Carolina Tweets #archiveunc

When you think of archives you might think of dusty old books and papers tucked away to be used by historians and other academics. Here at the University Archives we preserve plenty of old University records (that are kept dust-free, by the way), but our day-to-day work is actually very focused on the current moment. Without collecting materials that document the present day researchers can’t study the University in the future.

One way we archive the current moment is through collecting student life materials and UNC related web content. With only three full time staff members it can be tough to keep up with all the conversations, events, and activism happening on campus. We can’t do this alone. This is where you come in!

You can actively contribute to the documentation of what’s happening at UNC by using the hashtag #archiveunc on your public tweets or Instagram posts. That’s all you have to do! By using the hashtag, you opt in to having the posts archived for long-term preservation and research access.

How is the content archived? We will periodically use a tool called Archive-It to “crawl” the tweets or posts tagged with the #archiveunc hashtag. Once the posts have been crawled by the Archive-it tool, the data is preserved by the Internet Archive and we provide access through our Archive-It website.

What kind of tweets are we looking for? We’re open to any tweets or Instagram posts related to UNC academics, campus life, and events. For example:

  • Promoting a student organization event? #archiveunc
  • Protesting? #archiveunc
  • Promoting a cause? #archiveunc
  • Sharing activities or chalk messages seen on campus? #archiveunc

If you don’t use #archiveunc, we may be in touch to ask permission to add your social media content or website to the Archives. Collecting social media content as it unfolds is new for us. We’re experimenting, so how we ask for permission and the technology used may evolve over time. As things change, we’ll keep you in the loop.

We hope you’ll join us in this exciting new effort!

Not interested in social media? Other ways to get involved and help document Carolina history:

  • Submit photos of UNC shirts to the UNC T-Shirt Archive.
  • Connect with us regarding donation of student organization records, digital or print photos, videos, or campus posters/flyers. If it documents something happening at UNC, we’re happy to talk about adding it to the archives. Please email (archives@unc.edu) us to get the process started.
  • Nominate a UNC website for archiving. First check to see if we’ve already archived the website: https://archive-it.org/collections/3491. If the website can’t be found in our web archives, send us an email (archives@unc.edu) to get the process started.

Collecting the Student Experience

What are your fondest memories of college? Were they formed outside the classroom, hanging out with your friends? Did you warmly remember hours spent singing with the chorus, helping your friend run in student elections, or building sets for an upcoming play?

For participants, these activities rounded out their student experiences. Sadly, the events and memories are too fleeting; little pieces are lost with each graduating class until they are all but forgotten. Last fall, The Daily Tar Heel highlighted this lack of student organizational history in an article focusing on Company Carolina. The article incurred the wrath of many Company Carolina alumni, who believed they had left the group with plenty of unforgettable history!

University Archives would like to help students and alumni better preserve their collective memories. Towards that goal, we are actively seeking to assemble records produced by student organizations. These records might include items such as meeting minutes, rules of governance, production records, ephemera, photographs, and website content. This summer, as we test the best methods for collecting these records, we are focusing on two student theatre groups: the already-inspired Company Carolina and the long-running Lab! Theatre. Eventually, we hope to make contact with many other student groups.

Here’s where you can help! We encourage all current student groups to contact us so we can discuss transferring their records to the University Archives. We are also happy to offer groups advice on how they can preserve their own records. If you are a UNC alumnus with records from your own time working with a student group, we would also like to hear from you! Help us make the student experience part of Carolina’s permanent archival record.

Scene from Lab! Theatre's 2000 production of "Crimes of the Heart"

New Acquisition

Thanks to the generosity of Jennifer Manning (’89, ’91 MSLS), a founding member of UNITAS, a multicultural living and learning program at UNC, the University Archives now has material documenting the history of this organization, including a photograph of the charter members from 1987-1988 and a copy of the Daily Tar Heel insert, Omnibus, from September 17, 1987 that describes the purpose of UNITAS.

For more information on UNITAS, visit their website at:  http://housing.unc.edu/residence-life/living-learning-communities/unitas.html

Jennifer read about our efforts to collect the records of student organizations in the Carolina Alumni Review (http://alumni.unc.edu/article.aspx?sid=8132).  She has offered to contact her friends for additional material as well as pledged to make a monetary donation to the University Archives for every donation her and her friends make.

Thanks you Jennifer for supporting the University Archives and helping our efforts to document the history of student organizations at UNC.

UNITAS Charter Members, 1987-1988
Photograph of the UNITAS Charter Members, 1987-1988, taken in front of Carmichael Dormitory in the Fall of 1987

Front row, left to right:
Jewel Ward, Jennifer Manning, Barbara Ross, Shiho Koda, Jeff Shipman, Donna Leinwand, Chrystal Redding.

Second row, left to right:
Mona Sheth, Amy Shutz, Beth Yongue (hugginh “Chilly” Nguyen), Chinh “Chilly” Nguyen, Robert D’Arruda, “Bud” Thornton Long (in striped shirt), Tim Dore.

Third row, left to right:
Samir Amin (standing, in blue shirt), Traci Hopkins, Marvin Peguese, Leah Kim, Nick Ackerman (with arms crossed), Rachel Stiffler, Ann Bunge (standing, white shirt).

Also: Suresh “Jay” da Silva (in shorts, far right).
Next to him:  Jovan Jones.
Behind them: Faculty advisor, Dr. Craig Calhoun (now at NYU in the Dept. of Sociology).
Next to Jovan Jones: Faculty advisor, Dr. Trudier Harris (now a visiting scholar-in-residence at the University of Alabama).
Above Nick Ackerman: Priti Shah and Rachel Stiffler.
Very back left: Laurie Winkler (in red sweater)
Waving hand in upper far right: James Benton

Do you know any others?  If so, please contact us.

Summertime is Records Management Time

The summer months are a quiet time here at Carolina as most of the students have gone home (or elsewhere) for the summer.  The few that remain are immersed in intensive summer school courses, or working on campus or in town.

Campus can seem almost deserted this time of year.  The sidewalks are empty, there’s virtually no one hanging around the Pit, and there are minimal lines and wait times at the few food-and-drink stops that remain open.

Deserted campus walk by Flickr user docta puella.

But don’t be fooled, there’s still a large group of people hard at work from Graduation day until the first day of classes.  In fact, for many University staff this time of year is no less busy than August through April, it’s a time when we can catch up of administrative tasks, such as records management!

Piles of files... by Flickr user jspad

So if you are a staff member finding yourself sorting through “piles of files” this summer and need help give us a call at 962-6402 or email us at recman (at) unc (dot) edu to schedule a consultation.  We are more than happy to help you start making sense of the mess!

 

 

Reaching Out to Students

This past spring, Jay and Meg worked with colleagues in the North Carolina Collection to curate an exhibit titled From Di-Phis to Loreleis: 150 Years of Student Organizations at UNC.

A photograph of a banquet held by the Order of the Ghimghoul featured in the exhibit.
A flier featured in the exhibit.

The exhibit provided us with a great opportunity to reach out to student organizations and groups interested in preserving their piece of Carolina history.  In April we held Students Make it Last Longer, an event to promote the exhibit and increase student interest in the Archives.

We are proud to say that the event was a success!  Many students came to look at the exhibit, have a snack, chat with us, and learn more about donating their student organization records to the Archives.  Here are some photos that Jay and Meg took at the event–

University Archivist, Jay Gaidmore, talking to a student about her organization's archives.
Students browsing the exhibit.

If you’re in a student organization or group and are interested in working with University Archives to preserve your Carolina legacy please contact us, we’d love to chat with you!