Support for the Archival Workers Emergency Fund

Dear MARAC Members,

The Society of American Archivists Foundation recently announced the creation of the Archival Workers Emergency Fund (AWEF) to support archival workers experiencing financial hardship during the COVID-19 crisis.  The fund will supply grants of up to $1,000 to financially vulnerable and at-risk workers.  All U.S.-based archival workers affected by the COVID-19 crisis are eligible to apply, including archival workers who are not members of SAA.

Today the MARAC Steering Committee voted to donate our remaining FY20 advocacy funds, $1,370, to the AWEF.  We encourage you to also consider donating individually if you are able.  Donations are tax deductible.

To donate or to apply for a grant, please visit https://www2.archivists.org/groups/saa-foundation-board-of-directors/archival-workers-emergency-fund.

Sincerely,

Rachel Grove Rohrbaugh
MARAC Chair, 2019-2020

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MARAC Mentoring Cohort 2020-2021 Accepting Applications

Dear MARAC colleagues,

The MARAC Mentoring Program is seeking participants for the 2020 cycle! The year long  program will begin in July 2020. All interested mentors and mentees are encouraged to sign up by the end of April. We also encourage folks interested in being mentors to consider self-selecting a co-mentor to work with. Is there a colleague you’d like to partner with? Encourage them to sign up with you!

Applications and more information about this exciting program are available here.

WHY PARTICIPATE?

The MARAC Mentoring Program offers members an opportunity to participate in Mentoring Circles, small groups that typically consist of four to five mentees and two mentors. Diverging from the traditional one-on-one mentoring model, the circle fosters mentoring relationships between mentors and mentees, but also peer mentoring relationships and can help you network with new colleagues gain new useful skills for your archives career.

Mentoring Circles are designed to:

-Encourage the exchange of experiences, challenges, and opportunities to facilitate goal-setting for career and personal development.

             -Build competence and character to reach those goals.

             -Foster self-confidence, communication skills, and collective growth.

Mentors and Mentees are matched to a circle depending on their interests, goals, availability, and geographic location. Circles typically meet in a combination of virtual and in-person meetings. The application process includes an initial survey to determine everyone’s interests and support the initial grouping. All participants should be current MARAC members, able to commit to a full cycle of the program, and be ready to actively participate in every meeting.

HOW TO PARTICIPATE

Please visit the MARAC Mentoring page to learn more about the program and to apply to join. Applications will be accepted through June 10, 2020. Applicants will receive placement information by July 1, 2020. If you have any questions about the program, please contact the MARAC Mentoring Subcommittee: mentoring@marac.info.

Resources for Archivists

As we continue to work around and deal with the impact of the novel coronavirus pandemic, MARAC is dedicated to providing help to our profession. We’re compiling a list of resources for archival professionals to assist with those working from home, as well as those looking to document their community and/or institutional response to the pandemic. We are also open to sharing other resources not mentioned here. To submit ideas or suggestions, please contact us at marac.communications@gmail.com. We will also be able to share such ideas with other members via our social media platforms, as well as an updated blog post.

• The Society of American Archivists’ Documenting in Times of Crisis toolkit
• Resources for archivists working from home, courtesy of SAA’s Accessibility & Disability Section
• A list of resources and other institutional responses to the COVID-19 outbreak, created by Elizabeth James at Marshall University
• Resources for displaced archival workers
• American Institute for Conservation’s Book and Paper Group Executive Council have compiled resources for Conservation & Working From Home
• A crowd-sourced list of free webinars and trainings for academic library workers

We are also looking to share ideas for practical responses already in place by archives professionals in the MARAC region. If you or your coworkers have a project related to COVID-19 response, please feel free to share it with us – we are happy to help promote your activities further. You can find us on Twitter (@MARACTweets) or on Facebook in the MARAC group.