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L . ! I!'. . . . . . -.----- . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ". , . . ,. . . . .-.-- .- .Both the ACA and the ICRM exist. .J.C redOtI SShanng0not to count points and measureACA members have been in theprofession 6 years longer than theirContinued from Page 3activities but to encourage the pro-peers.fessional growth of each individualThe mean year offirst archival jobis 1984 for certified archivists and1990 for SAA members and all re spondents.that activities - attending a meetingor conference, etc. - that are recordsmanagement ". can be included aspart of archival activities for credit.and thus to increase our contributions to the information world.but will only be counted if the peti I don't want to fmish this articlewithout stating one of my favoritetioner also has significant workaphorisms: the principal differencewithin the archival domains. Thepart of this statement starting withbetween an archivist and a records"but" should be dropped immedi ately.manager is the job title.- David E. Hom, Bums Library,Boston College. Article firstThere is no such statement in theprinted in ProfessioNotes: Aguidelines for recertifying as aNewsletter of the Institute ofCRM.When I applied to take theexaminations for CRM, my archivalCertified Records Managers,Spring 2005, pages 8-9.work was fully accepted. When, onCertified archivists feel morestrongly tied to the profession tbando others responding to the census.On a scale of 1 (not strong at all) to7 (very strong), 43% of ACA mem bers indicated that their ties arevery strong compared to 29% ofSAA members and 22% of the pro fession at large.Comparing members of the threegroups who entered the professionthree occasions, I applied for recerti at the same time, confirms the over fication, all my archival activitiesall result of stronger ties for certi were fully accredited. At times myfied archivists."archival" activities, such as teach ACA and SAA members show gen erally similar strength among thosewith the longest tenures. But thereis a greater difference among ar chivists who have entered the pro fession more recently, culminatingin a 6.0% greater strength of tiesreported byACA members whobegan theirfirstjob between 2000and 2004 over their peers in SAA.ing an SAA workshop on introduc tion to archives, far outnumbered my"records management" credits. butthey were fully accepted- as theyshould have been. Because of this, Iwas surprised to hear that someone'sattendance at SAA was not consid ered creditable for recert as a CRM.Reading hundreds of applications forrecertification, I have been very fa Compared to their peers, ACAvorably impressed by the variety anddepth of professional activities ofmany of the applicants. For someapplicants, however, I notice thattheir acti vities are in a very narrowrange. Not just allowing but alsoencouraging people to widen theirinterests, to attend at least a localmembers generally participate moreDavid Hom, Bums Library, BostonCollege.A *CENSUS: Snap meeting that is as little outside theirshots of Certifiedusual interests, would be good forthe individuals and for the profes Archivistssion. Some people - whether theyare CA's or CRM's - have a hardtime corning up with the 20 points ayear for recertification. Archivistswho attend records managementmeetings and workshops, and viceversa, can grow professionally asthey gain points for their program.A certified archivist is more likely tobe male than the average member ofSAA or of the profession as a whole.Men make "J' 41.7% of theACAmembership compared to 32.2% ofSAA and 34.5% of all respondents tothe A *CENSU S .frequently in a wide range of pro fessional activities.Fully 71% of certified archivistshave held an office or leadershipposition during their careers com pared to 5/.5% of SAA membersand 43.3% of the profession at'large.As with strength of ties to the pro fession, certified archivists gener ally show a higher rate of activeparticipation in professional asso ciations no matter when they en tered tbe profession.Continued on Page 5:1.

Page 5ACA NewsIssue 51ACA Response to Hurricane RitaOnce again our friends and colleagues have been struck by winds and water, this time by Hurricane Rita. The ACAwants to help our members in the disaster area as best we can. Thus the ACA will extend emergency benefits toCAs impacted by Hurricane Rita.The special benefits granted to survivors of Katrina will be extended to our colleagues in the costal areas of South west Louisiana and in the Southeast portion of the Texas coast.The benefits we are expanding to our colleagues impacted by Hurricane Rita are as follows:Again, the Academy has agreed to waive membership dues for a period of I year for any CA requesting this benefitthat lived or worked in the devastated areas. The Board and Officers of the Academy recognize the obstacles facingour members working within the disaster affected area and want to make retaining their CA status easier and sim pler. ACA has also authorized the waiver of the one-time ACA membership fee for anyone who took and passed theexam in 2005, and inhabited the area of the Gulf coast devastated by Hurricane Rita. Eligible ACA candidate mustapply for both benefits to the Academy's Headquarters in Albany, New York.If Hurricane Rita impacted CAs are due to recertify in 2006 or 2007, the Academy will extend the period of timeallowed for accumulating recertification credits by 2 years. If a Certified Archivist living in the affected area isscheduled to recertify in the years 2006 or 2007, he or she may request an extension and submit petitions for recerti fication in 2008 and 2009, respectively. We appreciate that the ability to travel and participate in professional devel opment activities may be hindered by lack of funds for some time after this disaster and an extension of time to col lect credits is a reasonable and proper accommodation.- Michael Holland, President 2005-2006A*CensusDreaming of ExaminationsContinued from Page 4Below is an account of a dream one of our members had recently, of takingthe ACA examination. Read on, if you dare .Among those beginning theirfirstarchivaljob between 2000 and2004, 13.9% of AC A membersmade at least one presentation toa national or international archi val association meeting in the last5 years. The comparablefigurefor SAA members is 10.1%;forall census respondents, 8.6%.- Anne DiffendalFor information about and moreresults from the census project,go to www.archivists.org andclick on "A ·CENSUS SurveyResults."The Dream"My subconscious mind created the most bizarre version of the Academy ofCertified Archivists exam possible last night. We were running almost anhour late when the exam finally started. There were several people withboom boxes in the room playing their favorite jams at once, and archivist typeladies were handing out baskets of candy, in addi tion to the test. There was an air of holiday aboutthe entire scene. When they handed me the exam itwas printed on high gloss magazine stock. Thefirst page looked somewhat like an exam, in thatthere were neat rows of numbered items with twosquare check boxes beside each item, only insteadof questions there were single words there like"Peru" and no instructions as to what I was supFalse? Should I just check a box with an X? Tofurther complicate matters, some of the checkboxes had'-. . . . ., .posed to do with the word "Peru." Was it True or. . . . . . . . .Continued on Page 8. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Member Ann Roberts in adreamy stateL .---'. .- .- ."- '-. -. .- -."'.-.

Maintaining YourIssue S1ACAN ew sPage 6vist. Remember full-time archivalnames of the institutions you haveemployment will earn you 40 cred served, the nature of the projectsArchivalits toward the 100 points necessaryand the length of time devoted toCertificationto maintain your certification, andeach project. Tfyou create an on with some additional researchgoing record of your professionalDoes this sound familiar? You re ceive a communication from the Re gent for Certification Maintenancereminding you that this is the yearyou need to maintain your archivalcertification by completing the peti tion or taking the examination. Youhave six months to complete the pe tition, or eight months to prepare forthe examination.You go into panic mode, printing thepetition form instructions from theACA website and stare blankly atthe categories in which you can earncredits toward certain recertification.Your eyes glaze over as you fail toremember when the SAA Confer ence was held in Birmingham, notcertain whether it was 2002 or 2003,and worry you may not have suffi cient documentation to include yourattendance under section B, Educa tion. You then wonder whetheryours dues are up-to-date, thus al lowing you to claim membership inMAC under "Professional Service."Finally you struggle to recall howmany presentations you gave on ar chival subjects, outside of workinghours, that could earn credits under"Professional Participation and Out reach."Ultimately you find the process todocument your credits too daunting,and perhaps feeling unprepared totake examination, you consider theprospect of letting your certificationlapse! What is a certified archiviststo do?The phrase "never give up" comes tomind; do not allow any challenge todeter you from preserving your pro fessional status as a certified archi-(check websites for dates and placesemployment you will find it easierconferences you attended wereto complete section A, and willheld; if you're still receiving news have your qualifying archival ex letters and journals your member perience documented and ready toships in various professional or attach to your petition.ganizations are likely to be up-to date; personal calendars and plan Section B: Educationning books should help you deter mine the dates of talks you gave onTo complete this part of the petitionarchival topics, etc.) you should beyou will need a detailed record ofable to gather the qualifying archi those activities and events that haveval experience that will substantiatecontributed to your ongoing archi the credit to claim.val education. It is belpful if youmaintain a log of all the confer And for those of you newly certi ences you attend, identifying thefied, or not due to maintain yoursponsoring organization, the datescertification for two or three yearsof the meetings, the host cities, andhence, you should begin document specific days you participated ining your professional activities nowthese meetings. For example,to avoid unnecessary stress in theSAA, August 15 -20, 2005, Newfuture. And to help begin processOrleans, LA; attended August 17you will find detailed below tips forAugust 20, 2005. Also record any-keeping a record of your qualifyingseminars or workshops, etc., inarchival experience, organized towhich you participated; in additioncorrelate with the Sections on theto the particulars in terms of dates,Petition for Certification Mainte places, and days attended, clarifynance.the archival significance of the edu cational experience, particularly ifSection A: Qualifying Profes the title of the event does not reflectsional Employ mentHave prepared abrief job descrip tion(s), includingspecific documen tation of the archi val nature of yourposition, to add tothe qualifying ar chi val section ofthe petition. Keeptrack of your hoursif you are em ployed lese tbanfull-time, and ifyou are a consult ant, record theKristy Sorensen, Shelly Croteau and Mike Holland at the Boardmeeting, New Orleans, August 17,2005JIII

Page 7ACA NewsIs s u e Slcriteria when describ Included in this section is an opportu ing a semester coursenity to document your contributed ser in the archival do mains thatyou havevice to the profession, encompassingany pro bono consulting, or work ontaught at an accred an advisory board. Here you need tocollege or univer sity.make detailed notes, describing thenature of the work you performed withattention to its archival significance.Many archivists areAlso make certain to document theinvolved in local out hours you devoted to the projects orreach as well, sharingyour board service.information abouttheir archival pro Section E: Writing, Publishing, Ed grams with diverseitingaudiences. If youIJames Byers at the Annual General MeetingLContinued from Page 6a clear connection to any of thearchival domains.Section c.: Professional Partici pation and OutreachThis section recognizes your ac tive involvement in professionalconferences and meetings, notmerely as attendees but as pre senters of professional papers,panel participants, or programchairs. Document these activitiesby noting the name of the spon soring organization, the title ofthe paper you delivered, the nameof the program you chaired or thenature of your panel participation.Also record the date the programwas held. Similarly if you were aworkshop/seminar leader, or co presenter, identify the name ofthe activity in the dates involved.As always be certain to establishthe archival significance of theworkshop/institute, especiallywhen it is not clearly evidentfrom the title. Use the sameThis section allows you ample oppor tunity to claim credit for any accom record, on a continu plishments in the area of writing, pub ing basis, the name oflishing and editing. In documentingthe group or organi-your activities, begin by sorting your---.J zation you are dress-Maintaining Certifica tiongive such talks fre quently, be sure toing, the length of the presentationpublications into those that were peer reviewed, and those that were not, andand the archival nature of yourthen determine if those articleslbooks/topic. These talks are to be givenchapters etc., were clearly archival inoutside of your working hours andnature. If not, assess whether the top are not considered part of your jobics you covered wereduties.archival domains (history, biography,Section D: Professional Serviceholdings was primary. And rememberrelated to theetc.) in which reference to archivalthat any published work or editorialUnder this category you can claimactivity that is job-related or part o fcredits for your membership in ar your professional responsibilities can chival organization and for yournot be claimed here for credit. Suchactive participation in these profes activities fall under the category ofsional societies in a leadership ca your qualifying professional employ pacity. Make an annual list of thement (see above).archival organizations (excludingthe ACA) in which you maintainThe above guidelines are only sugges membership, making certain totions to assist you in documentingeliminate the names of those groupsyour qualifying archival experience.from your yearly accounting whenYou can maintain the informationyou discontinue those member gathered in a database, or on cards orships. Also record any and all lead in a planner, so long as the methodership activities· in archival organi works for you. Remember it's neverzations, from serving as a membertoo late to get started, so put down thisof counsel, steering committee, orarticle and begin now!task force, to assuming the duties ofcommittee chair or executive offi cer. Make certain to record theyears of your service in each cate gory.- Judy C elina, Regent for Certifica tion MaintenanceIIl

Issue 51ACA NewsPageSCon't from Page 5 little squares of tissue paper attached at the top only andnois for restoration. Richard Pearce mostly in shades of purple. Mine seemed to be falling off, while other tinyMoses, president of the Society oftissue paper squares remained intact. I couldn't answer a single item on theAmerican Archivists, was part of afirst page, so I turned to the next. The second page was similar to the firstteam of archivists who visited threeexcept that it had some very dark flowers in shades of purple printed on thesites in Mississippi including Biloxi,high gloss paper with words hidden among the petals. Upon closer exami Gultport and Waveland. This effortnation I could determine perforation lines around much of the design, as ifwas to survey the damage to recordswe were to tear out some of the design as our answer. Other people wereheld in a variety of buildings.done with the exam and I was getting frustrated. They were chatting, some"Records collections were eitherof them were computer surfing, and I was there ready to pull my haircompletely destroyed by the stormout. People began trying to chat with me. They were offering me hints, butsurge or were in poor condition be none of it made sense. Three guys came over and sat down quite casuallycause of high humidity that causesand started talking to me. One of them even pointed to a word and said,mould growth," said Pearce-Moses."Don't you see? 'Lawyer is toas apple is to cat", or something equallyThe Biloxi Public Library was inun nonsensical. By the end of the dream, I was sobbing and convinced that Idated with water, damaging a valu had a mental illness. I think this perfectly illustrates my true feelings aboutable collection of historical photo taking this test.graphs. The Society of AmericanArchivists has a list of 200 archivistsThe Actual Examwho are willing to donate time toI took the CA exam yesterday and I have to report that it was much lessaccommodation, water and food introublesome than I had anticipated. I think that the sample questions thatthe affected areas, efforts have had toare given in the study guide all are so lengthy and (in my opinion-overly)complex that I anticipated the entire exam would be so. I expected a forty page exam booklet with questions in the form of paragraphs and equallycomplex answers, with remarkably subtle distinctions between each choicehelp, but because of problems withwait until space and supplies werefreed up for volunteers. Staff mem bers from the Mississippi Departmentof Archives and History were com in answer, ali designed to flummox and confusticate - just like mymuting three hours a day each way todream. In reality, 90% of the questions were just straightforward and sim try to salvage collections. Faye Phil-ple. Some of them were still tricky, but .-,.- overall the test itself was a positive ex .,.-.",'-,---.,.lips, associatedean of librar perience. It only took me an hour andies for specialten minutes to complete and once Icollections atopened up the booklet and looked at theLouisianaquestions, I really breathed a sigh ofState Uruver relief. "sity, stated "wereally need to-A nn Roberts, Missouri S tate A rchivesget [archivalThe Outcomethe radar forcollections1 onfUture disasterEditor's note: Ann passed!plans. Youcan buy newlibrary books ifMore on KatrinaA New Orleans Courthouse was flooded by two feet of water after HurricaneKatrina had passed. Stephen Bruno, custodian of qotarial records for Or leans Parish, discovered that all books on the bottom shelves were soaked.After crews had spent a day and a half pumping out thousands of gallons ofwater, they removed 60,000 books from the space . .Dry volumes were storedin trucks in the parking lot, with wet books loaded into two freezer trucks tobe transported to a restoration fmn near Chicago. Twenty more trucks ofwet documents from around the affected area were going to be sent to Illi-you can comeup with themoney, but you can't buy new ar chives."Based on "Saving History from aHurricane" by Marilyn Gardner ofthe C hristiantember 28/05S cience Monitor,Sep

ACA NewsIssue 51Page9Annual General Meeting Attendees, New OrleansPresident (2005-06)Michael E. Holland, CAPhone:(573) 882-4602Regent Exam Development (04-06)Thomas E. Brown, Ph.D., CAPhone:(301) 837-1555Regent for Nominations (05-06)Scott Cline, CAPhone:(206) 684-8353E-mail: hollancim@missouri.eduE-mail: ct (05-06)Regent for Outreach (04-06)Chair, Nominating Comm. (05-06)Laura H. McLemore, Ph.D., CATodd M. Gilliom, CACindy C. Smolovik, CAPhone:(817) 207-6315E-mai1: cindy.smo1ovik@nara.govSecretary (05-07)Lynn Smith, CAPhone:(319) 643-5301Phone:(318) 797-5378E-mail: scott.cline@seattle.govPhone:(573) 882-6028E-mail: Imclemor@oilot.1sus.eduE-mail: gilliomt@Umsystem.eduRegent Cert. Mai

this statement, the Academy of Certified Archivists has extended emergency member benefits to the Certified Continued on Page 2 Anne Diffendal Latest Distinguished Award Winner Anne P. Diffendal is the recipient of the Academy of Certified Archivists 2005 Distin guished Service Award. The award was presented to Anne at the ACA annual meeting