CoSA Blog

Dr. Colleen J. Shogan, 11th Archivist of the United States In the wake of the recent Senate confirmation of Dr. Colleen J. Shogan to be the 11th Archivist of the United States, CoSA President and Utah State Archivist Ken Williams was asked to share his thoughts about the lengthy and, at times, contentious process. “As the current CoSA President I'm thrilled that Dr. Shogan has been confirmed as the next AOTUS,” he exclaimed. “Members of our Council have enjoyed several opportunities to meet Dr. Shogan during the lengthy confirmation process where we expressed our support for her appointment, shared ideas and possibilities for future collaboration, ...

APRIL 17 + JUNE 22 | 3 - 4:30 PM Eastern Planning a facilities renovation or new construction? Wrestling with managing a project that's already underway? Join your CoSA colleagues for a two-part conversation about facilities project planning and implementation. Each session will feature state archives representatives sharing real-life lessons, successes, and pitfalls. Keynote: Chris Woods, Architect with the SmithGroup, Washington, DC OPEN TO ALL WITHOUT CHARGE For more information and to register Part 1: Planning phase Part 2: Construction phase MAY 18 | 12:30 - 4:30 PM Eastern The Council of ...

There's an important difference between advocacy and lobbying, but many people conflate the two. While lobbying is the active attempt to influence legislation or ballot issues, advocacy is the umbrella term that encompasses a range of activities, of which lobbying is just one piece. Even though government employees are generally barred from lobbying for funding and/or legislation, what we can do is consciously and continuously educate elected and appointed officials, and the general public, about what state and territorial archives do and why that work is important. A chunk of that education relies on data -- the quantifiable picture you create from the ...

Beth Golding joined the CoSA Board in 2020. She is a member of the Education and Training Committee. Tell us a bit about your career journey. I started as an undergraduate history major with no career direction other than “anything but teaching.” An undergraduate internship at the New York State Archives in my final semester introduced me to the wonders of archives and archivists, and from then on, I knew exactly where I wanted to be. Thanks to training provided by some amazing professional mentors (now long-time friends), I had the good fortune to secure a couple of grant-funded project archivist positions. Those led to a full-time position at the NYS ...

Ken Williams, Utah State Archivist and CoSA President There are a couple of things you need to know about CoSA President Ken Williams: the first is his optimism, which pervades pretty much every aspect of his life, and the second is that he’s a man on a mission for CoSA. Taken together, it’s an unbeatable combination for an organization that is navigating a crossroad in its organizational life. Read more of Ken's interview

Throughout the month of October, state and territorial archives use American Archives Month to raise awareness about their work and the importance of that work on the lives of residents across the country. Many archives choose a theme to highlight such as music, women’s rights, climate change, transportation, or architecture and then showcase related materials during the month as part of exhibits, tours, and special events. Here are a few examples of American Archives Month themes for 2022: The State Archives of Florida is exploring how citizens engage in shaping government and how historical records illustrate that engagement with its theme, Your Archives, ...

The Council of State Archivists (CoSA) joins with EveryLibrary in calling for the swift confirmation of Dr. Colleen J. Shogan, the presidential nominee to be the next Archivist of the United States (AOTUS). The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is entrusted by law to keep and maintain open and equal access to government records by all citizens while safeguarding their integrity. Throughout her career and in her recent confirmation testimony , Dr. Shogan has demonstrated her commitment to NARA’s mission and support of democratic principles, ideals, and governance through the critical work of the agency. The archival community agrees ...

Immediate Past President Eric Emerson (L) and Current President Ken Williams (R) Successful Transfer of the leopard Cape of Power By Taylor Hummel, CoSA Intern It has been three years since the last in-person annual CoSA meeting. This past Monday marked the first in-person annual CoSA meeting since 2019 and it was the first CoSA meeting I have ever attended. I wasn’t alone in experiencing an in-person CoSA meeting for the first time as there were many other new faces in attendance due to numerous staff changes since the 2019 meeting. Things were silly and a little awkward as we relearned how to interact with other people face-to-face instead of the small ...

The Council of State Archivists Awards Program acknowledges institutions, individuals, and programs that have enriched and strengthened our nation's state and territorial archives. It rewards innovative efforts and provides encouragement for the development of new and remarkable projects. By recognizing exemplary achievements, the Council of State Archivists hopes to inspire others to make similar contributions. The RISING STARS AWARDS acknowledge outstanding contributions by individual staff members or teams to their state archives and constituencies. Rising Star: Clare Horton, Deputy State Archivist, Indiana State Archives Implemented several ...

"Standardizing formats and structures for email preservation (or even short-term management) can provide large leaps in efficiency in preserving email." The Phase 2: Testing Report from the CoSA PREPARE Project summarizes the findings of volunteers who tested three email preservation software packages -- ePADD, DArcMail, and libratom -- for use in email appraisal, acquisition, processing, and discovery workflows. The report includes tester insights and recommendations, and provides the basis for the next phase of the PREPARE project, which entails creation of templates, workflows, and other documentation that will support a direct assistance program to ...