The Midwest Archives Conference and the Society of Ohio Archivists will hold a joint 2026 Annual Meeting on May 14-16, 2026, at the Ohio Union, Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio. Founded in 1870 as the Ohio Agricultural and Mechanical College, THE Ohio State sits a few miles north of downtown Columbus. A city unto itself with an enrollment of over 65,000, Ohio State is known for its top-ranked academic programs in engineering, agriculture, and business, its world-class research endeavors, and, of course, football. For more information about the host and the conference, see the meeting website: https://www.midwestarchives.org/2026-annual-meeting
From 2015 until 2023, Ohio’s tourism slogan was “Find it Here.” As a slogan, it raised the obvious question, “Find what here?”; but as an archives motto…well, to “Find it Here” is an archivist’s greatest hope for anyone exploring their collections. Join us as we explore the myriad ways in which archivists and memory workers make their collections accessible, discoverable, and usable.
Call for Session Proposals
The Program Committee encourages submissions from newer professionals, first-time presenters, and colleagues from non-academic institutions. A MAC or SOA membership is not required. Presenters may submit more than one proposal, but may present only one session OR poster. We also encourage those from smaller shops to submit presentations for a focused SOA track. We want to hear from the solo archivists or from those with more limited institutional support!
With an eye toward clear takeaways that can be broadly applied, possible areas of focus include but are not limited to:
- Distinct approaches to collecting, reference, and instruction
- Creative or unique approaches to outreach
- Successful community archiving projects and partnerships
- Collaborative projects leveraging local and/or regional resources for greater impact
- Stretching resources and budgets in innovative and practical ways
- Providing access to complex collections (e.g., born-digital records, fragile materials, collections on inaccessible media)
- Projects or programs that leverage staff in distinctive ways
- Practical workflows for accessioning, appraisal, processing, preservation, deaccessioning, and cataloging
- Overcoming challenges to making collections accessible and discoverable
- Utilizing facilities in unique ways to highlight and provide access to collections
- Incorporating AI in discovery of materials
- Modernizing legacy practices, policies, and/or platforms
The Program Committee will also consider proposals not related to this theme or that fall outside these areas of focus.
Possible Session Types
- Standard Presentation: Two to four speakers present on a common theme. May include a moderator to guide discussion and/or introduce speakers and theme.
- Open Forum: Topical discussion with moderator leading discussion with everyone present. May include additional moderator(s) to direct breakout conversations.
- Roundtable Discussion: Three or four participants make very brief remarks, then discuss a topic together. Includes a moderator to steer the discussion.
- PechaKucha: Each presentation consists of 20 slides or images displayed for 20 seconds each, with comment. Each presentation lasts 6 minutes and 40 seconds.
- Lightning Talks: Like PechaKucha, but without a set format. May or may not include slides or images. Presentations may be from 3 to 10 minutes long, with the time allotted depending on the number of presenters.
- Debate: Moderator announces the topic, and two individuals debate. May include more than one topic and additional debaters.
In January 2026, there will be a separate call for poster proposals as well as a call for pop-up sessions for less traditional session types or time-sensitive topics.
Possible Session Lengths
60 minutes and 90 minutes. Please be mindful of the number of presenters and session type when indicating the preferred session length. All sessions will be held in person.
Speaker Representation
The Program Committee seeks a broad slate of presenters representing a variety of professional and institutional backgrounds, perspectives, and voices. We seek to foster a culture of [development] in the MAC program and encourage submissions from anyone interested in presenting, including students, new professionals, first-time presenters, and those from allied professions. In order to facilitate and promote a variety of programs appealing to a wide range of audiences, the proposal submission form will ask voluntary questions about presenters’ professional and institutional backgrounds and past presentation experiences.
To facilitate collaboration among those brainstorming session ideas, the Program Committee encourages the use of the MAC Facebook page, SOA Facebook page, and this spreadsheet for brainstorming session proposal ideas.
Proposal Evaluation
The Program Committee will evaluate all proposals submitted by the deadline using the following criteria:
- Quality and clarity of the session abstract;
- Thoroughness of content and sufficient speakers to address all relevant aspects of the topic;
- Originality of proposed topic;
- Variety of presenters and viewpoints;
- Appropriateness of proposed format for session content.
All proposals will be considered in the context of the overall structure of the meeting and the availability of time slots for proposed sessions. You can preview a PDF of the proposal form here. All individuals involved in an accepted proposal must sign a presenter agreement.
Proposal Submission
The deadline for submitting session proposals for the 2026 MAC/SOA Annual Meeting is October 17, 2025, at 5 pm CST. Use the Call for Proposals form to submit your proposal. There will NOT be an extension to the call, so make sure to get your proposals in by the deadline.
If you have any questions about the proposal process, please contact the 2026 Program Committee Co-Chairs, Hayley Jackson ([email protected]) and Adam Wanter ([email protected]).
Follow the conversation online at #soaam26 on Instagram and Facebook.
Last Updated on September 17, 2025 by Emily Gainer
