Presentations

National finding aid network that is community-driven -sustained, and -governed

Works in Progress Webinar: Building a National Finding Aid Network (NAFAN) research findings—End user survey and interviews

By Chela Scott Weber, Lesley A. Langa

Building a National Finding Aid Network (NAFAN) was an Institute of Museum and Library Services-funded research and demonstration project with the goal of providing inclusive, comprehensive, and persistent access to descriptions of archival collections, or "finding aids." Members of the OCLC Research NAFAN project shared our findings related to end users—those gleaned from survey data as well as from individual semi-structured interviews.

Topics: Works in Progress, User Research

NAFAN: A national finding aid network that is community-driven, -sustained, and -governed

Works in Progress Webinar: Building a National Finding Aid Network (NAFAN) research findings—Introduction and project recommendations

By Chela Scott Weber, Lynn Silipigni Connaway

Members of the OCLC Research NAFAN team introduced the goals and methodologies used across this important research project. This session covered the overall recommendations based on the findings of the OCLC Research effort for the NAFAN project.

Topics: Works in Progress, User Research

Collaboration for sustainability: Operationalizing the Art Research Collective Collection

Collaboration for sustainability: Operationalizing the Art Research Collective Collection

By Brain Lavoie, Dennis Massie, Chela Scott Weber

Art Information: Reflection and The Future—The Art Discovery Group Catalogue (ADGC)
virtual

Operationalizing the Art Research Collective Collection (OpArt) is an OCLC Research project exploring opportunities for collaboration between art, academic, and independent research libraries. This presentation reports on the project’s first two phases: an art research collective collection analysis using WorldCat data, and an analysis of interlibrary loan (ILL) sharing patterns using five years of WorldShare Interlibrary Loan data.

Topics: Collective Collections

NAFAN Building a Natinal Finding Aid Network

NAFAN Building a National Finding Aid Network Research Update

By Merrilee Proffitt, Lesley A. Langa, Chela Scott Weber

SAA: 2022 Research Forum Agenda
Virtual

Across three presentations, the NAFAN research team shares an update on their work and preliminary research findings from focus groups interviews with archivists and a pop-up survey of archives users. They also discuss research questions, data collection and analysis methods, and efforts to align methods with project values and principles.

Understanding Archivists Needs for a National Finding Aid Platform

Understanding Factors that Shape Archivists’ Needs for a New National Finding Aid Platform

By Lynn Silipigni Connaway, Lesley A. Langa, Merrilee Proffitt, Chela Scott Weber

LRRT Chair's Program: Research Forum and Awards Presentation, ALA Annual 2022
Washington, DC

The authors identify and discuss the opportunities and challenges archivists experience when describing archival materials, sharing archival description on the web, and making decisions about whether or not to participate in current finding aid aggregations.

Topics: User Research, Archives and Special Collections