Look inside the August 2016 Issue of the Arkansas Archivist for these and other features!
The ASA Offers its Help to National History Day Participants
With another school year starting, we know that there are a number of teachers and students who are looking forward to the year ahead. There are so many upcoming interesting activities. One of the most exciting activities is the yearly History Day competition.
For several years, the State Archives has been committed to taking part in History Day. Many of our staff have been judges at state and regional contests. But beyond that, the archives has been a welcome source of primary documents that students use to make competition-
winning projects. We hope to continue as a destination for students working on History Day projects.
Summer Intern at the ASA
For the past month, we have been pleased to have Michael Fondren on our staff as a part-time intern. Michael grew up in Foreman, Arkansas, and earned his BA in History from Southern Arkansas University. Michael is currently studying Public History at UALR, and would like to work in the field of archives following graduation. He expects to graduate in 2017. Michael sees history as being more than the study about the past. “It is really the story of life,” he remarks. “I have found that the study of history allows me to be able to understand and learn about cultures other than my own.”
Black History Commission News
Arkansas Black History Commissioner Dr. Cherisse Jones-Branch, will present the annual address at the 46th Annual Celebration of the Southern Association for Women Historians on Friday, November 4, 2016, at the Southern Historical Association’s annual meeting in St. Pete’s Beach Florida. Her talk, ‘‘’Been a Guinea Pig in this Race’: Annie R. Zachary, Arkansas Homemaker, Farmer, and Politician,” is based in part on resources available at the Arkansas State Archives.
From the Director
During the first week in August, I attended the Council of State Archivists meeting in Atlanta, Georgia. The meeting of the 56 state and territorial archivists is held every year in conjunction with another larger archival conference, either the Society of American Archivists or NAGARA, the National Association of Government Archivists and Records Administrators. This year’s joint meeting was with SAA, and was jam-packed with informative sessions on everything from digital preservation to how authors of historical romance genre novels use archival sources to find inspiration.
