AAO News

AAO Board of Directors Election 2024 Nominations are open

Nominations are currently being accepted for three (3) positions on the Board of Directors of the AAO. Each term will commence upon election at the AAO’s Annual General Meeting (AGM), to be held virtually on May 10, 2024, during the AAO 2024 conference.

Volunteering on the AAO Board offers an invaluable professional development experience. It provides candidates with an opportunity to network with other professionals in the field, develop their leadership skills, and to apply their existing knowledge and skill set to the service of Ontario’s archival community.

The positions that are currently open for nominations include:

Vice-President/President Elect: Three-year term (May 2024 - May 2027)

The Vice-President/President Elect (VP) serves as the deputy to the President, and provides assistance in all aspects of Board planning and policy decision-making. Along with the President, the VP may represent the AAO at meetings with the Association's stakeholders and within the broader Canadian archival community. Specific duties include:

Director Without Portfolio: Two-year term (May 2024 - May 2026)

The Director Without Portfolio position provides assistance in the general governing of the affairs of the Association. Specific duties may therefore include:

Chair, Institutional Development Committee: Two-year term (May 2024 - May 2026)

The Institutional Development Committee Chair acts as the representative for the AAO institutional members at a Board level. The person in this position must be the head of an archival institution and will be elected by special ballot by AAO Institutional Members in advance of, or at, the AGM, as per article 6.10 of the AAO Constitution.

Specific activities include:

You are invited to contact the following current Board members with any questions about the available positions:

Nominations can be submitted by downloading and sending the nomination form via email, to the AAO Office at aao@aao-archivists.ca, using the subject line "Nominations 2024", and direct your message to the attention of the Nominations Committee.

Nominations must be received by the AAO Office by close of business on Friday, May 3rd, 2024.

Sincerely,

Sarah McDougall

President, 2023-2024

president@aao-archivists.ca 

The Archives Association of Ontario

MAIG Constitution Proposed Amendments

The MAIG Executive have reviewed the constitution for the Municipal Archives Interest Group and have proposed amendments that will be voted on at the Annual General Meeting on May 6, 2024. In summary, the amendments include the following:

• The addition of a Past Chair position to the Executive.
• Reducing the term length of the Executive positions from three years to two years.
• Changing some of the language to reflect contemporary sociocultural standards and 2SLGBTQIA+ allyship (genderless language).
• Changing the deadline for the core funding request to align with the AAO Chapter/SIG Manual.
• Additional duties in the Executive Terms of Reference to reflect the evolution of the positions to the present day.

In accordance with article 10.1 of the MAIG constitution, a review period of 30 days has been provided prior to the AGM. Please send questions and feedback to Megan Lockhart, MAIG Chair, at mlockhart@oxfordcounty.ca.

Download the Proposed Amendments.

Upcoming MAIG Election

The Municipal Archives Interest Group is currently accepting nominations for our Chair and Vice-Chair positions for the 2024-2027 term. The terms for these positions are currently 3 years, but the terms could potentially be reduced to 2 years if the proposed amendments to the constitution are ratified at the upcoming Annual General Meeting on May 6. Nominations can be sent in advance of the meeting or submitted from the floor during the AGM.

Volunteering on the MAIG Executive is an excellent professional development experience, providing candidates with an opportunity to develop their leadership skills, network with other professionals and share their knowledge and experiences with other members of Ontario’s municipal archival community.

Summaries of the duties for each position are as follows:

Chair - The Chair shall preside at all meetings of MAIG and will advance the interests of MAIG. The Chair coordinates the yearly AGM, the Open House event for members, and assists the Vice-Chair with the production of the annual “MAIGazine” newsletter. Other duties include a submission on MAIG’s activities to the AAO Annual General Meeting Annual Report, and a report to MAIG on the group’s activities at MAIG’s Annual General Meeting. The Chair shall also be responsible for ensuring that regular updates on MAIG’s activities are submitted to the AAO publication, “Off the Record”, and is expected to attend the AAO’s Annual Leadership Meeting. They serve as a liaison between the AAO Board and municipal members, discussing any developments affecting municipal archives.

Vice-Chair - The Vice-Chair shall attend all general and executive meetings of MAIG and chair meetings if the Chair is unable to do so. They also assist the Chair with coordinating the AGM and yearly Open House event. The Vice-Chair develops and publishes the annual MAIG newsletter the “MAIGazine” in co-operation with the Chair and Secretary-Treasurer. The Vice-Chair will work to advance the interests of MAIG.
Nominations are being accepted by email only. Please complete and submit the form below to Megan Lockhart at mlockhart@oxfordcounty.ca, using the subject line “MAIG Nominations 2024”. Interested parties are also welcome to contact Megan with questions about the available positions. Nomination forms must be received by 5:00 p.m. EST on Wednesday, May 1, 2024.

MAIG Nomination Form

2024 MAIG Annual General Meeting

Please join the Municipal Archives Interest Group at our upcoming virtual AGM on May 6^th, at 1:00 PM EST. The AGM agenda package is available below:

We would like to provide a friendly reminder that nominations for the Chair and Vice-Chair positions are due on May 1st. We are also requesting that those attending the AGM please review the proposed amendments to the constitution before the meeting. Download the Proposed Amendments.

Please RSVP to Gina Dewaele at gdewaele@elgin.ca by May 1st to receive a link to the meeting. We’re looking forward to seeing you all virtually!

MAIG Executive

The Spring 2024 issue of Off the Record is now available to AAO members here: Current Issues.

This issue features an update from AAO President Sarah McDougall followed by an Archeion update from coordinator Kelli Babcock. Next we have a Member Spotlight with County of Prince Edward Archives Manager Krista Richardson. We close with an article by Rachel Arseneau about her time in the music collections at Wilfrid Laurier University Archives and Special Collections.

We're now accepting submissions for the OTR Summer 2024 Issue. If you’re interested in submitting to Off the Record, you can start sending your original submissions and cover art to otr@aao-archivists.ca.

We’ll be accepting submissions for the Summer issue until June 20th, 2024. For more details, please see the Submissions Guidelines page online.

Finally, we'd like to introduce the new editors of Off The Record, Isobel Carnegie and Simon Vickers. We've already heard some of their exciting new ideas for OTR and we're looking forward to the direction they take things. Thanks to everyone for your continued readership and submissions. 

Best,

Adam & Arvind

Archives Awareness Week 2024 

This year’s Archives Awareness Week (AAW) will be held from April 2 to April 5, 2024! The theme this year, “Access your Archives”, will be a warmup for the upcoming conference.

April is #ArchivesAtoZ

Throughout April 2024, the AAO Instagram will also take part in the annual Archives of Ontario-led #ArchivesAtoZ social media campaign to promote the Archeion service and descriptions in the database. See Danielle Manning’s listserv announcement for more details about the campaign and consider joining.

Instagram Reels

As part of AWW, we are bringing back our featured Instagram reels from you! On Thursday, April 5, 2024, the AAO will publish a series of short vignettes submitted by membership via our Instagram account. We are asking volunteers to submit recorded (sound and video) answers to any or all of the following questions. Examples from your collections will be encouraged!

• Tell us about a unique outreach initiative your archive has been working on.
• How do you provide access to your archives collection?
• In what ways do you make your collection accessible or hope to?
• What challenges do archives face in making records accessible while respecting users and donors?
• What archival process or specific record in your collection keeps you up at night?
• Developments in new networks and collaborations.

Follow @archives.assoc.ontario on Instagram to watch!

Twitter Takeover

As per tradition, the AAO will be hosting a Twitter Takeover event. On Tuesday, April 2, 2024, a roster of guest archivists will take over the AAO Twitter account @AAO_tweet to answer your questions and comments related to work in the archives. Let us know if you would like to book a one hour slot! Teams are welcome!

Share your Events

We encourage members to program events and engage in social media initiatives. If you would like us to promote your own AAW event, please let us know prior to March 15, 2024 so that we can include it in next month’s newsletter and feature it on our website.

How to Participate

If you would like to participate in any of these activities, please contact Tiffany Ribeiro at webadmin@aao-archivists.ca prior to March 15, 2024.

Posting about events? Use the #2024AAW hashtag!

Check out the Archives Awareness Week page for more information.

Fundraiser

As a part of Archives Awareness Week, we are asking for your donations in support of the Shirley Spragge Bursary program, which provides financial assistance for students, new professionals, or archivists in financial need to cover the registration and travel to the AAO's annual conference.

The larger the fund grows, the more budding archivists it can help. Those early-career connections and experiences are invaluable, often leading to new connections, new jobs, or even the confidence, inspiration, and resolution to stick with a profession that can be difficult to break into.

So this Archives Awareness Week, consider offering a hand-up to those following in your professional footsteps. And, if you're hosting an event or have a newsletter, consider promoting this fundraiser to your community! You never know who is willing to help out.

Visit the bursary page for more information or donate now! Donations over $20 are eligible for a tax receipt.

Dear AAO,

The Fall 2023 issue of Off the Record is now available and we hope it brings some more archival warmth to your chilly, autumn day! It’s available to AAO members here: Current Issues.

This issue features an update from AAO President Sarah McDougall, an article by John Yolkowski and Shernett Bennett from the Humber College Archives reflecting on their journey towards the official opening of the space on November 8^th, 2023, a membership spotlight on Archives of Ontario Archivist Melissa Nelson, and closes with some AAO statistics updates and an Archeion update from coordinator Kelli Babcock.

 

And if you’re interested in submitting to Off the Record, you can start sending your original submissions and cover art to otr@aao-archivists.ca. We’ll be accepting submissions for the Winter issue until January 3, 2024. For more details, please see the Submissions Guidelines page online. 

 

Happy reading!

Adam Cavanaugh & Arvind Kang

The MAIG Executive is pleased to present the 19th edition of the MAIGazine! For this edition, the Executive put a call out for articles related to “community connections”. After several pandemic years of unfortunate but unavoidable disconnect with the communities we serve, municipal archives are bouncing back and developing innovative ways to reach new and existing audiences. The submissions this year detail a variety of ways archives are enhancing accessibility to their collections via digitization and online engagement, the ways in which we support each other as colleagues, and an important discussion of the necessity to protect  the valuable records in archival holdings when faced with threatening uncertainty. Thank you to everyone who submitted articles and news for the 2023 edition.

For more information about MAIG or to view previous issues of the “MAIGazine” please visit our page on the AAO website: http://aao-archivists.ca/maig.

If you have comments or suggestions on how to improve future issues of the “MAIGazine” feel free to contact our Executive. In the meantime, please enjoy the 2023 edition!

We’re very excited to announce that this year’s MAIG Open House will be hosted by the Bruce County Archives at the Bruce County Museum & Cultural Centre! Please join us and our gracious host, Deb Sturdevant, on Friday, October 20^th in Southampton, Ontario, as we explore museum exhibits, the collections and facilities of the archives, the Historic Saugeen Métis Interpretive Learning Centre (HSMC), and Aunt Annie’s Cottage. As always, a delicious lunch will also be provided by local caterers. The annual Open House Meeting is a great opportunity to connect and network with your municipal archive colleagues from across the province.

Visitors to the HSMC learn about the historic Métis community who lived, fished, hunted, trapped, and harvested the lands and waters of the Bruce Peninsula, the Lake Huron proper shoreline and its watersheds. Artifacts on display include Métis clothing, tools, bead work, wampum and more. Aunt Annie's Cottage was the home of Angelique “Aunt Annie” Longe, a Métis woman born on the banks of the Saugeen River in 1844. The home is one of the oldest in Southampton.

Please note: Some locations will be accessed by foot, so please wear good walking shoes, and be prepared for rain.

Please RSVP by Wednesday, September 27th to: Gina Dewaele, MAIG Secretary-Treasurer: gdewaele@elgin.ca or call 519-631-1460 ext. 154. Please make note of any dietary restrictions or allergies with your RSVP.

When: Friday October 20th, 2023 - 10:00 am – 3:45 pm

Where: Bruce County Museum & Cultural Centre (33 Victoria St N, Southampton, ON)

Agenda:

10:00am-12:00pm • Welcome and Tour of the Bruce County Museum & Cultural Centre, including the Archives.

12:00pm-1:00pm • Lunch and Conversation

1:00pm-2:15pm • Tour of the Historic Saugeen Metis Centre and Aunt Annie’s Cottage

2:30pm-3:45pm • MAIG Meeting

I look forward to seeing everyone in Bruce County in October

Warm Regards,

Megan Lockhart, MAIG Chair

Dear AAO,

The Summer 2023 issue of Off the Record is now available and we hope it brings some archival warmth to your summer day! It’s available to AAO members here: Current Issues.

This issue features our first update from new AAO President Sarah McDougall as well as an Archeion update from coordinator Kelli Babcock. We close with an article by Evangeline Mann reflecting on their processing work at Appleby College in Oakville and meditations on authenticity and form in Archives.

And if you’re interested in submitting to Off the Record, you can start sending your original submissions and cover art to otr@aao-archivists.ca. We’ll be accepting submissions for the Fall issue until September 21^st, 2023. For more details, please see the Submissions Guidelines page online. 

Happy reading!

Adam & Arvind

Annual General Meeting Please join the MAIG Executive at the AAO’s virtual conference for our Annual General Meeting on May 10th from 1:00 to 2:00 p.m. EST. The AGM can be attended via the conference’s “Whova” platform. The AGM package (PDF) is available.  Anyone attending the conference who is interested in or involved with municipal archives is welcome to attend. This event is a great opportunity to meet and connect with your municipal archives peers and to hear about MAIG’s upcoming plans and projects for the year. This year, we are also accepting nominations for our Secretary-Treasurer position. Nominations can be sent in advance of the meeting, or submitted from the floor during the AGM. Check out more information on the Executive Election Nomination Process (PDF). The deadline to submit a nomination is May 5th at 5:00 p.m. EST. If you plan to attend the AGM, please send your RSVP to Gina Dewaele at gdewaele@ELGIN.ca. Our Executive is looking forward to connecting with everyone at the AGM in May! Sincerely, Megan, Amber, and Gina