Request for proposals--IMLS Connecting to Collections grants

The five lead partners for Colorado's IMLS Connecting to Collections
grant are currently accepting request for proposals for training
workshops and conference sessions.

    <URL:http://c2cwikico.bcr.org/>

Submissions are due February 20, 2010.

About the Grant

The Institute for Museum and Library Services (IMLS) Connecting to
Collections initiative has funded a grant to Colorado to implement
plans and models to address issues identified in the Heritage Health
Index:

    Provide safe conditions for collections;

    Develop emergency plans;

    Assign responsibility for collections care; and

    Work to increase public and private support for, and raise
    public awareness about, collections care.

IMLS designed the Connecting to Collections Statewide grant program
to encourage people and institutions to cooperate on a plan that
will benefit all. "Project activities should accommodate needs of
institutions in each state; they do not need to address all four
recommendations. Each state should indicate its most pressing needs,
report what has already been done, name the organizations and people
to be involved in the planning process, and outline specific next
steps." (IMLS Connecting to Collections grant guidelines)

To create a culture of emergency preparedness among Colorado
institutions and communities, the IMLS Connecting to Collections
Program will allow Colorado institutions to build upon our informal
collaborative efforts to create a Consortium that will provide
communication across cultural heritage disciplines. This
collaboration will benefit the State's many libraries, museums,
archives, historical societies and other cultural heritage
organizations as they struggle with preservation of collections.
Growing out of advisory committee discussions, a Consortium with
five lead partners has been formed in order to meet this challenge.
Partners include:  the Colorado-Wyoming Association of Museums
(CWAM), BCR's Digital Preservation Services unit--which includes the
Collaborative Digitization Program (BCR), Colorado Association of
Libraries (CAL), Society of Rocky Mountain Archivists (SRMA), the
Colorado Historical Society (CHS) and the Colorado State Library
(CSL).

Project Description

Training workshops and conference sessions will be offered to
partner organizations based on survey results.

The trainer will create and present two or three one-day identical
workshops offered in different areas of the state. One condensed
studio version will also be filmed and put online to address the
most urgent collections needs as identified by the online survey and
site visit results.

The day-long workshop should include all of the topics listed below:

    Curatorial decision-making
    Collection policy development
    The ethics of de-accessioning
    Dealing with your local communities
    Low-cost/no-cost climate control improvements

We anticipate that these workshops will be presented in conjunction
with professional conferences in different regions of the state for
the museum, archive and library communities with 20-35 attendees at
each.

At least 60 library, archive, museum staff and volunteers will
attend workshops conducted by conservators and/or other specialists.
These workshops will equip staff and volunteers to return to their
community with the knowledge to begin detailed assessments of their
collections, create policies and implement preventive conservation
measures.

Additionally, at least 100 staff and volunteers will access the
online streaming video presentations of the workshops, participate
in the blog and/or wiki and use one of the online training modules.

For the complete Colorado IMLS Connecting to Collections Grant
Request for Proposal, please visit <URL:http://c2cwikico.bcr.org/>.

For additional information or clarification, contact BCR's

    Leigh Grinstead
    303-751-6277 ext 111
    lgrinstead<-at->bcr<.>org

Amy Zimmer
Colorado State Library
201 E. Colfax Ave., Room 314
Denver, CO 80203
303-866-6725
Fax: 303-866-6940


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                  Conservation DistList Instance 23:29
                Distributed: Thursday, February 11, 2010
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