Educational Opportunities
This Working Group will evaluate the state of current archival education opportunities through the lens of how they meet or fall short of the specific needs within the Catholic archives community. It will not only curate a list of educational offerings it deems beneficial to the community, but also imagine and help develop new trainings to fill the most critical gaps.
Repository Coordination and Planning
This Working Group will explore the many facets of collaboration as a way of ensuring long-term preservation for Catholic collections, especially those most at risk today. This includes developing guidance and best practices for implementing charism or regional collaborations or partnerships between academic institutions and individual communities. Areas of consideration include defining responsibilities for shared or deposited collections, financial support, descriptive standards, and privacy and access concerns.
Raising Visibility
Community Engagement and Resources
This Working Group’s core purpose is elevating the visibility of Catholic archives in the United States and Canada, and to achieve its goals through the partnering and collaboration with others. The Working Group’s two main objectives are: to develop a directory of Catholic religious archives and collections, and to create opportunities to publicize Catholic collections, the work of scholars using those collections and the work of archivists supporting both.
Sustainability and Gatherings
Members of this Working Group will help the Steering Committee develop a sound plan for ARCC’s ongoing administration and sustainability as a member-driven, responsive organization. They will also explore possibilities for future member meetings.
Transnational Network
This network brings together archivists and scholars whose work involves the use of archives that contain materials on religious that have worked around the globe. The network is interested in the movement of religious across geographical boundaries (as missionaries, teachers, healthcare workers etc.), and the ways in which this had an impact on the historical record of religious congregations. The network is also interested in the potential of digital technologies to mitigate the challenge of records being dispersed around the globe. The digitization of congregational archives, and the use of digital exhibitions and platforms, are recognized as ways to preserve the historical record, democratize knowledge, and support research.
We’re sure your experience and interest fits at least one of these Working Groups. Please join today by emailing your interest to the ARCC Steering Committee Coordinator, Malachy McCarthy, at archivalrcc@gmail.com.