BRINGING ARCHIVES OUTSIDE: COMMUNITY OUTREACH AND ENGAGEMENT STRATEGIES 

Caleb Slater (Presenter) and Melody Morrise - Southern Utah University 

Archives and special collections inherently present barriers to access. Unlike libraries, archives do not allow users to browse among the shelves. Patrons are subject to a number of rules and regulations that can make their visit feel impersonal and restrained. With this in mind, SUU Special Collections took advantage of the Utah Archives’ Month theme for 2025—“Archives Outside”—to break barriers by bringing artifacts and stories outside the physical building to SUU students and the community through five outreach events. By aligning with the celebration of Utah Archives Month, the interests of the community, and the values of SUU, these outreach events provided unique opportunities to experiment with unprecedented outreach strategies, including pop-up displays, interactive activities, and promotional flyers. The lessons learned from these strategies demonstrate how important engagement can be to special collections for cultivating an accessible approach to a wider audience. Because of our outreach efforts, we were able to raise awareness of services offered, advertise collections and classes associated with the archive, and build community trust. Furthermore, through the process of creating and producing these events, we learned that successful pop-ups require at least three supporting pillars: a central theme or story, a take-away element, and an element that visitors can explore independently. In addition, we initially experienced challenges with social engagement and fostering community which were remedied in order to conduct effective outreach. This research invites further development and exploration of pop-up creation by special collections and archives staff and students. We believe that this process can enrich the outreach endeavors of other university libraries, and lead to a more impactful connection to the community. 

BABY DUCKS & PUMPKIN GUTS: TAKING THE ARCHIVES TO THE PEOPLE

Emma Wilson, Braydon Wright, and Paul Daybell - Utah State University 

We spend a lot of time in archives trying to make them approachable to potential users, but we also need to meet users outside our building. This poster will feature a variety of outreach initiatives designed to make archives more approachable and friendly to researchers. Initiatives include tabling at community events, participating in holiday displays, and inviting groups to explore the Reading Room. We’ll highlight outreach through various venues, groups, and strategies that resulted in increased awareness and use of the archives. Participants will learn about how archives can be used beyond standard research projects or genealogical purposes. Participants will learn about specific outreach approaches, including what worked well and what did not, and will reflect on how these strategies can be utilized in their own archive or library setting. 

PIONEERING CHANGE: DIGITAL REFORMATTING FOR SUSTAINABLE AV STEWARDSHIP

Karen Glenn, Michael Gates, Abby Beazer, Ben Harry, Miya Jensen and Cory Nimer - Brigham Young University 

Archives and libraries face growing preservation challenges from aging audiovisual collections due to carrier degradation and playback equipment obsolescence. This poster will discuss a proposal to pursue the mass digitization and subsequent discard of magnetic media in the BYU Library’s Special Collections. It will examine multiple viewpoints on the project from participating units, highlighting the considerations faced by archives and library professionals taking on such a project. Some themes to be addressed include iterative workflow development, ethical appraisal, metadata strategies, and the need for ongoing professional training. Poster visitors will also be encouraged to contribute their perspectives on digital reformatting as a preservation tool. 

FROM FRAGMENTED TO SUSTAINABLE: A RURAL ARCHIVES FUTURE 

Tonia Lewis - Sevier County Archives and Heritage Services 

Across rural Utah, local history is at risk—not from lack of interest, but from lack of structure, funding, and access to professional training. This poster shares findings from a 19-county survey conducted by Sevier County Archives and Heritage Services (SCAHS), revealing that 74% of rural counties have fragmented or at-risk archival programs. Collections are scattered, preservation is inconsistent, and many communities rely on volunteers without access to archival standards or guidance. Without intervention, irreplaceable historical materials will continue to be lost. This project proposes a practical, scalable solution: a statewide model that combines part-time county history coordinators, centralized training, and foundational infrastructure support. It also introduces a Rural Archives Training Network, inviting archivists and institutions to contribute expertise through mentorship, workshops, and collaboration. This poster is both a data-driven assessment and a call to action—seeking to bridge the gap between professional archival knowledge and rural community need.