Vermont Historical Society

DISCRETIONARY

VERMONT'S ROLE IN OUR NATIONAL STORY: PROVIDING DIGITAL ACCESS TO OUR COLLECTIONS [VHS IS ASKING FOR ADDITIONAL RELIEF FUNDING FROM NEH TO SUPPORT THE CREATION OF DIGITAL CATALOG RECORDS TO MAKE VERMONT HISTORY ACCESSIBLE FROM ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD. VHS SERVES THOUSANDS OF STUDENTS AND TEACHERS ANNUALLY, WHO RELY ON ACCESS TO PRIMARY SOURCE MATERIALS TO MEET CURRICULUM STANDARDS. RESEARCHERS RELY ON DIGITAL ACCESS TO THE RARE AND UNIQUE ITEMS PRESERVED IN OUR ARCHIVES TO PROMOTE SCHOLARSHIP ON VERMONT HISTORY AND CURRENT EVENTS. SINCE THE BEGINNING OF THE PANDEMIC, WE HAVE SEEN A DISTINCT INCREASE IN THE USE OF OUR DIGITAL COLLECTIONS, ESPECIALLY BY THOSE LIVING OUTSIDE VERMONT. TO COMMEMORATE AMERICA'S 250TH ANNIVERSARY, WE WILL PRIORITIZE ACCESS TO COLLECTIONS FROM VERMONT'S COLONIAL PERIOD AND THOSE HIGHLIGHTING THE UNIQUE EXPERIENCES OF UNDER-REPRESENTED COMMUNITIES. THIS PROJECT WILL BUILD ON OUR INITIAL ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND PROVIDE ACCESS TO COLLECTIONS THAT INFORM OUR UNDERSTANDING OF VERMONT'S ROLE IN OUR NATIONAL STORY.] [PURPOSE:?THE PURPOSE OF THIS GRANT IS TO RETAIN FIVE FULL-TIME POSITIONS AND FOUR PART-TIME POSITIONS TO ENGAGE IN COLLECTION DESCRIPTION,?PRESERVATION, DATABASE?MANAGEMENT, AND DIGITIZATION AT THE VERMONT HISTORICAL SOCIETY (VHS).?  ACTIVITIES TO BE PERFORMED: STAFF PLAN TO INVENTORY AND MAINTAIN COLLECTIONS,?CREATE CATALOG RECORDS, AND WRITE COLLECTION DESCRIPTIONS. COLLECTION DESCRIPTION ACTIVITIES INCLUDE: FINDING OCLC RECORDS FOR NEWLY ACQUIRED MATERIALS AND LONG-HELD MATERIALS (RETROSPECTIVE CONVERSION); LOADING NEW RECORDS IN THEIR ONLINE PUBLIC ACCESS CATALOG (OPAC) WHERE RESEARCHERS CAN ACCESS THEM; REVIEWING RETROSPECTIVE RECORDS TO MAKE THEM CONSISTENT WITH THEIR OPAC, CREATING ORIGINAL CATALOGING RECORDS FOR NEW AND OLD LIBRARY AND MUSEUM ACQUISITIONS; CREATING AND REVIEWING FINDING AIDS OF MANUSCRIPT COLLECTIONS; AND CREATING AND REVIEWING MACHINE READABLE CATALOGING (MARC) RECORDS FOR MANUSCRIPT COLLECTIONS, BEFORE UPLOADING THEM INTO OCLC AND THEIR OPAC. THEY WILL ALSO ADD EXISTING CATALOG ENTRIES IN THEIR OPAC AND CATALOGIT DATABASES. COLLECTIONS MAINTENANCE ACTIVITIES INCLUDE: UNPACKING OBJECTS FROM WHEN VHS MOVED TO ITS CURRENT LOCATION IN 2000, REHOUSING OBJECTS FOR EASIER ACCESSIBILITY AND BETTER PREVENTATIVE CONSERVATION, AND EVALUATING OBJECTS? RELEVANCE TO THE VHS?S MISSION. FOR LIBRARY COLLECTIONS, COLLECTIONS MAINTENANCE INVOLVES HOUSING BOOKS, MANUSCRIPTS, MAPS, PHOTOGRAPHS, AND PRINTED EPHEMERA IN APPROPRIATELY SIZED ARCHIVAL BOXES, FOLDERS, SLEEVES, AND SHELVING. FINALIZED RECORDS WILL BE ADDED TO DIGITAL VERMONT, VHS?S WEBSITE AND THE ONLINE MUSEUM CATALOG.  EXPECTED OUTCOMES:?THE EXPECTED OUTCOMES ARE: VASTLY SPEEDING UP THE PROCESS OF ENTERING ITEMS INTO THE HISTORICAL SOCIETY'S OPAC AND DIGITAL VERMONT EXHIBIT WEBSITE.?THIS DIGITAL CATALOGING WORK WOULD MAKE COLLECTION MATERIALS MORE ACCESSIBLE TO RESEARCHERS AND THE GENERAL PUBLIC.  INTENDED BENEFICIARIES: THE AUDIENCES THAT WILL BENEFIT FROM INCREASED ACCESS TO THE VHS?S HISTORIC MATERIALS INCLUDE: ACADEMIC RESEARCHERS, K-12 STUDENTS AND TEACHERS, AND THOSE INTERESTED IN THE STATE'S ROLE IN THE FOUNDATIONAL YEARS OF THE AMERICAN REPUBLIC, AS WELL AS THE GENERAL PUBLIC FOR WHOM IT WOULD BE EASIER TO LOCATE COLLECTIONS.  SUBRECIPIENT ACTIVITIES:?THE RECIPIENT HAS NO PLANS TO SUBAWARD.? ]

THE VERMONT HISTORICAL SOCIETY WILL WORK WITH LOCAL HISTORICAL SOCIETIES AND MUSEUMS AROUND VERMONT TO HELP DEVELOP SKILLS AMONG THE WORKFORCE AT MOSTLY ALL-VOLUNTEER ORGANIZATIONS.  THE PROJECT AIMS TO ENGAGE UP TO 300 MUSEUM STAFF AND VOLUNTEERS IN USING AN ACTIVE COLLECTIONS FRAMEWORK THAT ENCOURAGES SMALLER AND MORE FOCUSED MUSEUM COLLECTIONS.  PROJECT COMPONENTS INCLUDE FOUR ONE-DAY WORKSHOPS, AND MONTHLY VIRTUAL MEETINGS WITH TWO COHORTS OF HISTORICAL SOCIETIES TO PROVIDE TRAINING, RESOURCES, AND DIRECT ASSISTANCE ON SELF-SELECTED COMPONENTS OF COLLECTIONS-BASED PROJECTS. AN ONLINE RESOURCE CENTER WILL BE CREATED THAT WILL INCLUDE CONTENT FROM THE PROJECT, SUCH AS TRAINING MATERIALS AND COLLECTIONS MANAGEMENT RESOURCES THAT MAY SERVE SIMILAR VOLUNTEER-BASED ORGANIZATIONS IN OTHER STATES DEVELOP THE SKILLS OF THEIR VOLUNTEER STAFF TO INCREASE INSTITUTIONAL SUSTAINABILITY AND ENSURE THE CONTINUING PRESERVATION OF LOCAL HISTORY.

PRESERVING AND EXPANDING ACCESS TO VERMONT'S HISTORY

THE VERMONT HISTORICAL SOCIETY WILL CAPTURE, PRESERVE, AND SHARE THE STORIES OF VERMONTERS DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC, PARTICULARLY THOSE WHO WORKED ON THE FRONT LINES AND SHAPED THE STATE’S RESPONSE. THE SOCIETY WILL CONDUCT 100 ORAL HISTORY INTERVIEWS WITH GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS, HEALTH CARE WORKERS, EDUCATORS, RETAIL WORKERS, AND OTHERS MOST DIRECTLY AFFECTED BY THE EARLIEST DAYS OF THE PANDEMIC. PROJECT STAFF WILL WORK WITH AN ADVISORY COMMITTEE TO DEVELOP THE LIST OF INTERVIEWEES AND MEET AGAIN DURING THE MIDPOINT TO ASSESS GAPS. STAFF WILL HIRE FOUR FIELD INTERVIEWERS AND PROVIDE TRAINING TO COLLECT THE ORAL HISTORIES, WHICH WILL ALSO BE USED TO CREATE A BOOK AND A LIMITED-SERIES PODCAST. THEY WILL ASSESS THE PROJECT USING QUALITATIVE AND QUANTITATIVE MEASURES, INCLUDING THE NUMBER OF ORAL HISTORY INTERVIEWS PRODUCED AND MADE ACCESSIBLE ONLINE; THE DIVERSITY OF PEOPLE INTERVIEWED AS WELL AS THEIR EXPERIENCES SHARED; AND THE NUMBER OF PODCAST DOWNLOADS.

MUSEUMS FOR AMERICA

THE VERMONT HISTORICAL SOCIETY IN BARRE, VERMONT, WILL CREATE EDUCATIONAL ONLINE CONTENT AND IN-PERSON PROGRAMS TO ENGAGE K-12 STUDENTS IN EXPLORING THEIR HISTORY. CONTENT AND PROGRAMS WILL FEATURE STORIES OF RESILIENCY, DIVERSITY, AND COMMUNITY THAT DEMONSTRATE HOW VERMONTERS FACED CHALLENGES, PERSEVERED, AND SOLVED PROBLEMS. THE SOCIETY WILL PRIORITIZE STORIES THAT HIGHLIGHT THE EXPERIENCES OF VERMONTERS WHO ARE BLACK, INDIGENOUS, AND PEOPLE OF COLOR, AS WELL AS STORIES THAT BUILD A SENSE OF COMMUNITY. THE VERMONT HISTORY EXPLORER WEBSITE, WHICH SAW A SURGE OF NEW USE DURING THE PANDEMIC AND SERVES AS A VALUABLE TOOL FOR REMOTE LEARNING, WILL HOUSE THE NEW CONTENT. IT WILL PROVIDE EDUCATORS WITH EASILY ACCESSIBLE, STANDARDS-BASED RESOURCES TO TEACH VERMONT HISTORY IN A MORE DIVERSE AND INCLUSIVE MANNER, AND SUPPORT CONTINUED FLEXIBILITY IN DELIVERING EDUCATIONAL CONTENT.

NATIONAL LEADERSHIP GRANTS

50 OBJECTS FOR THE 250TH [IN RECOGNITION OF THE 250TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE SIGNING OF THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE AND THE FOUNDING OF THE UNITED STATES, THE VERMONT HISTORICAL SOCIETY WILL CURATE A PUBLIC EXHIBIT AND RELATED PUBLICATION FOCUSED ON 50 OBJECTS THAT TELL OF VERMONT?S HISTORY AND RELATIONSHIP WITH THE REPUBLIC FROM ITS FOUNDING. THIS PROJECT WILL ENGAGE VERMONTERS FROM ACROSS THE STATE IN EXPLORING VERMONT?S HISTORY, AS TOLD BY OBJECTS FROM OUR COLLECTION. THE PROJECT WILL HIGHLIGHT THE IMPORTANCE OF PRESERVING VERMONT?S TREASURES TO TELLING THE STORY OF VERMONT AS A PART OF A NEW NATION.]

DISCRETIONARY

VERMONT OVERSIZED HISTORICAL DOCUMENT PRESERVATION PROJECT