Survey Overall Results

Majority have less than 2 FTE staff devoted to preservation

Only 18.5% have line item for preservation in their budget

64% have done no formal preservation planning

25% have a disaster plan that has been updated in the past year

Test Survey Overall Results 73% have standard HVAC, but only

16% monitor conditions regularly Training needs: Most preferred

face-to- face training over online Preservation priorities

Funding and staffing Long range planning Disaster planning

Ideas for Implementation Open survey/assessment to all

organizations Automate survey and reports Expand statewide Directory to

include GIS data; import data into existing statewide GIS systems for EM purposes

Ideas for Implementation Identify “lead” organizations in

each of the state’s 15 regions to help mentor others

Match needs according to stair-step Site visits to Step One orgs Training for Step Two orgs Grant writing assistance for Step

Three orgs

Lessons Learned Identifying organizations and

maintaining contact data is an ongoing challenge

Incentives help to increase survey response rate Disaster Wheels, Field Guides, Reports

Testing first helped focus and refine survey questions

For More InformationChristine Wiseman Preservation Services Manager

Georgia Archivescwiseman@sos.ga.gov

678-364-3761http://www.sos.ga.gov/archives/

Healthy_Collections_Initiative/default.htm