Roving Archivist Program

Posted August 10, 2023

Through grant funding from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC), the Massachusetts State Historical Records Advisory Board (MA SHRAB) is pleased to provide funding for the purchase of supplies and materials needed to arrange, describe, preserve and make accessible archival collections. In addition to the supplies, the grant supports repositories to be paired with a paid Archival Field Fellow trained in archival management who will rehouse and process a collection. The Field Fellow will work onsite processing an archival collection and will be supervised remotely by the Roving Archivists, thus increasing hands-on assistance to Massachusetts cultural heritage repositories. Applicants must designate a primary contact who will be responsible for orienting the fellow to the repository, sharing background information about the collection, and providing support & mentorship throughout the fellowship. The fellow’s archival work will be supervised by the roving archivist.

Repositories will work directly with the Roving Archivists to determine an appropriate collection for processing and the necessary archival supplies. Regrant awards for supplies will be awarded in $500 amounts. The MA SHRAB will then pair repositories with a Field Fellow (paid directly by the SHRAB) who will arrange and describe the collection. The processing project, anticipated to begin by November 1st, will require approximately 60 hours and be completed by the Field Fellow within two months, working full-time or part-time as determined by the repository and the Fellow. After rehousing, arranging, and describing the collection, the Field Fellow will work with the institution to share online the collection information or finding aid, as well as write a blog post about the Fellowship experience for the MA SHRAB blog. To view previous examples of Field Fellowship posts, explore the MA SHRAB blog:
https://mashrabblog.wordpress.com/?s=field+fellowship

How to Apply

The Roving Archivist Program welcomes institutional applications for the upcoming Archival Field Fellowship grant. Please see the grant guidelines and application details on the SHRAB blog or website for more information. The deadline for institutional applications is September 1, 2023. Preference is given to repositories that have received a ‘strategic assessment and program review’ from the Roving Archivist program.  For individuals who wish to serve prospective ‘fellows’, information and application materials will be shared in September 2023 after the host repositories are selected.