Hasan karayam Dr.

Martin Feb 22, 2012

Journal of Practicum This journal presents my practicum at Albert Gore Research Center with Donna Baker, university archivist at the center. We divided our schedule into ten days, 2 hours each day. So far, I already finish nine hours. The second part of the practicum will be about a security in the Albert Gore Research Center. In the first day, we went through the policy of the center that explain the goals of the center and serves as guide for staff and as a source of information for the public, and how the goals are pursued through collection activity. All this information about the policy of the center demonstrated practically what we have read in the class in the first day about the collection management policy. Then, I explored the differences and similarities between university archive, special collections, and research centers outside of MTSU, in terms of nature of collection, how materials are received, arranged, organized, described, accessed and secured, and the responsibilities of staff to understand the philosophy of the center and its collection. We concluded the first day by taking a journey inside the center to know what she said practically, such as, the kinds of collections and how the staff of the center had dealt with the collections, in terms of acquisition, arrangement, description, access, outreach, and preservation. Through this day I could break barrier and could link between what we had read in the class and my practicum at the center.

The second day was about acquisition and accession at the center to explore the two functions and their process inside the center. According to the standards of the center, acquisition is the process that defines the types of collections that museum holds, based on the centers collection. Then, Donna showed in practice some samples of records, if fit with the centers collection policy or no because the centers collection focus on the history of politics and public policy and on Middle Tennessee State University and the region it serves. Consequently, Acquisition again is that obtaining legal custody and transferring collection to the centers ownership, by gift, loan agreement, and transfer with institution. For example, Albert Gore Research Center has particular transfer form from university to the center. There many practical considerations during transferring have to be concerned, such as university department or office, description of materials, including number of carton, date received at the center, archivist or director signature, data, inventory(see forms the center). Then, we discussed the accessioning as second step after acquisition to complete process within institution. Donna explains how the center accessions for permanent collections. The center used the form of accessioning that indicates to almost the same processes that we had read in the classes, such as accession number, source, address, date of receive, who accessioned, purchase price or value(see forms the center). Throughout the third and fourth day I practiced in arrangement practically. Donna involved me to arrange and organized one box of the records of Phi Alpha Theta that accessioned by the center in 2007 under the accession number (2007.029). The records of the box were unprocessed and I think it is common problem that face majority of archives and museums. The box number is 1 and it contains mixed records that need to be arranged and organized. Firstly, I did inventory on all contents of the box to know what kind of records and their conditions for applying the levels of arrangement on them. When I finish the inventory I found the contents of the box 1 are:

1- 20 booklets which introduce Phi Alpha Theta as international honor society in history. 2- One booklet for 50th anniversary of Phi Alpha Theta and handbook. 3- 57 certificates that issued by international council. 4- Constitution of Phi Alpha Theta. 5- One check book. 6- 27 closed envelops which were sent to MTSU, especially department of history because most of members from students or faculty at the department. 7- Financial statements issued by Murfreesboro bank & Trust Co and cavalry Banking Federal savings and Loan Association. 8- 10 files contains: Correspondence 1969-1972 Correspondence 1973-1974 Correspondence 1970-1972 Correspondence 1976 Correspondence 1975 Correspondence 1976-1986

9- Membership 1985. 10- Reports of MTSU admin. 11- Regional meeting 1975. 12- Two empty files. When I finish inventory and I have know what I have, I have started to sort the records of the box depending on the original order and to apply the levels of arrangement; repository, subgroup, series, file unit, item (see the tablet).

The levels of arrangement applied to Albert Gore Research Center Albert Gore Albert Gore Albert Gore Albert Gore Repository Research Center Research Center Research Research Center Center Phi Alpha Theta Phi Alpha Theta Phi Alpha Phi Alpha Theta Record group Theta Membership and Financial Annual reports Correspondences Series members statements 1970-1980 1970-1980 1975 1969-1987 File unit Certificates of Murfreesboro Regional Letters from and to Item members Bank & Trust meeting Phi Alpha Theta Throughout the third and fourth day at the center, my practicum went more than I had expected and I realized the role of arrangement and organization practically for both staff and users. But I have some comment because is arrangement needs a lot of time versus fewer products, and it needs a lot of time finish few feet, despite of arrangement is flexible function to deal with it. The question here is how to reduce the long process of arrangement for time and process.