100 research outputs found
Sort by
The Masters of Archival Studies and American Education Standards: An Argument for the Continued Development of Graduate Archival Education in the United States
No full textThe purpose of this paper is to report on the recent work of the Society of American Archivists (SAA) Committee on Education and Professional Development (CEPD) in preparing new education guidelines calling for a Master of Archival Studies degree; these new guidelines, if accepted by the SAA membership and approved by Council, will replace the long-accepted three-course sequence first stated in the 1977 graduate education guidelines and reaffirmed in 1988. The comments in this essay fall into three categories: first, what CEPD has done and why it has worked in the way it has; secondly, my own experience on CEPD in the mid-1980s and as chair of the CEPD subcommittee that drafted what eventually became the 1988 SAA graduate archival education guidelines; and, thirdly, increasing evidence for the necessity and viability of the MAS-type graduate program
The Archival Profession and Information Technology Standards
No full textAmerican archivists have long had an interest in standards, although their interest has led to more intensive activity in the past decade. New standards have been developed for arrangement and description of archival records and historical manuscripts, the adaptive use of bibliographic standards, preservation of archival records and historical manuscripts, and the use of information technology standards for the management of archival records In electronic form. Many challenges still remain, however. Most important of such questions is how archivists can play a greater role in the information standards-setting world
Educating Archivists: Speculations on the Past, Present, and Future
No full textThis article examines historical and present issues and future prospects for archival education. Most important recent developments include the emergence of new graduate level programs and the Society of American Archivists’ adoption of new guidelines for these programs and for individual certification. Future prospects depend on the resolution of several issues which concern recruitment, distinguishing educational requirements for areas of archival specialization, clarification of the role of the practicum in the educational process, and the definition of the archivist’s role in the information society. It appears, in light of the above, that the archival profession and its education face a brighter future than ever before
Making Tales: The Poetics of Wordsworth's Narrative Experiments
No full textInformed by a "poetics of speech" developed from the work of the Bakhtin School, this book offers an alternative to the Aristotelian emphasis on narrative as the presentation of plot that highlights narrative as someone's relating of words, deeds, or experiences to someone else. With special attention to reported speech, it offers appreciative readings of Wordsworth's experimental narrative poems that Coleridge denigrated, readings of the poems in which Wordsworth grapples with the expectations of a "tale," and readings of the versions of Wordsworth's encounter with the discharged soldier on the high road
Archivists and Historians: A View from the United States
No full textConsiders the debate about the relationship of history and archives and archivists by examining the mission of the archival profession, the nature of archival theory and knowledge, and, as a case study, the career of Lester J. Cappon (1900-1981) as both historian and archivist
Pittsburgh's Flair for Protest: An Oral History Interview with International Activist and University of Pittsburgh Sociology Ph.D. Student Sharon Quinsaat.
No full textOn September 25, 2009, the G20 leaders convened in Pittsburgh for a one-day summit that included an additional day of ceremonial activities based around the University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon University campuses. This gathering allowed the students of both campuses to see many of the G20 leaders speak, and it also allowed the students to both view and participate in grassroots social activism throughout the city. While there were riots on the University of Pittsburgh campus that directly affected the undergraduate student body, this archive focuses specifically on the experiences of four women graduate students who participated in both the permitted and the unpermitted marches throughout the rest of the city in dual roles as scholars and activists. The diversity of their experiences reveals how difficult it is for academics to integrate community involvement with their own academic research and still maintain credibility in both realms. Also, because each of the women has been involved in other organized social protests in the past, their reflections on how the Pittsburgh protests compare to other global protests against organizations like the G20 adds perspective to the ways that the police and the protestors interacted in a small, local city as opposed to a large, metropolitan center, like Seattle or London. Sharon Quinsaat, a first-year Ph.D. student in the University of Pittsburgh Department of Sociology, participated in the g20 protests as part of her own interest in activism and protest. Quinsaat has extensive experience as a protest-organizer and leader for international interventions against the World Trade Organization and helped to organize student protests in her home country, the Phillipines. In her reflections, Quinsaat analyzes how the Pittsburgh protests differed from other rallies against international organizations in which she has participated, discusses police strategy and interactions with the protestors, and gives anecdotes about her own participation in the events and attention she garnered from the press because she is an international student. This interview was conducted by Candi Carter Olson, University of Pittsburgh Department of Communication Ph.D. student. Index to the oral history interview: Beginning: Introduction to Quinsaat; also on her background as an international activist and organizer against the WTO. 8:50: On how she became involved in the G-20 13:20: On media coverage of the anarchists’ picnic on Tuesday, Sept 22, 2009 and how she was profiled as an “international” activist even though she was attending as a student of the University of Pittsburgh. 18:20: On the difference between the G-20 protests and the international protests she has attended. 25:40: On bringing together local organizations for the permitted march on Friday, Sept. 25, 2009. 30:20: On the unpermitted “anarchists” rally on Thursday, Sept. 24, 2009 37:10: On police strategy 43:15: On how the unpermitted rally compared with other rallies she had participated in 49:30: On why she participates in direct social activism 56:00: On how the state learns and becomes stronger 1:01:30: On performativity in the G-20 protests 1:06:20: On public perception of the efficacy of the G-20 protests and whether or not the comparisons with international protests are fair
Should abstinence-only sex education be taught in primary and secondary school health curricula? [videorecording] / The William Pitt Debating Union presents a public debate ; speakers Margaret Meeker M.D. ; Darinka Maldonado ; Brenda Green ; Allison Hahn ; questioners Erika Herald ; Candice Ferguson ; host Gordon Mitchell.
No full textAbstinence-only education programs have been gaining in popularity since passage of the 1996 Welfare Reform Act, which allocated $50 million annually over the course of five years for programs that promote abstinence and do not discuss contraception. While the Bush administration accelerated this trend by dramatically increasing federal funding for abstinence-only education programs, many critics, including organizations such as the American Medical Association, argue that such programs do not work and should be shelved in favor of “comprehensive” sex education curricula that emphasize safer sex practices and contraception. The public debate over which form of sex education should be taught in American schools affects nearly everyone and touches on a wide array of issues including the “epidemic” of sexually-transmitted disease afflicting American teens, effectiveness of various programs, cultural aspects of sexuality, and the role of religion in public life. To explore these issues in a deliberative and pedagogical setting, the University of Pittsburgh’s William Pitt Debating Union hosted a debate on abstinence-only sex education. Each side in the debate features a prominent expert in the field paired with an accomplished student intercollegiate debater. A panel of questioners include Erika Herald, Miss America 2003. The debate is moderated by Dr. Gordon R. Mitchell, Associate Professor of Communication and Director of Debate at the University of Pittsburgh
Montserrat: Emerald of the Caribbean
No full textIn the late 1990s, massive volcanic eruptions destroyed Montserrat’s infrastructure and leveled the island’s capital, Plymouth. Today, Montserrat’s 4,000 citizens are still coming to terms with this traumatic event. "Montserrat: Emerald of the Caribbean" explores how shared values—community, hope, faith—and traditions serve as sources of strength and identity for Montserratians as they rebuild their lives together. The film culminates in a portrayal of the sights and sounds of Montserrat’s annual St. Patrick’s Day Festival, a commemoration of African slaves who rebelled against their Irish slave masters on Saint Patrick’s Day, 1768. A unique blend of African, Caribbean, and Irish traditions, the Saint Patrick’s Day Festival represents the past, present, and future of a resilient people. In recording the events of Montserrat’s Saint Patrick’s Day celebrations and offering a space for Montserratians to speak to outsiders about its meaning, the film functions, in a way, as an intervention into the communication subfields of rhetoric, media studies, and culture. In terms of rhetoric, the film explores various local forums and styles of public address—poem recitations, calypso performance contests and radio public service announcements—to elucidate how Montserratians construct arguments, maintain collective memories, and motivate each other to ways of thinking and action as they struggle to rebuild a nation severely uprooted by volcanic eruptions. As a “media study,” the film offers an intimate portrayal of ZJB Radio, the island’s only local media outlet. Following prominent radio personalities Rose Willock and Basil Chambers, the film shows how ZJB Radio fulfills many roles on the island (much like early radio in the US): town crier, public forum for debate, repository for local news and concerns. Furthermore, the film examines what one might consider to be non-traditional forms of media—intricately designed kites, cross-cultural “masquerade” dress—and shows how such non-traditional media convey specific messages to community members
Pittsburgh's Flair for Protest II: An Oral History Interview with G20 Research and Activist and University of Pittsburgh Sociology Student Brittany Duncan
No full textOn September 25, 2009, the G20 leaders convened in Pittsburgh for a one-day summit that included an additional day of ceremonial activities based around the University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon University campuses. This gathering allowed the students of both campuses to see many of the G20 leaders speak, and it also allowed the students to both view and participate in grassroots social activism throughout the city. While there were riots on the University of Pittsburgh campus that directly affected the undergraduate student body, this archive focuses specifically on the experiences of four women graduate students who participated in both the permitted and the unpermitted marches throughout the rest of the city in dual roles as scholars and activists. The diversity of their experiences reveals how difficult it is for academics to integrate community involvement with their own academic research and still maintain credibility in both realms. Also, because each of the women has been involved in other organized social protests in the past, their reflections on how the Pittsburgh protests compare to other global protests against organizations like the G20 adds perspective to the ways that the police and the protestors interacted in a small, local city as opposed to a large, metropolitan center, like Seattle or London. Brittany Duncan, a first-year Ph.D. student in the University of Pittsburgh Sociology Department, participated in the Pittsburgh G20 protests on two levels. First, she was there to do surveys of the protestors for a professor’s sociological study. Second, she was there to be an activist and reflect on the uses and purposes for protest. In her oral history, Duncan reflects on the difficulties and opportunities for scholar/activists, media coverage of the G20 rallies, and the effectiveness of direct-action protest. This oral history interview was conducted by Candi Carter Olson, University of Pittsburgh Department of Communication Ph.D. graduate student. Index to the oral history interview: Beginning: Introduction to Brittany Duncan; also an overview of her involvement in the G-20 protests 8:30: On the unpermitted “anarchists” protest on Thursday, Sept. 24, 2009 14:30: On the use of sound cannons and police force during the unpermitted rally 19:50: On how the public responded to the police force during the G-20 protests 30:00: On how the unpermitted rallies compared with other rallies Duncan had been involved in and her own feelings about the G-20 and its policy-making function 36:20: On whether public protests are important and/or effective 42:20: On the permitted rally that drew an estimated 2,000 to 8,000 protestors on Friday, Sept. 25, 2009 48:50: On collegiality among the many protestors at the G-20; also on the police officers and their interactions with the protestors 57:30: On media coverage of the protests 1:03: On why people should care about events like the G-20 protest