|
SCHOAM! for July 2025
Special Collections, Historical Organizations, Archives & Museums
| | in short: News | Grants | Ideas | Events | Webinars | Jobs | | |
News from SCRLC
Regional Conversations
We've surveyed you with targeted questions about our services, but we also have bigger, broader questions that you and your peers might want to talk about with each other. Please consider signing up for one of our regional conversations, which will be short, online opportunities for you to network with one another and talk about current victories and struggles.
New Collection: Nichols Historical Collection
Thanks to a 2024 SCRLC Digitization Grant to the Finger Lakes Library System, Cady Library's director, Erica Deretz, was able to digitize their local yearbooks. Erica is also the Town of Nichols Historian, and she has now digitized literary magazines from the high school, a walking tour brochure, and annual Old Home Days programs spanning 1952 to 2024.
New Collection: Cooperstown Graduate Program Oral Histories
With a 2024 SCRLC Digitization Grant to SUNY Oneonta's Milne Library, SCRLC digitized the 13,000+ cards in a card catalog for the Cooperstown Graduate Program. The cards represent the vast collection of oral histories and related materials created and compiled by past CGP students, dating back to the 1960s. By digitizing the card catalog, we were able to put together a detailed inventory of the many projects (all with associated materials like reels, cassettes, transcripts, and more) so that the CGP can apply for a much larger grant for access-focused digitization of the oral history projects. This new digital collection on NYHeritage.org is just a small sampling of what exists in the enormous CGP collection.
New Collection: Elmira College Yearbooks
This is another 2024 SCRLC Digitization Grant for which SCRLC did the digitizing. Find all of Elmira College's yearbooks online now, dating back to 1897. Read through the yearbooks to follow the development of women's education and see many local names and faces.
| | |
Grants & Assistance
Candid Foundation Directory Access
Through a partnership with the Empire State Library Network, SCRLC members can get access to the Candid Foundation Directory beginning this month. With information on more than 317,000+ grant-makers, Candid’s Foundation Directory can help you find the funders you don't know yet, the majority of whom do not have websites and would otherwise be almost impossible to find. This resource is for your staff and not for the public. Click here to request access and click here to register for a webinar next week about how to use Foundation Directory.
NEH: Rediscovering Our Revolutionary Tradition
Apply for up to $350,000 to conserve, catalog, describe, digitize, interpret, and/or organize primary sources about the American Revolution and/or the expansion of states and territories. Due September 4. (Do you have an idea for making this a regional project? Let's talk!)
NEH: Celebrate America! Grants in Honor of America’s 250th Anniversary
Apply for up to $25,000 of matching funds for a project to be completed by next July 4th and "that focus on the founding of the American nation, key historical figures, and milestones that reflect the exceptional achievements of the United States."
| | |
Ideas & Inspiration
Legislative Updates
Some of our region's legislators are better than others about communication. Anna Kelles, a state senator for Tompkins County and part of Cortland County, has a useful and detailed email newsletter that I recommend as a supplement to the NYLA news, especially if you're in her district. Her most recent email included a readable breakdown of the NYS budget and a list of particular things she had pushed for. You can read it here and find the budget summary at the end.
The particulars she described included consumer protections like funding for the Public Utility Law Project (PULP), an organization SCRLC staff has met as members of the NYS Digital Equity Network. PULP will be helpful for public-facing librarians to know about, as they can help those of your patrons who are facing billing issues with utilities, including internet companies like Spectrum. Incidentally, we're happy to report that the Supreme Court recently upheld the FCC's authority to administer the Universal Service Fund, which means libraries and schools can continue to benefit from E-Rate funds.
You can find quick legislative links here on scrlc.org. The Southern Tier Library System reminds us that the Congressional Appropriations Subcommittees are now developing the initial proposals for next year's federal budget, which makes *now* a good time to contact those legislators.
Join the NYAC Board
The New York Archives Conference (NYAC) is holding an election for open member-at-large board positions. You would be in excellent company, like SUNY Cortland's Brian Jirout and Binghamton University's Blythe Roveland-Brenton! Nominations, which include self-nominations, are due July 18.
Archives in Context Podcast: AI in the Archives
If you attended the New York Archives Conference a few weeks ago, you watched a few presentations about using AI to lighten the load of archivists. The latest episode of SAA's Archives in Podcast talks about the ethical implications and emerging potential of these new tools.
NYLA Awards
The New York Library Association has nomination forms open for their annual awards, including Academic, School, and Public Librarians of the Year awards. Think of someone great you've worked with and find a second person who can write a letter of support; you need two letters for the nomination.
FindNYCulture.org
As recently recommended by DHPSNY, https://findnyculture.org/ is a free, searchable directory of cultural organizations. Create an account by emailing info@findnyculture.org with your name, title, and organization name so that you can keep your institution's information updated.
Escape Rooms and Primary Sources
A recipient of a Library of Congress Teaching with Primary Sources grant shared her experiences in developing local history-themed escape room kits in this fun, short read. One of the quotes for feedback notes that another library's teen group wants to make their own escape room kit for younger kids to try; wouldn't a collaborative project between college kids (in a history program or working on an education major, for example) with publics, schools, and/or historical societies be amazing? Let's do it!
| | |
Happening in the Neighborhood
Fallen Stone Cross in Schuyler
The stone cross on the Lawrence Chapel in Montour Falls has fallen down due to age and weather. The Schuyler County Historical Society is raising funds to repair the slate tiles on the roof and return the cross to the top of the roof. This weekend, they're also hosting a book talk and a walking tour of Watkins Glen.
Awards and Recognition
Congratulations to Cyndi and her staff! Waterloo Library & Historical Society was just honored as the Nonprofit Business of the Year by the Seneca County Chamber of Commerce.
Tee Off in Penn Yan
As a fundraiser for the Yates County History Center, sign your golf-loving friends up for a tournament in September. $420 for a foursome includes food, 18 holes, contests, and a player gift.
Crowd-Sourced Photo-Documentation of the Canal
The Canal Society of New York State, based out of the Samuel Research Center in Port Byron is asking people to send them photos of activities along the canal as part of the celebration of the Erie Canal's 200th anniversary. Remember, you can always borrow our traveling Erie Canal exhibit!
Non-Permanent Exhibit Roundup, from East to West
Summer is the time for casual road trips, and there are so many great cultural organizations in our region! Maybe one of these current exhibits will catch your eye and prompt you to plan a visit:
- "Play On...Music and Theatre in Delaware County"
at Delaware County Historical Association
- "Emily Pettigrew: Painting in the Catskills 2021–2025," "Handshouse Studio: Notre-Dame Paris Cathedral Truss #6," "Snapshot: Highlights of the Plowline Collection," "Boundless Spirit: American Folk Art at Fenimore Art Museum," "American Masterworks," "The Power of Photography," and "Mary Cassatt / Berthe Morisot: Allies in Impressionism"
at Fenimore Art Museum
- "Creativity in Bloom: The Storied Illustrations of Suzanne Bloom"
at Chenango County Historical Society
- "Schools of Rock: Music at Oneonta's Colleges in the Age of Woodstock"
at the Greater Oneonta Historical Society
- "Service and Solidarity: Historically Black Fraternities and Sororities at Binghamton" and "Roads of Discovery: International Study Here and Abroad"
at Binghamton University Libraries
- "Dryden United Methodist Church"
at Dryden Town Historical Society
- "6-25: Local Perspectives of the Korean War," "REST STOP: An Art Exhibition by Julia J. Wolfe," and "Silent Films on Cayuga Lake: The Wharton Studio Story"
at the Cayuga Museum of History and Art
- "Rooted in Reform"
at the Seward House Museum
- "Invasive Species: A Collaborative Exhibit," "The Power of Food: Confronting Climate Change One Meal at a Time," "Know Whence You Came: James Baldwin, Public Intellectual", and "Black Print: African American Writing, 1773-1910"
at Cornell University Libraries
- "Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, Buses, Boats, Bikes"
at the History Center in Tompkins County
- "Changing Face of Newfield"
at Newfield Historical Society
- A J. Lars Hoftrup Pop-Up exhibit, a CCHS Learning Lab Exhibit about Ernie Davis, "Marking Life's Milestones: Celebrations, Commemorations, and Cake," "Web of History," "Six Degrees of Mark Twain," and "So Far From Home: Life in Elmira’s Confederate Prison Camp"
at Chemung County Historical Society
- "Little Yates"
at Yates County History Center
- "Brilliant Color," "Blown Away Season 4," "Glass Bridge: A Clear Path to Sustainability," and "Table Talk: A Global Gathering"
at Corning Museum of Glass
| | |
Zooms & Webinars Up Your Alley
[ESLN] Is AI On the Test? (PILLARS 2025 Symposium)
Friday, July 11 from 9:30 am to 3:30 pm
[NNLM] Librarian's Guide to Consumer Health
July 14 - August 8 | free self-paced course on Moodle
[Choice] AI Literacy Essentials for Academic Libraries
mid-July - mid-September | free weekly newsletters described as a "micro-course"
[Candid] Introduction to Foundation Directory
Tuesday, July 15 at 2 pm
[DHPSNY] Climate Resilience & Sustainability: Collections Care for the Future
Tuesday, July 15 at 2 pm
[PACNY] Restoring a Landmark: People's AME Zion Church in Syracuse
Tuesday, July 15 at 5:30 pm
Book Talk: "Ways of Knowing: Oral Histories on the Worlds Words Create" With Editors Amanda Belantara and Emily Drabinski
Wednesday, July 16 at 1 pm
[NYSL] Native Nations: A Millennium in North America
Thursday, July 17 at 12 pm
[SCRLC] Building Psychological Safety and Supportive Cultures in Teams
Thursday, July 17 at 2 pm
Enhance Your Visitors' Experience with Bloomberg Connects
Thursday, July 17 at 2 pm
Life in the Past Lane: History Along the Highways of New York State
Tuesday, July 22 at 12:15 pm
[NYS Archives] Ask Us Anything About Processing and Purging Records
Thursday, July 24 at 10 am
2025 LD4 Conference: Linked Data in the Real World
July 28 - July 30
note the Binghamton University & Cornell University librarians as the organizers!
Frances Perkins' Legacy in Action
Tuesday, July 29 at 12:30 pm
[NNLM] Health Statistics on the Web (July 29, 2025)
Tuesday, July 29 at 1 pm
[Candid] Introduction to Finding Grants
Tuesday, July 29 at 2 pm
[NYSL] How Public Libraries Can Better Serve People with Developmental Disabilities
Wednesday, July 30 at 11 am
[RRLC] Shift Work, Long Hours, and Fatigue
Thursday, July 31 at 1 pm
[Choice] U.S. Newcomers in Academic Libraries: What Should We Know, What Can We Do
Thursday, July 31 at 2 pm
Collection Development Tips for All Librarians
Monday, August 4 at 2 pm
[NNLM] Cultivating a Grief Sensitive Community through Library and Community-Based Partnerships
Tuesday, August 5 at 2 pm
[MLA/LILRC] Beyond Compliance: A Guide to Accessibility Audits for Your Library
Tuesday, August 5 at 2 pm
[MLA/LILRC] Mastering the Art of Impactful Presentations: A Skills-Focused Webinar
Tuesday, August 12 at 2 pm
[CLRC] Turning the Page - ADHD and Employee Policies
Tuesday, August 12 at 2 pm
Copyrights for Educational and Cultural Institutions: Common Considerations, Challenges, Pitfalls
Wednesday, August 13 at 11 am
[Southeastern] Digital Preservation Special Interest Group on the topic of Archivematica
Wednesday, August 13 at 2 pm
In Person Events
Immigrants Who Got the Job Done: Foreign Fighters in the American Revolution
Yates County History Center, Penn Yan, NY | July 12 at 11 am
HumanitiesNY Community Conversations
Genesee Country Village and Museum, Mumford, NY | July 12 at 4 pm
The Old State Road: Miles of Stories from Oxford to Cayuga Lake
Cortland County Historical Society, Cortland, NY | July 17 at 12 pm
Recordings & Follow-up Resources
| | That's all for this month! Send me an email if there's anything at your organization you'd like me to include in the next newsletter: clovell@scrlc.org | Claire Lovell, Digital Services Librarian | | | | |
