University of Texas Preservation and Conservation Studies program

Unfortunately I missed the PADG meeting at ALA mid-winter (I was
struggling with the flu), where I gather Ellen McCrady mistakenly
announced the demise of Preservation and Conservation Studies at The
University of Texas.  To paraphrase Mark Twain, "The rumors of our
death have been considerably exaggerated."  Ellen tells me she
doesn't remember what her source of information was, but she must
have misunderstood something. I'd like to provide an update for any
of you who have heard rumors, or are wondering about the program.

Like many library schools, ours is in the process of self-evaluation
and mission examination in light of pressures to emphasize
electronic technologies and distance education. As a result, PCS is
evolving to meet the demand for ever-more-broadly knowledgeable
graduates. That means increasing the range of information we expect
our students to master.  Our curriculum is evolving, but it hasn't
undergone drastic change. Whole-collections book and document
conservation and preservation remain at the heart of our students'
training. Required courses include one laboratory in book repair and
its management for PAs.  Conservators take two full-semester
laboratories in paper conservation with Karen Pavelka and four such
labs in book treatment with Gary Frost; all laboratories are based
on practical benchwork.

Of our 1997 graduates, Ethel Hellman is the collections conservator
for the University of Maryland, Meg Brown for the University of
Kansas, and Donia Conn for the University of Kentucky. Elizabeth
Haude is a paper conservator at the Huntington Library. Susan
Russick is splitting her time between volunteer and contract
projects at several sites, including the Library of Congress, the
National Museum of American History, and a private conservation
practice.  From the 1996 class, Nancy Stanfil is the PA and
collections conservator for SUNY Albany, Scott Devine is head of
library conservation at Texas Tech, Erica Lindensmith is a book
conservator at the University of Leeds, Mark Rutledge is conservator
for the New York City archives, and Yasmeen Kahn is at the Library
of Congress labs.  Our PA graduates were much in evidence chairing
discussion groups at ALA; among their employers are Georgetown Law
Library, Oberlin College, Smith College, University of Delaware,
SOLINET, and AMIGOS.

Our current internships are at the Huntington Library, the
Smithsonian Institution Libraries, the University of Iowa (2), the
Library of Congress book lab, the Museum of Natural History library
(NY), and Harvard University.  We think these are pretty strong
indications of our vitality and our commitment to train book and
paper conservators.

A more comprehensive review of PCS structure, philosophy, and
mission are available on CoOL. Please don't hesitate to call me or
e-mail (a faster way to reach me) if you'd like more information or
you'd like to chat about the program.  As anyone who knows me will
confirm, I'll be happy to talk about it!

Karen Motylewski
Director, Preservation and Conservation Studies
Graduate School of Library and Information Science
SZB 564/D7000, University of Texas at Austin
Austin, TX 78712-1276
512-471-8290
Fax: 512-471-8285

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                  Conservation DistList Instance 11:62
                 Distributed: Tuesday, January 20, 1998
                       Message Id: cdl-11-62-008
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