NHPRC recommends 2.9 million in grants

This press release just came from the U.S. National Archives. It will be interesting to see how the projects pan out over time.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 3, 2009
COMMISSION RECOMMENDS $2.9 MILLION IN GRANTS
FOR DOCUMENTARY EDITING AND ARCHIVAL PROJECTS

Washington, D.C*. New Archivist of the United States David Ferriero ended his first full week on the job by chairing the meeting of the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC), celebrating its 75th anniversary. At its meeting, the Commission recommended to the Archivist 32 grants totaling $2.9 million for projects in 20 states and the District of Columbia. These recommendations include grants for digitizing historical records, electronic records preservation, and historical documentary editions.

Grants totaling $1.6 million were recommended for 11 publishing projects from the U.S. Colonial and Early National Period, and three additional publishing projects received Commission endorsement. A grant to the Wisconsin Historical Foundation will support the 39th annual Institute for Editing of Historical Documents, which provides training for new documentary editors. Seven new volumes of documentary editions received subvention support for print editions.

The Graduate School of Library and Information Science at Simmons College received a grant to develop a virtual laboratory to support instruction in electronic records management, and the University of Denver will undertake a two-year project to develop and test open source records managements software called Liaison. Seven digitization projects were recommended, including the Historic African American Education Collections in Atlanta and New York's Colonial Council Records, 1664-1781. Mount Holyoke College, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, and the Hawaii State Archives received funding to establish electronic records programs, and Michigan State University will begin Spartan Archive to manage the university's institutional memory through electronic records management archives. View the full list of recommended grants at http://www.archives.gov/press/press-releases/2010/nr10-28.html.

Kathleen Williams, Executive Director of the NHPRC, presented the grant applications and policy issues to the full Commission. The Commission welcomed its newest member, Washington State Archivist Jerry Handfield, who represents the National Association of Government Archives and Records Administrators. Commission members also heard a presentation by John Nemmers, a Descriptive and Technical Services Archivist at the University of Florida Libraries, on the progress of "America's Swamp," a digitizing project on the history of the Florida Everglades, funded by the Commission.

Archivist David Ferriero is the Chairman of the Commission, which includes representatives from all three branches of the Federal government as well as the leading archival and historical professional associations. The NHPRC is the grantmaking arm of the National Archives. It is the sole federal funding agency whose only focus is the documentary heritage of the United States. Established in 1934, the NHPRC awards grants for preserving, publishing, and providing access to vital historical documents.