Category Archives: SOA Spring Conference

Merit Award Recipients 2023

The Society of Ohio Archivists Membership & Awards Committee is pleased to announce two Merit Award recipients. The awards were presented at the Annual Meeting on May 12, 2023.

Photograph of three people holding plaques. These are the SOA Merit Award winners.

2023 Merit Award recipients: Warren County Records Center & Archives, accepted by Jennifer Haney Conover and Jenifer Baker, and Adam Wanter

Adam Wanter is honored for his outstanding service and dedication to ensuring that the Society of Ohio Archivists thrives. For the past several years, Adam has gone above and beyond to lead SOA through challenging times. Elected as Vice-President/President Elect in 2019, Adam stepped up to serve as president for an additional year when the current president
resigned. In his first year, Adam shepherded SOA through a transition in its leadership structure. In 2020, he directed SOA’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic and to the murder of George Floyd. Under his watch, SOA pivoted to an online conference, increased its free offerings to members, began its hardship program, and oversaw the creation of the Social Justice Black Lives Matter Task Force. After finishing his extended term as president and time as past-president, Adam co-chaired the Educational Programming Committee which planned the 2023 Annual Meeting. For his efforts to lead and improve SOA, it is fitting that the Society of Ohio Archivists presents Adam Wanter with the 2023 SOA Merit Award.

The Warren County Records Center & Archives is honored for its work to make vital records such as birth, death, Commissioners’ Journals, and Common Pleas Court indexes available to the public during the COVID-19 pandemic. Working from home, staff cropped, transcribed, and added metadata to these records, ultimately making well over 30,000 records accessible. Once back in the office, staff added metadata and images to the first twenty-four Commissioners’ Journals, which are key records to understanding the history of Warren County. They also finished a multi-year project to place all the Old Common Pleas Estate Packets online, a collection which included over 90,000 searchable images and is frequently requested by researchers.  For its efforts to make important county records more accessible to researchers, it is fitting that the Society of Ohio Archivists presents the Warren County Records Center & Archives with the 2023 SOA Merit Award.

Congratulations to the 2023 Merit Award recipients!  Visit the Merit Award page for more information and past award winners.

Annual Meeting 2023 Virtual Registration Closes 5/10

Register now for the 2023 Annual Meeting: Forward Together: Community Partnerships and Public Service, May 11-12!

Pre-registration ends on Monday, May 1 for the full conference experience (Day 1 virtual/Day 2 in person). Those choosing the all-virtual option have until May 10 to register online. On-site day of registration will be available, but without lunch. See the Annual Meeting page for all the details.

This May, the Society of Ohio Archivists Annual Meeting will be traveling to Dayton, Ohio! You are invited to join us on Thursday, May 11 for virtual sessions, and on Friday, May 12 at the Dayton Metro Library Main in downtown Dayton, Ohio, for a full day of in-person presentations, networking, and exciting featured speakers.

Mackensie Wittmer headshot

Mackensie Wittmer, Morning Keynote speaker.

Yes, this year we are going hybrid! The virtual registration option will provide access to two standalone virtual sessions on Thursday May 11 (also available to attendees with the in-person option) and live streams of select sessions from the Friday May 12 slate. As our first attempt at a hybrid conference this will be a learning opportunity for all of us, so please bear with us if we encounter any unexpected kinks/challenges.

Keynotes: Hear from two featured speakers on Day 2! In our Morning Keynote, Mackensie Wittmer will be welcoming attendees to the Dayton-Miami Valley area and presenting on the impact and importance of collaboration within the cultural heritage community. For the Afternoon Keynote, Rosemary Pleva Flynn will be discussing what it means to be an archivist, focusing on the intersection of archival work among memory workers, storytellers, community archivists, and “traditional” archivists, and the role we all play in preserving culture and knowledge.

Rosemary Pleva Flynn headshot

Rosemary Pleva Flynn, Afternoon Keynote speaker.

In sessions, learn from panelists in the SOA Justice, Equity, Diversity, Access, and Inclusion Task Force sponsored session focusing on the diverse history of Ohio. Dig into description remediation for Civil War letters. Get inspired to advocate for “your own slice of the pie.” Hear updates on the Warren Harding presidential papers and Toledo’s Attic projects. Participate in a mini-workshop on how you can help Ohio’s America 250 commission highlight the importance of archives and records. And from poster sessions, find out about the School of Information at Kent State University’s new Archival Studies concentration.

Questions? Please feel free to contact the 2022-2023 Educational Programming Committee Cochairs Matt Francis and Adam Wanter. We can’t wait to see you in Dayton!

SOA Annual Meeting May 11-12, 2023 is Hybrid! Register Now!

Registration is now open for the 2023 Annual Meeting: Forward Together: Community Partnerships and Public Service!

Color photo of exterior of the Dayton Public Library, Main Library

Dayton Public Library, Main Library. Courtesy Dayton Public Library.

This May, the Society of Ohio Archivists Annual Meeting will be traveling to Dayton, Ohio! You are invited to join us on Thursday, May 11 for virtual sessions, and on Friday, May 12 at the Dayton Metro Library Main in downtown Dayton, Ohio, for a full day of in-person presentations, networking, and exciting featured speakers.

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Call for Applications: 2023 SOA Scholarships

The Society of Ohio Archivists is pleased to announce five scholarships available to students (2 awards), and new archival professionals (2 awards) with three years or less experience in the workplace. The final scholarship category, the Ohio Preservation Council Student/New Professional Scholarship, is available to either students or new professionals.

The awards will be presented at the SOA Annual Meeting business meeting which will be held on Day 2 of this year’s hybrid meeting, Friday, May 12, 2023, at the Dayton Metro Library in Dayton. (Day 1, Thursday, May 11, will be virtual). Applications are due by March 10, 2023.
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Call for Proposals: 2023 SOA Annual Meeting: Forward Together: Community Partnerships and Public Service

The Society of Ohio Archivists is planning for a hybrid annual meeting in 2023, on Thursday, May 11 (virtually) and Friday, May 12 (in person) at the Dayton Metro Library in Dayton, Ohio!

This year we welcome proposals that explore the theme of Forward Together as it relates to community partnerships and public service in support of a more inclusive and equitable society.

The committee welcomes submissions relating directly to the theme, along with a broad array of other topics.

Deadline to submit proposals (updated): Friday, January 27, 2023 at 5:00 p.m. See the Annual Meeting page for much more detail and the submission form.

Questions? Contact Educational Programming Committee Cochairs Matt Francis and Adam Wanter.

SOA Annual Meeting 2023 Quick Survey

The Society of Ohio Archivists Educational Programming Committee (EPC) is considering going hybrid for the 2023 Annual Spring Conference!

We would like your feedback on offering a traditional in-person conference with the ability to attend some or all sessions virtually. We will use the information from this one-question survey to gauge how many people might prefer to attend virtually, and how large of a venue we might need. Please respond by Friday, September 2.

Access the survey here.

If you are interested in joining the EPC (or have questions), please reach out to the Educational Programming Committee Cochairs Matt Francis and Adam Wanter.

SOA Business Meeting Minutes for May 20, 2022 Available

The Society of Ohio Archivists most recent business meeting minutes, from the annual meeting held on May 20, 2022 at Columbus Metro Library, can now be found on the Council Meeting Minutes page.

Interested in SOA over time? Also on that page are minutes dating back to 1997. In addition to documenting actions from the leadership meeting, minutes include reports from the treasurer as well as from committees and task forces.

Questions about minutes? Contact SOA Secretary Jen Johnson.

Meeting Scholarships Awarded for 2022

The Society of Ohio Archivists Membership & Awards Committee is pleased to announce three scholarships awarded at the Annual Meeting on May 20, 2022.

Scholarship awardees are:

  • Student Scholarship: Kaylee Rigg, Ohio Northern University
  • Ohio Preservation Council Student Scholarship: Kasandra Fager, Bowling Green State University
  • New Professional: Elizabeth Coots, Digital Archivist, Vermont Granite Museum

2022 Scholarship Awardees pose at the Society of Ohio Archivists Annual Meeting on May 20, 2022 (L to R): Stephanie Shreffler, SOA Membership & Awards Committee Cochair; Kasandra Fager, Ohio Preservation Council Student Scholarship; Elizabeth Coots, New Professional Scholarship; Kaylee Rigg, Student Scholarship; Amy Rohmiller, SOA Vice President/President Elect.

The scholarship consists of registration to the SOA annual meeting (including lunch), a one-year SOA membership, and a $100 travel stipend. Look for articles sharing their meeting experiences in the fall issue of the Ohio Archivist newsletter.

Questions? Contact Membership & Awards Committee Cochair Stephanie Shreffler.

SOA Membership Forum @ Annual Meeting

Due to a family emergency SOA President Sherri Goudy is unable to attend the SOA Membership Forum at the Annual Meeting on May 20. We are postponing that Forum and will announce in the coming weeks whether it will be rescheduled as a separate event or as a SOA/OLHA Fall Meeting session.

We’ll be replacing the Forum with this replacement annual meeting session: Crucial Conversations–Join your colleagues for moderated small group discussions on efforts towards greater diversity, equity, and inclusion in the archives. Come share what you and/or your institution are doing, bring resources you’ve found valuable, and gain inspiration from efforts that are happening around the state. Moderated by: Amy Rohmiller, Kettering Health Dayton; Penelope Shumaker, State Library of Ohio; and Adam Wanter, MidPointe Library. Continue reading →