Category Archives: News

SOA Council Meeting Minutes for October 21, 2020

The Society of Ohio Archivists most recent leadership meeting minutes, from October 21, 2020, can 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.

New SOA Committee Cochairs named, summer 2020

Adam Wanter, president of the Society of Ohio Archivists, is pleased to announce new committee cochair appointments. Cochair terms are for two years, with possibility of one renewal. Terms run from June to July.

See the Committees page for information on all of SOA’s committees. Interested in committee work? Contact that committee’s chairs–info on that page.

Advocacy and Outreach
Jenifer Baker, Warren County Records Center & Archives replaces Melissa Dalton, Greene County Records Center and Archives, who was elected to Council. Jenifer joins Cochair Natalie Fritz, Clark County Historical Society.

Educational Programming
Rachael Bussert, Dayton Metro Library, replaces Stephanie Bricking, Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County, who completed her term. Rachael joins Cochair William Modrow, Miami University.

Marketing and Communications
Amanda Rindler, Ohio History Connection, joins Cochair Janet Carleton, Ohio University.

Survey: Reopening Procedures & Effects of COVID-19 Pandemic in Ohio

The SOA Advocacy and Outreach committee is conducting a survey of Ohio archival repositories to gather information about reopening procedures and effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

~~Access the survey here:~~ ~~https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/WWJPWZF~~

Deadline to complete the survey is Friday, July 24. We hope to share the results within 2 weeks following the close of the survey.

Note: While repository name is asked, it is used only to filter duplicate responses and will not be associated with any reported results.

Thank you for your participation!

Questions? Contact the Advocacy and Outreach Committee cochairs Natalie Fritz and Jenifer Baker.

SOA Merit Award Winner: Licking County Records & Archives

The Society of Ohio Archivists Merit Award is awarded to individuals or organizations that have by excellence in deeds, actions, or initiatives improved the state of archives in Ohio over the past year.

Licking County Records & Archives entrance. Photo courtesy Licking County Records & Archives

This year the Awards Committee chose two recipients for the 2020 award. The winners were Cate Putirskis and the Licking County Records and Archives Department. In this post we feature Licking County Records & Archives.

In 2018, Licking County Records and Archives was tasked with removing more than 100 years of records stored in the Licking County Courthouse attic. After three days of work, staff had removed hundreds of boxes and more than 300 bound volumes, including historical books from the County Clerk of Courts, Treasurer, and Auditor. All of the books were either contaminated with mold, covered in bird and bat feces, or deteriorating from poor storage conditions. Continue reading →

SOA Merit Award Winner: Cate Putirskis

Cate Putirskis portrait. Photo courtesy The Ohio State University.

This year the Awards Committee chose two recipients for the 2020 award.The winners were Cate Putirskis and the Licking County Records and Archives Department. In this post we feature Cate.

Cate Putirskis is honored for her exemplary contributions to archival practices and the profession. She has developed and shared innovative approaches to technical services for archival collections as manager of Archival Description and Access at The Ohio State University Libraries. Cate employs agile methodology and project tracking software to manage a busy team of permanent, contractual, and student employees. This novel approach to archival processing has led to significant gains. Continue reading →

SOA 2020 Annual Meeting Recordings & Slides Available

The Society of Ohio Archivists’ Annual Meeting: Archiving 100 Years of Change was held online via Zoom on Tuesday June 16 & Wednesday June 17. Over the course of two days, we enjoyed informative and engaging sessions on digitizing community collections, digital preservation, preserving oral histories, learning from challenges in the archives, and more.

View the recordings, including the plenary by Kimberly Hamlin on “Finding Sex, Race, and Suffrage in the Archives: What I Found When I Looked for Helen Hamilton Gardener in the Library of Congress’s Manuscript Collections” on the meeting’s playlist on YouTube at https://bit.ly/soaam20-videos.

Slides can be found on the Annual Meeting Schedule.

Sponsors: Hollinger Metal Edge conference sponsor | Ohio Humanities, plenary sponsor.

Thank you to all the presenters, sponsors, and Educational Programming Committee members for making it all possible!

SOA Virtual Meet-Up – Thursday, June 18, 3pm via Zoom

Earlier this year, the Society of Ohio Archivists Advocacy & Outreach Committee discussed setting up informal meet-ups around the state to allow archival colleagues to get together informally. COVID-19 disrupted those in-person plans for 2020, but we wanted to try a virtual option on Thursday, June 18 (the day following SOA’s virtual two-day Annual Meeting June 16-17).

Register here to join the meet-up! (Registration will be open right up to meeting time.)

We hope this virtual get together will provide attendees a chance to “see” each other and chat, commiserate, and share, however briefly. So join us to say hello and share a bit about the strangeness of these past few months, and plans for moving forward in our institutions. All are welcome!

Thank you, SOA Advocacy and Outreach Committee

Reminder: Register for 2020 SOA Annual Meeting: Archiving 100 Years of Change

Plenary speaker Kimberly A. Hamlin, award-winning historian, speaker, and writer.

Join your colleagues on Tuesday June 16 & Wednesday June 17, for the 2020 Society of Ohio Archivists virtual conference, Archiving 100 Years of Change.

Plenary: Starting off the conference our plenary speaker, Kimberly Hamlin will speak on “Finding Sex, Race, and Suffrage in the Archives: What I Found When I Looked for Helen Hamilton Gardener in the Library of Congress’s Manuscript Collections.” This lecture 9am-10am, is free and open to the public! Register for the lecture here. Continue reading →