The Archive as a Collaborative Research and Digital Publication Laboratory

Neal Harmeyer, Tracy Grimm, and Lauren Haslem (Purdue University)

Archivists from Purdue University Archives and Special Collections, embedded within honors courses, recently completed pilot phases of two projects aimed at online dissemination of student scholarly research. Project goals were to increase our own understanding of digital scholarship management, to provide students experience in the scholarly publication cycle, to strengthen our collaborative efforts with faculty, and finally, to enhance exposure of Archives and Special Collections as a center for student research and scholarship. Outcomes included many successes, some failures, and opportunities to refine the archives-led digital scholarship process. In this talk, we will discuss the investments necessary by the archivists, faculty, and student staff; share outcomes both positive and negative from the experience, including barriers discovered in the process; and provide our own rubric for bridging the divide between diverse partners within the academy—students, professional staff, and faculty—for successful integration of archival instruction and digital scholarship.

Neal Harmeyer is a digital archivist within Archives and Special Collections at Purdue University. Neal works collaboratively with faculty and staff within campus units and departments to generate course instruction material using archival materials. His primary interest is facilitating greater community understanding of archives and special collections and their potential research and educational values. Neal also coordinates digitization and manages departmental digital collections access systems, practices, rights, and assessment.

Tracy Grimm is the Barron Hilton Archivist for Flight and Space within Archives and Special Collections at Purdue University. The Barron Hilton Flight and Space Exploration Archives holds the personal papers of pioneering aviators, astronauts and engineers including Amelia Earhart and Neil Armstrong. In collaboration with Purdue faculty, Tracy co-develops and co-instructs courses that integrate primary source materials. She is also involved in mentoring, student publishing, and integrating students into the work of the archive.

Lauren Haslem is currently a graduate student assistant for the Psychoactive Substances Research Collection within Archives and Special Collections at Purdue University. She served as the content editor and primary student staff liaison between the Department of History and Archives and Special Collections during a recent digital scholarship pilot project. Lauren was responsible for reviewing, making recommendations for publication, editorial decisions and article submissions, as well as providing design and production development.

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