CARA Discusses Volunteers and Interns and Celebrates 5 Years of Fellowship and Learning

"What a volunteer can be: someone who is ready to do superhuman tasks that will stun you and surprise you--they're really an inspiration."--Ed Valauskas, panelist at CARA fall meeting 2013

On Thursday, November 7, CARA held its fall meeting at Dominican University in River Forest. More than 20 came for the business meeting, lunch/networking session, and panel discussion on the topic Working with Volunteers and Interns.

During the business meeting, outgoing CARA President Malachy McCarthy gave a summary of the genesis and history of CARA. He introduced Jerice Barrios and Patricia Carroll as the new President and Vice President of the organization. At that point, Jerice took the floor and named the third member of the CARA Steering Committee, Audra Adomenas, who will act as CARA's liaison to Chicago Area Archivists (CAA). All these appointments were approved by voice vote of the membership. The meeting marked the fifth anniversary of CARA, which has been led since the beginning by the following Steering Committee members:

• Malachy McCarthy, President
• Diane Pugh, Vice President
• Sr. Joella Cunnane, Secretary
• Joan Sweeney, Communications Coordinator
• Richard Seidel, Treasurer and Membership Coordinator (Richard passed away earlier this year, and is much missed)

A moment was taken to appreciate their contributions toward five years of CARA programming and camaraderie. The group then enjoyed lunch, including a cake that was ceremoniously cut and served by Joan Sweeney and Malachy McCarthy.

Joan Sweeney and Malachy McCarthy cut the CARA cake

After lunch, Patricia Carroll introduced the panelists and acted as moderator for the discussion on working with volunteers and interns in archives and special libraries. The expert panelists were

• Nina Cummings, Photo Archivist at The Field Museum,
• Aaron Reisberg, Archivist for The McGreal Center for Dominican Historical Studies,
• Edward Valauskas, curator of rare books at the Lenhardt Library of the Chicago Botanic Garden.



Panelists Ed Valauskas, Nina Cummings, and Aaron Reisberg

 

Panelists emphasized the importance of fostering a mutually beneficial relationship between an institution and its interns and volunteers. They shared practical suggestions from their own experiences on how to provide an educational and enriching internship or volunteer experience. The panel graciously took questions from the audience. The final festivity was the awarding of Door Prizes, with each panelist choosing a winner from the audience.

 

CARA thanks Dominican University for generously hosting the meeting and giving us the opportunity to connect with and learn from our colleagues. We look forward to meeting again in Spring of 2014! 

Introductory Archive Workshop for Religious Communities

The information below is shared with us by CARA member Malachy McCarthy:

Introductory Archive Workshop for Religious Communities

Ronkonkoma, New York, June 2014

The Catholic Library Association (CLA) is pleased to announce the sixth Introductory Archive Workshop for Religious Communities to be held at the Cenacle Retreat House, Ronkonkoma, NY from June 15-20, 2014. The 5-day intensive program is directed toward individuals who are interested in learning about archival theory and practice or who wish to update their archival training. 

Unlike other archival workshops, the sessions will focus on the unique types of records found in the archives of men’s and women’s religious communities. These records document not only the communities themselves, but also the evolution of Catholicism in the United States, and its impact on educational, social and charitable institutions that shaped the nation’s history. 

The program, directed by professional religious archivists, will include lectures, tours, and opportunities for sharing experiences.

Complete program and registration information and a registration form are posted on the Catholic Library Association website at http://www.cathla.org/archives-workshop, or contact the CLA at cla2@cathla.org or phone 312-739-1776 or toll free 855-739-1776.         



REGISTRATION DEADLINE MAY 1, 2014.

CARA's Fall Meeting to be held at Dominican University

Dominican University, Priory Campus

The Fall Meeting, "Working with Volunteers and Interns" will be held on November 7, 2013 at Dominican University's Priory Campus. Please see below for more details.

When: Thursday, Nov. 7, 2013. 1-4pm.

 

Where: Dominican University, Priory Campus, Room 259. 7200 Division St., River Forest, IL. The building is located on the northwest corner of the intersection of Harlem and Division, and there is free parking in front of it.

 

What: 

• 1 pm Business Meeting. We encourage CARA members to arrive promptly at 1pm for a brief business meeting.
• 1:15pm-2pm Lunch and Networking. A light lunch will be provided, as well as ample time to chat with your fellow meeting attendees.
• 2pm-4pm Panel Discussion and Question and Answer session.

A panel of experts will explore how volunteers and interns can form an important part of the archival workforce. The following questions will be addressed: How might interns and volunteers help us achieve our organizational goals? What are our responsibilities and obligations when we use volunteers or interns?

 

Meet our panelists:

 

Nina M. Cummings - Photo Archivist at The Field Museum. Nina manages an extensive collection of over 3/4 million still film and digital images, 1891 to the present. In her lengthy career at the Museum, Nina has managed over 40 volunteers and high school, college, and graduate school interns, utilizing their unique talents and expertise for everything from special projects to the more mundane (but still cool!) daily operations of the department.

 

Aaron Reisberg - MLIS, Archivist for The McGreal Center for Dominican Historical Studies. Aaron supervises the work of interns who arrange and describe portions of The McGreal Center's archival collection. He is a graduate of Dominican University’s Graduate School of Library and Information Science.

 

Cecilia L. Salvatore - Certified Archivist (CA) and Associate Professor in Dominican University’s Graduate School of Library and Information Science. She serves as Coordinator of the GSLIS Archives/Cultural Heritage Certificate Program. For the Society of American Archivists (SAA), Cecilia chairs both the Oral History Section and the Archival Educators Roundtable.

 

Edward J. Valauskas - Lecturer in Dominican University’s Graduate School of Library and Information Science. He teaches a variety of courses including Internet Publishing, Information Policy, History of the Book, and Scholarly Communication in the Sciences. Ed is the founder and editor-in-chief of First Monday, one of the first openly accessible, peer–reviewed journals on the Internet, solely devoted to the Internet. Additionally, Ed is the curator of rare books at the Lenhardt Library of the Chicago Botanic Garden.

 

CARA is seeking donations for door prizes that will be awarded during the Fall Meeting. If you have an item you would like to donate, please contact Jerice Barrios (cenacle.archives@gmail.com or 312-544-8204).

 

The meeting is free to all CARA members, students, and job transitioners, and $5 for non-members. Space is limited, so please RSVP to Jerice Barrios by November 1, 2013 (see contact information above).

 

--Jerice Barrios, Acting President of CARA

--Patricia Carroll, Acting Vice-President of CARA