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LIS 2215 Grant Proposal Assignment Preservation Assistance Grants for Smaller Institutions Application Cover Sheet ------------
Opportunity Title: Humanities Collections and Reference Resources
Offering Agency: National Endowment for the Humanities
CFDA Number: 45.149
CFDA Description: Promotion of the Humanities Division of
Preservation and Access
Opportunity Number: 20130718-PW
Opportunity Open Date: 09/26/2013
Opportunity Close Date: 12/03/2013
Agency Contact:
Division of Preservation and Access
Room 411
National Endowment for the Humanities
1100 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20506
202-606-8570
preservation@neh.gov
APPLICANT INFORMATION
Contact Information
Primary Contact
First Name: Katelyn Last Name: Quirin
Secondary Contact (if applicable)
First Name: Last Name:
Institution
Institution Name:
Sigma Sigma Sigma National Sorority Archives
Address: 225 North Muhlenberg Street
City: Woodstock State: VA
LIS 2215 Grant Proposal Assignment Preservation Assistance Grants for Smaller Institutions Application Cover Sheet ------------
Country: USA Zip Code: 22664
LIS 2215 Grant Proposal Assignment Preservation Assistance Grants for Smaller Institutions Application Cover Sheet ------------
PROJECT INFORMATION
Project Title (125 characters max):
Environmental Stability Assessment of the Sigma Sigma Sigma
National Sorority Archives
Project Abstract (1000 characters max):
The collections at the Sigma Sigma Sigma National Sorority
Archives date to the turn of the twentieth century and includes
yearbooks, photographs, scrapbooks, and copies of the sorority's
national magazine, The Triangle. The Archives also holds
institutional records, such as meeting minutes for conventions,
the National Panhellenic Council, and the Executive Council.
This collection is significant to the humanities because it
depicts the history and development of a cultural institution.
The materials in the Archives are essential to understand the
significance of the sorority for its members as well as its
impact on greater society.
An NEH grant would fund the hiring of a consultant to do a
environmental stability assessment and to instruct the staff on
best practices.
Proposed Project: Start Date: 2/1/2015 End Date: 6/1/2015
APPLICATION MATERIALS CHECKLIST Attach the following application materials as described in the guidelines:
Narrative Budget Supporting Documentation Résumés for project director and other key staff Résumé(s) and letter(s) of commitment for project consultant(s)
All application materials must be submitted as a single file in Portable Document Format (.pdf). We cannot accept documents in their original word processing or spreadsheet formats. If you don’t already have software to convert your files into PDFs, many low-cost and free software packages will do so.
LIS 2215 Grant Proposal Assignment Preservation Assistance Grants for Smaller Institutions Application Cover Sheet ------------
Application materials must be uploaded to CourseWeb by 9:00 a.m. Eastern Time on Tuesday, December 3, 2013.
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Sigma Sigma Sigma National Sorority Archives
Environmental Stability Assessment
Project Narrative
A. What activity (or activities) would the grant support?
The Sigma Sigma Sigma National Sorority Archives at the Mabel Lee Walton House National
Memorial Headquarters requests a National Endowment for the Humanities Preservation
Assistance Grant to address environmental instability at our institution. The grant would fund the
travel and time expenses of a consultant, Mimi Bowling, who will spend three days at the
Archives to address environmental issues. The first activity of the consultant will be to examine
the environmental condition of both the archival areas at the Mabel Lee Walton House and the
house as a whole to establish an understanding of the most pressing environmental issues.
The second activity of the consultant will be to lead an educational seminar for both the archival
staff and general staff at the Mabel Lee Walton House. This seminar will explain the importance
of environmental stability for an archive and what each staff member can do on a daily basis to
ensure climate control.
B. What are the content and size of the humanities collections that are the focus of
the project?
The collection at the Sigma Sigma Sigma National Sorority Archives is comprised of 140 linear
feet of documents, 37 scrapbooks, and approximately 150 photographs. These materials
document the history of Tri Sigma National Sorority from its founding, with each portion having
items from 1898 or the early 1900s until present. Within the documents collection, there are a
range of institutional records, including chapter files, the personal records of Mabel Lee Walton,
former National President, and meeting minutes from national conventions, the National
Panhellenic Conference, and the Tri Sigma Executive Council.
In addition to these records, the document collection houses one if not multiple copies of almost
every issue of the sorority’s national magazine, The Triangle, which began in 1909.1 These
magazines are one of the best documentation of the sorority’s history in the collection. Since it
began only ten years after the founding, the magazine records the prominent events of the
sorority. For example, the Winter 1951 edition of The Triangle contains an article that depicts
one of the most important events in the sorority’s history: the creation of The Robbie Page
Memorial Fund, the sorority’s national philanthropy. The article, entitled “The Last Days of
Robbie Page’s Life,” was written by Robert Page, the father of Robbie and husband of National
President Mary Hasting Holloway Page.2 Their son, Robbie, died of polio when he was 5-years-
old, and his father’s article describes that last few days of his life. It then details the Memorial
Fund that the sorority created to fund polio research, and now serves play therapy programs
1 Finding Aid, The Triangle Collection, Sigma Sigma Sigma National Sorority Archives, Woodstock, VA. 2 Robert Page, “The Last Days of Robbie Page’s Life,” The Triangle (Winter 1941), The Triangle Collection, Sigma
Sigma Sigma National Sorority Archives, Woodstock, VA.
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across the country. This article provides a crucial understanding of an integral part of the
sorority.
Another significant portion of the collection is comprised of 37 scrapbooks. The scrapbooks
range greatly in subject, from a personal college scrapbook of member Emily Walton dating
from 1904, to a scrapbook of birthday cards to the National President Mabel Lee Walton in 1953,
and scrapbooks made for the most recent national conventions.3 These scrapbooks play a vital
role in the collection because they provide visual representations of the development of the
sorority.
Despite spanning the same time frame, the photograph collection does not necessarily provide as
much context as the scrapbook collection. The roughly 150 photographs begin in the early 1900s
with images of the sorority’s founders and are primarily from the twentieth century. Many of the
early images have unknown origins or subjects. The archives volunteer staff is in the process of
researching the photographs to provide more context to researchers.4
C. How are these humanities collections used?
The humanities collections at the Sigma Sigma Sigma National Sorority Archives serves the
institution as well as members of the larger community. Institutionally, the collections are used
primarily for the national records. The principal patrons are members of the sorority, who access
the Archives to research the history of the sorority. These researchers are usually focused on the
materials the Archives’ has about the founders or their collegiate chapter. This type of research is
often for personal use.
In addition, the Archives is used by genealogists, researching the activities of members
throughout the history of the sorority. Some genealogists use the Archives to research specific
members, particularly if they were prominently involved in the sorority. If the Archives does not
contain detailed information about a specific sorority member, genealogists use it to gain more
information on a person’s chapter or what the sorority was like generally when a research subject
was a member. This information gives a genealogist, or any researcher, an idea of what
membership would have been like for a specific person.
Beyond personal research, the Archives has the capability to assist academic researchers. The
collection at the Archives is a great resource for anyone studying the history of Greek
organizations or the activities of collegiate women from the late ninetieth century until today.
The breadth of the collection provides detailed information about the start of the organization
and its mission, as well as how the organization developed and expanded. It serves as an
excellent representation of the ways women formed organizations and acted as collegiate and
life-long leaders.
More specifically, the Sigma Sigma Sigma National Sorority Archives was utilized by prominent
women’s history scholar Cindy Louhoo in her recent book, Sorority Girls: The History of
3 Finding Aid, Scrapbook Collection, Sigma Sigma Sigma National Sorority Archives, Woodstock, VA. 4 Finding Aid, Photograph Collection, Sigma Sigma Sigma National Sorority Archives, Woodstock, VA.
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Empowerment in the Creation of America’s Sororities.5 Louhoo centered a chapter on Sigma
Sigma Sigma, and used the Archives as her primary source of information. She focused on the
Archives’ collection of information about the founding of the sorority and discussed the
importance of the Vision Statement: “Sigma Sigma Sigma will provide exceptional experiences
that will empower women to change the world.”6 The resources at the Archives proved to be
crucial to Louhoo’s argument for her scholarly work.
D. What is the nature and mission of your institution?
The Sigma Sigma Sigma National Sorority Archives ensures that the history and legacy of the
organization is preserved for future members. The Archives maintains the records, memorabilia,
and artifacts already in existence at the Mabel Lee Walton House National Memorial
Headquarters as well as actively seeks out new material related to Sigma Sigma Sigma National
Sorority. In addition, the Archives promotes awareness, discovery, and use of the collection.
The Archives is a small institution that resides within the larger National Memorial Headquarters
at the Mabel Lee Walton House. The House itself has a staff of two full-time employees that run
the Headquarters. The Archives has two part-time employees: Liz Johns, the lead archivist, and
Katie Quirin, the assistant archivist. The two are available Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m. – 3
p.m. all year besides major holidays. The Archives is open to researchers by appointment
anytime an archivist is present. In addition, there is a volunteer archives committee of seven
people who assist in any major projects at the Archives.
E. Has your institution ever had a preservation or conservation assessment or
consultation?
The Sigma Sigma Sigma National Sorority Archives has not had a preservation or conservation
assessment before. This grant will hopefully support the first assessment of the institution. The
archivist has plans to apply for a preservation assessment grant after the environmental stability
assessment is completed and implemented.
F. What is the importance of this project to your institution?
This project is essential to the long-term preservation of the collections at the Sigma Sigma
Sigma National Sorority Archives. The Mabel Lee Walton House does not currently have any
temperature or light control. These unstable conditions pose a constant threat to the collections
since it is very different to ensure proper preservation of the materials without climate control.
As such, these issues need to be addressed as soon as possible.
The archivist and archivist assistant feel confident in some forms of environmental stability
actions for the Archives, but prefer the help of a specialist to complete a plan of action. The
consultant has experience that the Archives staff does not and this expertise is vital to making
sure that the climate control measures are carried out correctly. In addition, the consultant will
5 Cindy Louhoo, Sorority Girls: The History of Empowerment in the Creation of America’s Sororities (Cambridge:
Harvard University, 2012). 6 “Mission, Vision and Values Statements,” Sigma Sigma Sigma, accessed December 8, 2014,
http://www.sigmasigmasigma.org/Today.mvc/Vision%20and%20Values/MissionVisionValues.
4
advise all members of the archive volunteer and Mabel Lee Walton House staff about the best
practices for environmental stability in an archives. This will ensure that the environment will
remain as stable as possible after the environmental stability plan is enacted.
G. What are the names and qualifications of the consultant and staff involved in the
project?
Liz Johns, the lead archivist, received her MLIS with a focus in archives from the University of
North Carolina, Chapel Hill in 2009. From 2009-2010 she was a Project Archivist at the Special
Collections and College Archives at Gettysburg College focusing on a collection of Civil War
memorabilia. Johns then worked at the University of Maryland University Archives processing
and maintaining a large donation of materials pertaining to fraternity members from the early
1900s. She has been at the Sigma Sigma Sigma National Sorority Archives since 2013, and is
well versed in the collection and the needs of the institution.
Katie Quirin, the archivist assistant, graduated from the University of Pittsburgh with her MLIS
in Archives and Information Science in 2014. While in graduate school, she worked as a year-
long intern at the Pittsburgh Theological Seminary archive, processing and maintaining
collections as well as helping to organize functions at the Clifford E. Barbour Library. In
addition, she worked at the University of Pittsburgh’s Archives Service Center as a reference
intern and a processer using Archivists’ Toolkit. She volunteered for the Sigma Sigma Sigma
National Sorority Archives in spring 2014, and has been the archivist assistant since June, 2014.
In that time she has become educated in the Archives’ collections.
“Mimi Bowling has been an archivist for more than thirty years and has held managerial
positions at Columbia University's Rare Book and Manuscript Library, the National Park
Service, and The New York Public Library, where she was the Charles J. Liebman Curator of
Manuscripts. She has been a consulting archivist since 2004, working with clients in academic
and cultural institutions, business and government. Her consulting services, offered worldwide,
include general needs assessment, preservation needs assessment, grant writing, program
development, project oversight, security reviews, processing plans, and appraisal. From 2004
through 2011 Ms. Bowling was an adjunct faculty member of Long Island University’s Palmer
School of Library and Information Science, where she taught graduate archives courses. She
holds a B.A. from Case Western Reserve University and an M.L.S. from Columbia University.”7
7 “Mimi Bowling, Consulting Archivist,” Society of American Archivists, accessed December 8, 2014,
http://www2.archivists.org/consultants/mimi-bowling-consulting-archivist.
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H. What is the plan of work for the project?
The schedule for the project is as follows:
February 2015
The archivist assistant readies a package of information about the Archives to send to the
consultant.
The specific dates for the visit are set.
April 2015
The consultant visits the Archives for three days. On the first day, the consultant will
meet with the archivist and archivist assistant to discuss the nature of the collection in
more detail and hear their major concerns. She will also tour the Archives.
On the second day, the consultant will do an individual assessment of the collection as
well as the Walton House. She will determine the major environmental problems facing
the Archives.
On the third day, the consultant will run a workshop with the volunteer archive staff and
the Walton House staff to discuss the importance and best practices of climate control in
an archive and what each staff member can do to ensure the Archives is environmentally
stable.
May 2015
The consultant will send the archivist and archivist assistant her written an assessment on
the environmental status of the Archives and her suggestions for actions to create a
controlled climate.
June 2015
The archivist and assistant archivist will make an action plan based on the consultant’s
assessment.
The archivist, assistant archivist, and volunteer archive staff will begin enacting the plan.
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Budget8
Consultant Fees: Consultation from Mimi Bowling
No. of days on Daily rate of
project: compensation: Total:
3 $600 $1,800
Travel and Subsistence: Mimi Bowling will be traveling to the Archives for three days. The
grant will fund her airfare, hotel rate, and all meals.
No. of Total travel Subsistence Transport.
From/To: persons: days: costs: costs: Total:
West Orange, NJ 1 3 $200/day $400 $1,000
Woodstock, VA
Workshop:
Materials required by speaker
Lunch for staff: (handouts, presentations, etc.): Total:
$150 $50 $200
Total cost for project: $3,000
Total request from NEH: $2,800
8 The author referenced the NEH Sample Budget to format this one, “Sample NEH Preservation Assistance Grant
Budget,” National Endowment for the Humanities, accessed December 8, 2014,
http://www.neh.gov/files/grants/budget/pag_samplebudget.pdf.
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A How-To Event
The Sigma Sigma Sigma National Sorority Archives
welcomes
Ms. Mimi Bowling
To present on the importance and best practices of
climate control in archives
Wednesday, April 14, 2015, 1-4PM
The Conference Room at MLW House
Lunch provided
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November 31, 2014
Sigma Sigma Sigma National Sorority Archives9
Attn: Liz Johns, Archivist
225 North Muhlenberg Street
Woodstock, VA 22664
Phone: (540) 459-4212
Fax: (540) 459-2361
Email: archives@trisigma.org
Re: Consulting services for Environmental Stability Assessment for the Sigma Sigma Sigma
National Sorority Archives
Dear Liz Johns,
After reading through your grant proposal, I would be happy to offer my consulting services. I
am impressed at your initiative to provide your archive with proper climate control and
impressed by your dedication to your organization and institution. I understand that as the
consultant, I will be in a service role and therefore cannot assume any intellectual property
rights. I am offering only my expertise to this project. I also understand that I am responsible for
any tax obligations for the income received during this project and will provide my tax
identification number with my invoice for your institution’s tax reporting purposes.
I hereby offer my services as Climate Control Consultant for a $600 per day fee. I understand the
approximate date of the project is in April, 2015 with an environmental stability assessment
completed by me in May, 2015. In addition, I acknowledge that my participation and payment is
contingent on your grant proposal. If the grant is awarded, I will expect a Purchase Order from
Sigma Sigma Sigma National Sorority Archives. I will then promptly send my invoices to the
address listed above.
I very much hope to work with you in the near future.
Sincerely,
Mimi Bowling, MLS
15 Yemen Road
West Orange, NJ 07052
(973) 495-6240
mimibowling@comcast.net
9 The author referenced a sample consultant letter for the formation of this one, “Consultant or Subcontract?: A
Questionnaire and Sample Commitment Letter,” University of New Mexico, accessed December 8, 2014,
http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&ved=0CCAQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%
2Fhsc.unm.edu%2Ffinancialservices%2Fpreaward%2Fdocs%2Fconsultant_subcontractor_sample.doc&ei=EluGVP
P6OMipNv25gqAO&usg=AFQjCNHedJKhwfiKlnYHWTI7ZbvIh_i-
SQ&sig2=0PGqeUN6L8LdOLlD5OzQyg&bvm=bv.80642063,d.eXY&cad=rja.