“New and Emerging Voices” – A Call for Papers: 2009 RBMS Preconference

You are invited to respond to the call below and to distribute this message to all interested parties.

The 50th Annual ALA/ACRL/Rare Books and Manuscripts Section (RBMS) Preconference
“Seas of Change: Navigating the Cultural and Institutional Contexts of Special Collections”
Charlottesville, Virginia
17-20 June 2009

CALL FOR PAPERS

The Rare Books and Manuscripts Section (RBMS) of the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL), a division of the American Library Association (ALA), seeks proposals for short papers to be delivered at its 2009 preconference, “Seas of Change: Navigating the Cultural and Institutional Contexts of Special Collections.”

As the 50th anniversary of the RBMS preconference, this year represents an important moment in the history of the Section and its affiliated professions.  While we intend to celebrate the Section’s achievements we also want to look broadly at how the profession has evolved over the last fifty years in respect to social, cultural, technological, economic, and academic changes and – more importantly – how we will need to respond to changes in the future.  Several distinguished individuals will speak from the perspectives of academic research universities, research communities, professional organizations and library education, collecting and the book trade, publishing and the popular consumption of print materials, domestic and international academic library systems.

The short paper session, “New and Emerging Voices,” is designed to present the points of view of new special collections professionals on the nature of our collections, institutions, and work in the future.  In this program we plan to feature people new to the profession of special collections: recent graduates of library and information studies programs, experienced librarians making a career change, and members of groups traditionally underrepresented in the archival, rare book and manuscript library professions.  We want to hear why they have been drawn to the field at this point in time, what achievements and changes they hope to make, and where they see the cultural and institutional tides taking us.

A variety of subjects can be explored in a short paper.  Topics might include, but need not be limited to, the following:

• The changing role of the artifact in research and the class room
• Technology and its role in the development of new patron communities
• The place of special collections in the context of our parent organizations
• The relevance of paper-based collections in a digital future
• The role of digital resources within special collections
• The definition of special collections in a digital age
• New types of collections and/or modes of collecting
• Changing relationships between libraries, archives, and museums

Each paper selected will be allotted 20 minutes for presentation.  Papers will be delivered in small groups and audience response will be encouraged.

Proposals should not exceed 250 words and should be submitted with full contact information by 31 October 2008 to:

R. Arvid Nelsen, Chair, RBMS Preconference Program Committee
Via:
E-mail: nels0307@umn.edu
FAX: (612) 625-8054
POST: Charles Babbage Institute
211 Elmer L. Andersen Library
222 – 21st Avenue South
Minneapolis, MN 55455

A website devoted to the preconference will be available shortly at http://www.rbms.info/conferences/preconferences/2009

Decisions and notification about proposals will be made via email by 1 December 2008.

Submissions are encouraged from all interested parties, including graduate students in relevant disciplines.  Preference for this session of short papers will be awarded to librarians and archivists new to the Special Collections field, experienced librarians who have made a career change to Special Collections, and professionals from traditionally underrepresented communities.  If you would like to apply for this preference, please provide a short statement about your background and your eligibility.

Funding is not available from RBMS to support travel costs, however RBMS annually provides full and partial scholarships, through a competitive scholarship program.  All applicants are assessed against established scholarship criteria.  Speakers are not guaranteed an award, and will not be automatically considered – a completed scholarship application is required from all applicants for scholarships.  Detailed information about the 2009 scholarship program will be posted online in early 2009 at http://www.rbms.info.  Applications will be due in April 2009 and award recipients will be notified by May 2009.