Building a Digital Readiness Community of Practice is officially underway! Our intrepid Launch Committee, Recollection Wisconsin and Wisconsin Historical Society staff met on October 30 for two hours of (re)introductions, robust discussion, brainstorming and community-building. What’s this project all about? In short, we’re building a collaborative, community-driven program to foster skills and infrastructure necessary to build confidence and competence in digital work, and help Wisconsin local history organizations grow and sustain their digital programs.
Our first order of business? To revisit our Statement of Purpose and key project goals and outcomes including:
- To increase preservation of and access to historical materials, through a set of systematic approaches and by providing resources to attain those goals.
- To provide resources and support through a statewide Community of Practice where participants can share best practices and experience.
Benefits to community participants will include:
- systems and procedures to guide digitization efforts and help organizations stay consistent during periods of staff or volunteer turnover
- more opportunities for engagement with staff and volunteers in the digital and virtual realm
- conversations with and connections to other organizations who are also doing digital work
- an ability to confidently pursue digitization projects that support reference, exhibitions, programming and digital storytelling
At the kickoff meeting, Recollection Wisconsin staff member, Emily Pfotenhauer, shared a vision and historical context for a Wisconsin-based community of practice focused on digital readiness, drawing on past experiences facilitating digital work through Recollection Wisconsin and other grant-funded work with a digital stewardship focus.
Prior to the pandemic, public demand for digital resources was already on the rise. Now even more local history organizations and their patrons appreciate the ability to access historic materials without having to visit a location in person. Our project supports these organizations in this very important and timely work.
What’s next for this project? The Launch Committee will meet monthly throughout the grant period to provide guidance for project work. We are fortunate to have a group of talented and experienced colleagues to guide us through this project!
While some of our planned events may change from in-person to virtual gatherings, we’ll be developing and sharing a bevvy of resources to support digital work. Keep an eye on our website for updates and new resources including a digital readiness framework, a resource directory and other training materials.
Are you interested in learning more about digital readiness and connecting with other local history practitioners engaged in digital work? Join our listserv! Visit digistew and click “Ask to join group” at the top of the page to be added to this listserv.
Visit Digital Readiness Community of Practice for more information.
Building a Community of Practice for Digital Readiness in Wisconsin is supported by an Archives Collaboratives Implementation Grant from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC), the granting arm of the National Archives. Read the full implementation grant narrative submitted to NHPRC.
