RBMS Workshops: Your Own Conference Story

This year, we are delighted to offer another varied slate of workshops on Tuesday, June 20. These workshops are designed to give special collections professionals opportunities to hone their skills in an intimate, focused setting alongside their peers. Since the sessions are quantifiable contact hours (participants receive certificates of completion), they can also be helpful in making your case to attend the conference. There are half-day and full-day learning options to suit a range of skills and interests.

Our two half-day sessions are all about the stories told by paper. In the morning, Robert Cagna, reminds us that “Every Stamp Tells a Story: How Postage Stamps, Postal Stationery, Postcards, and Other Postal Ephemera from the 18th Century to Today are Historically Important to Special Collections.” In this three-hour workshop, Robert will deliver a fresh interpretation of the historical importance of postal documents and mail communication in special collections. No prior knowledge of the topic is necessary, so this is a wonderful introduction to these important pieces of ephemera. Robert’s workshop is sponsored by Read’Em Again Books.

Various images of cancelled stamps from Cagna’s collection

In the afternoon workshop, “Research and Production Papermaking at the UI Center for the Book,” Timothy Barrett, will give participants the facility tour, invite everyone to take part in making paper in an historically accurate three person team at the Western papermaking vat, and provide a lecture with discussion about paper research as it relates to the care and conservation of paper based materials. Timothy’s workshop is sponsored by Archival Products.

Our full-day workshops delve deep into material preservation and cataloging. The “Disaster Response Training” workshop will outline the basics in disaster response. Moving beyond the knee-jerk reaction to rush to save everything, the workshop will explain that a successful recovery requires assessment and planning before execution. With emphasis on building a response team, ensuring personal safety during disaster response and the assessment and planning that must take place before and during a disaster, this workshop is geared towards beginners or for those looking for a refresher. All three instructors of this workshop are members of the Iowa Museum, Archives and Libraries Response Team (IMALERT) and have experience salvaging collections due to mold, flooding and fire. This workshop will be held at the University of Iowa Main Library and conclude with a mock water emergency to give participants a hands-on experience in emergency response.

Nancy Kraft in the conservation lab at University of Iowa

Mock water emergency drill at the University of Iowa

In “Applying Descriptive Cataloging of Rare Materials (Manuscripts),” sponsored by Voyager Press Rare Books and Manuscripts, presenters will provide an introduction to DCRM(MSS), the new RBMS standard for cataloging individual manuscripts. The workshop will include a brief introduction to the manual’s guiding principles, discussion of how manuscript cataloging differs from the cataloging of published materials, introduction to the treatment of major elements of the catalog record in DCRM(MSS), and hands-on practice in applying DCRM(MSS), using provided examples. Participants should have experience in MARC cataloging using AACR2; familiarity with DCRM(B) and/or DACS will be helpful.

For complete workshop descriptions, please visit here. Participation is limited, so remember to register early. We hope you join us for these exciting workshops in Iowa City!

–Christina Kasman,Yale Club of New York City
Elizabeth Wilkinson, University of Virginia
Jessica Crouch, University of South Carolina