2017 Charleston Library Conference

Primary sources continue to be selected and digitized from leading societies, libraries, archives, and special collections around the world. How does your library get involved?

Scholarly societies, libraries, and archives are the custodians of a wealth of unique or rare primary sources. With proper planning and execution, these invaluable resources are made accessible in ways which tie directly to research goals and education outcomes of academic users, while raising the profile of the libraries and archives involved. Curators, archivists, librarians, scholars, students, and publishers have been working together to catalog, asses, and digitize content from these massive collections, for inclusion in databases of primary source content.

In this session, Wiley will facilitate a behind-the-scenes discussion around the creation of digital archives, including:
• content selection, conservation, handling, scanning, processing, and cataloging;
• user needs-driven design;
• benefits of digitization-- global access, preservation, and the implications for scholarship;
• planning the future of your archives;
• paths to digitization--DIY or partnerships; and
• overcoming obstacles to success

This session will include representatives from scholarly societies, a collection development librarian, and a researcher/faculty end-user. The goal of the discussion will be to foster a deeper understanding of the development process behind digital archives, in order for librarians to consider how to approach the digitization of their own special collections.