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G2S Project Code: 2017-OK-79124
State: Oklahoma
Fiscal Year: 2017
Grantee
OKLAHOMA DEPARTMENT OF LIBRARIES

Project Director
Director Name: Jan Davis
Director Phone: 4055223191
Director Email: jan.davis@libraries.ok.gov
General Information
Title: Images of Oklahoma
State Project Code: 171501
Start Date: 10/01/2016
End Date: 09/30/2018
Abstract: The Oklahoma Department of Libraries offered training and support, to several new libraries and museums, as well as continued support to past participants from 2014 - 2016, to continue digitizing and make accessible materials relevant to the social, cultural, ethnic, and historical content for their unique local collections. In 2017, a group of eleven libraries and museums, became participants in the Images of Oklahoma project. Workshops were offered through the Oklahoma Department of Libraries (ODL) for all new and previous participants. New participants included six public libraries, three museums, one historical society and one historical society/public library partnership. 

The project goal was to provide a platform for digitizing at-risk collections by providing participants training, and a content management tool to access their digital content. By partnering with several different organizations, the Oklahoma Department of Libraries (ODL) was able to offer a variety of workshops for the Images of Oklahoma participants. Partners included the Oklahoma Historical Society, the Oklahoma Museums Association, the Oklahoma Historical Records Advisory Board, and the Broken Arrow Museum.  

The project began with a required one day workshop at ODL.  The workshop was held to introduce participants to key concepts and information related to digital projects, such as reviewing collections, copyright considerations, scanning guidelines and best practices.  Instructors also introduced professional metadata standards for documenting digital collections, and provided participants with an opportunity to work through preparing metadata for one photograph. The Oklahoma Department of Libraries is a partner in the Oklahoma Digital Public Library of America (DPLA) Hub and seeks to include Images of Oklahoma digital objects into their collection by developing metadata and standards that comply with the DPLA requirements for ingest. Gina Minks, a digitization consultant, of Gina Minks Consulting LLC, conducted the initial workshop. Project collections were hosted on the Oklahoma Department of Libraries' Digital Prairie website, or if the library chose to host their own content, links were provided to their collections. Local communities were able to identify local content through metadata tags, and have access to other communities' content.

Several other workshops were conducted throughout the year to provide continued support and training for past and current participants.  They included Preservation of Photographic Materials, Preservation of Audio-Visual Materials, Photograph Identification, Institutional Emergencies and Fundamentals of Project Management.  These workshops supported participants' efforts to learn about appropriate care of collections, which will help ensure individual items and collections are available to digitize in the future.  



State Goal: Goal 1: Information Access
Budget Information
LSTA
MATCH-State
MATCH-Other
Total
$31,848.50
$0.00
$0.00
$31,848.50
Intent(s)
Improve users’ ability to obtain and/or use information resources.
Arts, Culture & Humanities
History
Activities
Activity Details
Title: Project Site Visits
Narrative: The Oklahoma Department of Libraries (ODL) project lead officer visited current and prior grant participants' libraries and museums to provide support and have an opportunity to view collections, assess storage and equipment, identify potential content for further digital creation, and connect to the participants in their environment. The visits gave ODL staff an idea of how much and what kind of support would be necessary. In turn, the local library or museum staff had the opportunity to ask questions and have a private consultation with project staff.

In March 15, 2018, J. Davis and K. Pittman met with S. Chang, Director of the Guthrie Public Library, about her Images of Oklahoma project.  Prior to the meeting, Ms. Chang met with several community members who had agreed to provide images and information about Guthrie’s history.  We discussed her plans to proceed with the project and borrowed two yearbooks, which were scanned for inclusion in the Images section of Digital Prairie.

In May, K. Pittman met with S. Delano, a librarian for the Stillwater Public Library, to discuss their participation in the Images project.  Ms. Delano provided ODL with digital images of Stillwater yearbooks that were created by the Oklahoma Correctional Industries several years earlier.  After the images were uploaded to the ODL network, one of ODL's summer interns edited the images, which for some reason had a pink tint.  Project staff reviewed the images, renamed the files and uploaded them to the Images of Oklahoma page using ContentDM software.  

On July 20, 2018, J. Davis and K. Pittman met in Hominy with D. Garrett to review photographs and documents related to the area’s history for possible digitization and inclusion in the Images of Oklahoma collection on Digital Prairie.  Ms. Garrett is now the director of the Hominy Public Library and was with the Hominy Heritage Association (an Images participant).  The two organizations work together to preserve the history of the area, with the materials being stored in the Library. 

On July 17, 2018, C. Shinn, a volunteer with the Oklahoma Railroad Museum, came to the Archives to visit with staff about possible digitization projects for the Museum.  The Oklahoma Railroad Museum is a participant in the Images of Oklahoma project.  His ideas included collecting railroad photographs from Oklahoma libraries and museums to feature on a website, and a digitization project working with a group of railroad enthusiasts that meet annually in November.   





Intent: Improve users’ ability to obtain and/or use information resources.

Activity: Instruction
Mode: Consultation/drop-in/referral
Format: In-person


Quantity
Total number of consultation/reference transactions: 4
Average number of consultation/reference transactions per month: 1


Partner Information
Organization Type of Partner Organization(s):
Libraries: No
Historical Societies or Organizations: No
Museums: No
Archives: No
Cultural Heritage Organization Multi-type: No
Preschools: No
Schools: No
Adult Education: No
Human Service Organizations: No
Other: No


Legal Type of Partner Organization(s):
Federal Government: No
State Government: No
Local Government (excluding school districts): No
School District: No
Non-Profit: No
Private Sector: No
Tribe/Native Hawaiian Organization: No


Beneficiaries
Is the activity directed at the library workforce: Yes
For a targeted group or for the general population: General


Locale
Is the activity state-wide: No
Specific Locations: Yes
Name: GUTHRIE PUBLIC LIBRARY
Address: 201 N DIVISION
City: GUTHRIE
State: OK
Zip: 73044
Name: HOMINY PUBLIC LIBRARY
Address: 121 WEST MAIN
City: HOMINY
State: OK
Zip: 74035
Name: OKLAHOMA RAILWAY MUSEUM
Address: 3400 NE GRAND BLVD
City: OKLAHOMA CITY
State: OK
Zip: 73111
Name: STILLWATER PUBLIC LIBRARY
Address: 1107 S. DUCK
City: STILLWATER
State: OK
Zip: 74074
Activity Details
Title: Participant Workshops
Narrative: In 2017, a group of eleven libraries and museums became participants in a project to digitize local collections, with training and guidance from the Oklahoma Department of Libraries (ODL). This group included six public libraries, three museums, one historical society and one historical society/public library partnership.

The project began with a required one day workshop at ODL.  Participant organizations were invited to bring up to two people to attend.  Gina Minks, a digitization consultant from Gina Minks Consulting, LLC., presented a workshop on digital project building and best practices. The agenda included, Why Digitize, Preparing to Digitize, Planning a Digital Project and Creating a Cohesive Project. A Catalog Librarian familiar with Dublin Core metadata discussed metadata creation and how to build a project file from an Excel spreadsheet which could be uploaded into CONTENTdm, ODL’s content management software. This instruction on required metadata was particularly important as ODL wants to promote the widest access for participants’ projects, including access via the Digital Public Library of America collection. 

A tour of ODL’s Digital Media Lab and Archives was included, highlighting internal scanning techniques and file management of digital projects. Participants were encouraged to bring materials to the media lab and use ODL’s facilities for scanning.  When appointments were scheduled in advance, one of the Archives staff would assist with software and equipment. The Digital Media Lab includes scanners, a camera stand for fragile or awkward material types, VHS to DVD conversion equipment, and a large format scanner which can be used for large posters or maps.  

Upon completion of the workshop, each library was given a one terabyte hard drive which was intended to make it easier to share and transport data to ODL, as well as have a backup file for their digital images. Participants completed a survey evaluating the workshop.  Later, as the libraries had content ready, ODL captured the content, added and expanded their metadata and uploaded files into the Images of Oklahoma collection. 

Several participants digitized images and uploaded them on their own websites.  For example, the Stephens County Historical Museum in Duncan uploaded images about the Halliburton Cementers Baseball Club which participated in Semi-Pro Sandlot style games during the late 1920s and ending in the 1940s. 

Other participants digitized photographs and documents and worked with ODL to provide metadata describing the images.  The Hominy Heritage Association, which works with the Hominy Public Library, worked with ODL during a site visit to digitize and describe Hominy High School Commencement Programs from the 1930s and 1940s.  They also provided digital copies of some Hominy High School yearbooks.  Thirty-two items have been uploaded to the Images of Oklahoma website.  Eastern Trails Museum, located in Vinita, provided images and descriptions for 31 photographs which are now uploaded on the Images of Oklahoma website.  The images include a 1920s image of a boating party and swimmers, a large building fire in downtown Vinita in the early 1900s, and an Indian Territory photograph, circa 1899, of a fenced cattle herd and a cowboy.  The ODL online collection, Images of Oklahoma, has grown by 343 images over the past year, and now includes 943 items.

By partnering with several different organizations, the Oklahoma Department of Libraries (ODL) was able to offer a variety of workshops for the Images of Oklahoma participants. Two workshops were available to Images of Oklahoma participants in December 2017. These workshops included Images project participants, as well as participants from other organizations.  The workshops were supported by the Oklahoma Museums Association and the Oklahoma Historical Records Advisory Board.  Rationale for inclusion was ability to fund one speaker for two workshops, and provide networking between other persons involved in historic preservation. 

First, Fundamentals of Project Management for Archivists, included overall principles and practices for starting and managing an archival project. Project management tools and techniques were discussed, along with evaluating project outcomes and further resources for developing good project management. This was a one day workshop, conducted by Gina Minks, consultant from Gina Minks Consulting, LLC.  This workshop was offered by the Society of American Archivists at the request of project staff because it supported initial workshop training and expanded on some aspects covered only briefly in the first training.   

Second workshop, Preparing for Institutional Emergencies, covered creating an emergency plan, immediate steps after an emergency and identifying and mitigating institutional risks to avoid an emergency. Both workshops were conducted by Gina Minks, from Gina Minks Consulting, LLC. 

Five workshops were held in May and August, 2018. Two workshops, Preservation of Photographic Materials, were held May 9, 2018 in Oklahoma City and May 11, 2018 in Broken Arrow.  During the full day workshops, participants discussed storage, handling, display and emergency response, as well as other steps to preserve photographs.  Project participants living more than 60 miles away from the workshop site received support for travel expenses, including mileage, hotel, and per diem.  The courses were taught by Rebecca Elder, a cultural heritage preservation consultant who is a Professional Associate member of the American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works.

On May 10, 2018, a half day workshop, Preservation of Audio-Visual Materials, was held in Oklahoma City.  This class was designed to provide information regarding preservation of A/V materials, which are among the most fragile materials found in collections.  Participants learned how to care for materials until they are able to be digitized. Project participants living more than 60 miles away from the workshop site received support for travel expenses, including mileage, hotel, and per diem.  This course was taught by Rebecca Elder, a cultural heritage preservation consultant who is a Professional Associate member of the American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works.

Two workshops, Faces Without Time, Photograph Identification from 1859 – 1920, were held in Oklahoma City on August 24, 2018 and August 28, 2018.  Two identical sessions were offered so that the class size could be limited to allow participants to view samples as well as discuss items from their own collections.  The courses were taught by C. Cowan, a retired photo archivist from the Oklahoma Historical Society.

These workshops were developed as a result of past suggestions from participants as to the type of workshops they would like to see in the future. Twenty eight institutions and sixty-eight Images of Oklahoma participants attended these workshops. Support for this activity is evident.


Intent: Improve users’ ability to obtain and/or use information resources.

Activity: Instruction
Mode: Program
Format: In-person


Quantity
Session length (minutes): 292
Number of sessions in program: 8
Average number in attendance per session: 8
Number of times program administered: 8


Partner Information
Organization Type of Partner Organization(s):
Libraries: Yes
Historical Societies or Organizations: No
Museums: No
Archives: No
Cultural Heritage Organization Multi-type: No
Preschools: No
Schools: No
Adult Education: No
Human Service Organizations: No
Other: No


Legal Type of Partner Organization(s):
Federal Government: No
State Government: No
Local Government (excluding school districts): No
School District: No
Non-Profit: No
Private Sector: No
Tribe/Native Hawaiian Organization: No


Beneficiaries
Is the activity directed at the library workforce: Yes
For a targeted group or for the general population: General


Locale
Is the activity state-wide: No
Specific Locations: Yes
Name: BLACKWELL PUBLIC LIBRARY
Address: 123 WEST PADON
City: BLACKWELL
State: OK
Zip: 74631
Name: DRUMRIGHT HISTORICAL MUSEUM
Address: 301 EAST BROADWAY ST
City: DRUMRIGHT
State: OK
Zip: 74030
Name: DRUMRIGHT HISTORICAL MUSEUM
Address: 301 E BROADWAY ST
City: DRUMWRIGHT
State: OK
Zip: 74030
Name: EASTERN TRAILS MUSEUM
Address: 215 W. ILLINOIS AVE.
City: VINITA
State: OK
Zip: 74301
Name: EDMOND HISTORICAL SOCIETY
Address: 431 S. BOULEVARD
City: EDMOND
State: OK
Zip: 73034
Name: FAIRVIEW CITY LIBRARY
Address: 115 S. 6TH
City: FAIRVIEW
State: OK
Zip: 73737
Name: GRANDFIELD PUBLIC LIBRARY
Address: 101 W 2ND
City: GRANDFIELD
State: OK
Zip: 73546
Name: GUYMON PUBLIC LIBRARY
Address: 1718 N Oklahoma
City: GUYMON
State: OK
Zip: 73942
Name: HOMINY PUBLIC LIBRARY
Address: 121 WEST MAIN
City: HOMINY
State: OK
Zip: 74035
Name: KEYSTONE CROSSROADS HISTORICAL SOCIETY AND MANNFORD MUSEUM
Address: PO BOX 1837
City: MANNFORD
State: OK
Zip: 74044
Name: MUSEUM OF THE GREAT PLAINS
Address: 601 NW FERRIS AVE
City: LAWTON
State: OK
Zip: 73507
Name: MUSKOGEE PUBLIC LIBRARY
Address: 801 W Okmulgee
City: Muskogee
State: OK
Zip: 74401
Name: NOWATA CITY-COUNTY LIBRARY
Address: 224 SOUTH PINE
City: NOWATA
State: OK
Zip: 74048
Name: OKLAHOMA CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY
Address: 2501 E MEMORIAL ROAD
City: OKLAHOMA CITY
State: OK
Zip: 73013
Name: OKLAHOMA CITY UNIVERSITY
Address: 2501 N BLACKWELDER
City: OKLAHOMA CITY
State: OK
Zip: 73106
Name: OKLAHOMA HISTORICAL SOCIETY
Address: 800 NAZIH ZUHDI DRIVE
City: OKLAHOMA CITY
State: OK
Zip: 73105
Name: OKLAHOMA MUSEUMS ASSOCIATION
Address: 2020 Remington Place
City: Oklahoma City
State: OK
Zip: 73111
Name: OKLAHOMA RAILWAY MUSEUM
Address: 3400 NE GRAND BLVD
City: OKLAHOMA CITY
State: OK
Zip: 73111
Name: OLD GREER COUNTY MUSEUM & HALL OF FAME
Address: 222 WEST JEFFERSON STREET
City: MANGUM
State: OK
Zip: 73554
Name: PAWHUSKA PUBLIC LIBRARY
Address: 1801 LYNN AVENUE
City: PAWHUSKA
State: OK
Zip: 74056
Name: PRYOR - THOMAS J HARRISON PUBLIC LIBRARY
Address: 505 EAST GRAHAM
City: PRYOR
State: OK
Zip: 74361
Name: SOUTHWESTERN OKLAHOMA STATE UNIVERSITY
Address: 100 CAMPUS DRIVE
City: WEATHERFORD
State: OK
Zip: 73096
Name: STEPHENS COUNTY HISTORICAL MUSEUM
Address: 1402 W BEECH AVE
City: DUNCAN
State: OK
Zip: 73533
Name: STILLWATER PUBLIC LIBRARY
Address: 1107 S. DUCK
City: STILLWATER
State: OK
Zip: 74074
Name: STROUD PUBLIC LIBRARY
Address: 301 WEST 7TH
City: STROUD
State: OK
Zip: 74079
Name: TILLMAN COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY
Address: NORTH 9TH AND FLORAL AVENUE
City: FREDERICK
State: OK
Zip: 73542
Name: WATONGA PUBLIC LIBRARY
Address: 301 N PROUTY
City: WATONGA
State: OK
Zip: 73772
Name: WILL ROGERS MEMORIAL MUSEUM
Address: 1720 W WILL ROGERS BLVD
City: CLAREMORE
State: OK
Zip: 74017
Question 1: I learned something by participating in this library activity.
Strongly Agree: 56
Agree: 12
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 0
Disagree: 0
Strongly Disagree: 0
Non-Response: 0
Question 2: I feel more confident about what I just learned.
Strongly Agree: 49
Agree: 19
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 0
Disagree: 0
Strongly Disagree: 0
Non-Response: 0
Question 3: I intend to apply what I just learned.
Strongly Agree: 51
Agree: 17
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 0
Disagree: 0
Strongly Disagree: 0
Non-Response: 0
Question 4: Applying what I learned will help improve library services to the public.
Strongly Agree: 55
Agree: 10
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 3
Disagree: 0
Strongly Disagree: 0
Non-Response: 0
Project Outcomes
Project Outcomes
List any important outcomes or findings not previously reported:
The project began with a required one day workshop at ODL. The workshop was held for participants to learn basic information about digital projects, including reviewing collections, identifying copyright concerns, determining appropriate scanning guidelines. Participants were also introduced to professional metadata standards for documenting digital collections and had the opportunity to prepare metadata for a photograph using a spreadsheet. Participants from this initial training provided comments on what aspects of the workshop were most helpful. -I like the presentations that included links to applications & sites that I was unaware of. -Ideal scanning settings (format resolution, etc.). -Metadata Methodology- very helpful! -Cool Bookmark Project! -Reference to Resource Sites. -Resources shared (National websites & OK Historical) and the electronic equipment to do this. Thank you! -Learning resources available and how to begin the process of digitization is very helpful. Learning about image issues and receiving the drive & scanner is amazing! -The format for the metadata, the equipment we were given, and of course the awesome spreadsheet layout! -I’m hoping to be able to be helpful to the library staff. -Copyright- still confused- not afraid. -Now have ideas where, when, how to start. -Copyright laws, file names. -Explanation of Metadata. -How to – steps/processes needed/work plan. -All, especially metadata. -Great resources for further study. -Understanding the Metadata. -All aspects were very informative. Very excited to use this information. -The class was informative for me as we are just beginning to start doing this. The small libraries and museums appreciated the provided workshops since local funding for training is very limited. Attendance was good from both past and current participants. Comments from our participants in the "Fundamentals of Project Management" course showed increased thinking about the planning stages of projects. Comments on aspects of the workshop that were helpful. -Learning how to break down projects into smaller manageable parts. -The differences between Project/Process/Program. I really didn't know what a project really was (the definition) until today. -The phases of a project. -It simplified a process that appeared difficult. It provided ideas, suggestions and tips that will help me with current projects and future ones. -Organization planning strategies, networking.-Actually, the workbook-Thought it would be a waste of paper, but it was really helpful. -The systems approach to planning. -How to organize a project and the pitfalls to watch for. -Charting my project and thinking about everything during the proposal and planning. -Starting at 10:30 a.m., when the content on planning got very specific and dense and very step-by-step in a good way. Everything was super useful. -Learning useful skills of Project Management.-Different ways to look at the planning process. -The whole project process, but in particular the focus on goals in the processes required to effectively get there with approval and the necessity to plan. -Explaining the Gantt charts and making a timeline. -How to do a proposal, estimating time, etc. -Comments from instructor to supplement slide content. -Using project management to better organize the projects in the manuscripts department. Help to streamline projects. -Everything, from start to end! I'm not kidding. I'll get the class notes and design a plan for a project I've already started, but it's not going well because I didn't do any planning.-Way of thinking about what goes into a project proposal and plan. -More structured and organized project ideas. -Note method for project plan-Also that weird time estimation formula. I have several projects in the queue plus my usual work, so having these tools will really help me to prioritize tasks and reign in "project creep." -I will be implementing the entire approach for our digitization, strategic planning, and backlog projects. --Use the skills learned towards two new projects. Creating a disaster plan and 2018 Archives-sponsored Cherokee artist art show.-Will be using information presented in class to help implement our museum's expansion and associated projects, as well as to set up plans for our volunteers on projects. The "Preparing for Institutional Emergencies" was a full-day introductory course and by the end of the course, students learned steps necessary to be able to create an emergency plan, know what to do when an emergency occurs and identify in their organization's possible risks. Comments included: -Emphasis of planning beforehand. Part on Insurance. -Planning for emergencies. Resources. -Ways to analyze risks, reminder to update insurance info. -Learning the risk matrix was/is helpful in assessing what risk management methods to apply. -Emergency plans, tubs, risk management/risk assessment. -Info on coordinating between organizations and University. Emergency preparedness kit, insurance info and emphasis. -Outside links and good reminders for how to triage a situation. -The examples provided by the instructor helped me understand concepts. -The resources information, contact lists/phone numbers. Emergency Kit. -The Risk Management Matrix. I've been looking for a way to classify risk and prioritize efforts to minimize risk factors. This allows me to rate the risks and rank them according to severity. -Information about the different ways to become prepared. -Very good overview of the various elements of emergency response. -Creating an emergency plan and supplies. -The Risk Management Matrix and Worksheet is a great tool! I plan to have our program directors use it to identify and classify risks associated with program administration and compile into our facilities risk assessments. -To develop at least a basic emergency plan. --Enjoyed info on HEART (Heritage Emergency and Response Training). Would like more info on interacting with the media. So very glad to be here. I'm totally enlightened with everything; endless unique details I never thought of. Two workshops, "Preservation of Photographic Materials" were held in two different locations to make it easier for participants to attend and keep class sizes small to allow for more discussion and individual attention. During the full day workshops, participants discussed proper storage, handling, display and emergency response, as well as other steps to preserve photographs. Comments from these workshops.-Learned the different types of photos and the correct way to handle them. -Passing real photo types around helped me internalize them better than picture. -This was information I couldn't get from a graduate level class at OU in preservation. Thank You! -I have an entire collection that can be organized now that I have some idea what I am doing! -Getting to find some of the solutions to the problems of damage to photographs and how to store them to avoid further deterioration. -Looking over my collection again to see if there is any material that needs to be restored or relocated to a new box or area based on the new information in the workshop. Our most requested workshops are on the correct way to store and handle materials and how to identify objects in their collections. This helps in their identification of unique materials to digitize, and what materials will be lost forever if they are not stored or cared for correctly before they can be digitized. One small participating organization shared that they have nearly 500,000 negatives, including nitrate-based and acetate-based film that are starting to deteriorate. With such a large collection, preservation is imperative because digitization will take many years and substantial funding. A half day workshop, Preservation of Audio-Visual Materials, was held in Oklahoma City. This class was designed to provide information regarding preservation of A/V materials, which are among the most fragile materials found in collections. Participants learned how to care for materials until they are able to be digitized. Our media lab has conversion equipment for VHS to DVD. We have encouraged libraries to reformat their VHS materials, especially oral histories and special events. Comments follow: -Learning the basics of how to care for AV materials. -Better understanding of the importance of proper care. -It was all useful and very informative. -Environmental recommendations for LP records and 45s. -Care and preservation of various media as well as identification of deterioration. -Proper storage for AV materials. -Getting a data logger to monitor storage. -Having a disaster preparedness plan. -Pass this information along to my AV department and highly suggest individual come to learn. "Faces Without Time, Photograph Identification from 1859 – 1920", were two identical one day workshops .Because of demand, two sessions were offered so that the class size could be limited to allow participants to view samples as well as discuss items from their own collections. These workshops are very hands-on, with years of collecting examples by C. Cowan, a retired photo archivist from the Oklahoma Historical Society, shared his experiences with the audience. Comments: -The practical-visual aspect of this workshop was most useful. - It was really good to be able to handle all of those photographs from the instructor's collection.-The descriptions of the photographs that gave an idea to what decade in which they were taken were very helpful. -I enjoyed this workshop very much and the presenter was very knowledgeable. -Knowing about changes in fashion and how to spot them will help me date our photos. These workshops were developed as a result of past suggestions from participants as to the type of workshops they would like to see in the future. Twenty eight institutions and sixty-eight Images of Oklahoma participants attended these workshops. In addition, ODL has been able to purchase equipment with IMLS funds. Scanners have been the most used by our participants and we have two out on loan currently. One of our very remote Images participant shared this story with us. "We had a customer come in that lives about 20 miles west of Mangum, OK . She had a stroke a few years ago that caused her not to be able to continue in her career about the same time period her mother had burned all the family photos, having Alzheimer’s she did not know who the people were and confused her. Her husband later told us that she had been very depressed because she had lost her Mother, been unable to go back to work, and no longer had any pictures of her childhood. Her husband, hearing from their neighbors how much our Museum has improved as of late to the point of winning our first award from the Oklahoma Museum Association for Community Outreach, brought his wife out to possibly find some family photos to cheer her up. When I heard what they were looking for, I took her back to our new library that we are working on completing to show her our index book covering our collection of negatives from Fike’s Studio. She said you mean you have all the pictures they ever took? And we told her as far as we know, yes. She eagerly dug in to the index book and started calling out numbers and her husband and myself started pulling out packets, I came to the office and began scanning them using the Epson 11000XL scanner on loan to us from “The Oklahoma Department of Libraries”. They went home with pictures of herself as a baby, a toddler, barrel racing as a teenager and we even found a set of pictures of her Grandmother! Without this scanner we would have had to take 2 scans of each picture, then use photo shop to put them back together which could have taken days to have gotten that many photos repaired. She went away with tears in her eyes knowing not only that our Museum had helped her that day, but it was made possible by The Oklahoma Department of Libraries!" We provide bookmarks specific to the library or museum's digital collection content. They pick the photograph for the bookmark and write a paragraph about their collection. Here is a recent email about the use of the bookmarks. "We were so excited to get them! They are beautiful and will be a perfect way for us to premiere and publicize our collection. I appreciate having them because they easily explain exactly what our project is and how to access it. The design is exceptionally eye-catching and will draw much more attention than the typical bookmarks we would be able to make available, which means many more people will learn about the collection and use it. Having the bookmark also brings a larger degree of legitimacy and professionalism to our collection. When we approach people who may have material suitable for the Black History Project, we will be able to give them one of the bookmarks. I think it will illustrate that this is a serious collection we care about and are will to invest in, making it a little easier to recruit more people to add to the collection. "
Please briefly describe the importance of these outcomes and findings for future program planning:
Site visits and opportunities to network with participants at workshops have made us aware of how important initial planning is for their digital projects. Learning to scan is relatively easy, however, scanning photographs and documents without following appropriate standards and failing to create useful, appropriate metadata, is of little benefit to the organization. Not deciding the purpose and extent of a digital project at the beginning leads to wasted efforts and digital information that is not useful. The workshops, particularly "Project Management," has helped participants to consider the implications of no planning, and considerations for successful outcomes. These visits continue to show that many organizations prioritize collection items for digitization that are being addressed by other organizations. For example, the Oklahoma Historical Society has a comprehensive project to provide digital access to Oklahoma newspapers. Newspapers are the first items most local repositories want to consider for digitization. Site visits continue to show that smaller organizations have limited resources for making their collections more accessible. Many operate with staff, and often volunteers, with limited training with respect to caring for historical records collections and digitization. Often they do not have scanners onsite. Site visits allow us to see the "state" of the collections and help us determine what additional information may be of value to the organization. One of our participating museums provided excellent metadata and produced a good exhibit of local oil history and its effect on the growth of the community. In contrast, however, we found their photographs in old manila envelopes with varying amounts of plastic covers which suggested a need for additional training and resources. They commented on how much they would use the photograph preservation workshop to relocate and properly preserve the originals. The Oklahoma Department of Libraries has become a partner in the Oklahoma Digital Public Library of America (DPLA) Hub. This makes it more important than ever to capture digital content with standard practices for metadata. One participating library's collection has been aggregated and is now on DPLA. This further extends the access to digital content for this project participant. In some cases, participants intend to add content to their own websites, or develop websites just for the content. WordPress workshops or other options that would allow them to display digital content would appeal to some participants. Some have used History Pin after attending an ODL workshop. We make available our Contentdm website and server to house their collections. One of our libraries posted this comment to their local paper about the project: "ODL has a project called “Images of Oklahoma” which allows libraries and other entities to post Oklahoma related materials on their website. Unfortunately, making items accessible online is not as easy as it seems. The programs needed to host and search hundreds and hundreds of digitized pages are incredibly expensive and not something our library can do at this point. We are incredibly fortunate to have the ability to make our material accessible through the ODL site." Workshop selection is based on review of the past outcomes from the Images of Oklahoma projects, as well as, suggestions from the participants. We know they have little or no local funding for training, so per diem was awarded for over 60 miles of travel and workshops were presented at no cost for Images participants.
Explain one or two of the most significant lessons learned for others wanting to adopt any facets of this project:
With placing digital content on other platforms, such as DPLA and CONTENTdm, we have learned standards-based metadata becomes increasingly important. For four years we have attempted various ways to present metadata to the participants. This year appeared to be the most successful. Many of our beginning workshop comments included comments about metadata. Instead of just giving them an online Excel sheet of the required fields for their content, we printed off a long spreadsheet (taped pages together) where they could insert content while we talked about different digital items. Actually filling in fields seemed to help with the concepts. We projected in Powerpoint during the instruction the required fields, i.e. title, location, format, type, etc. and what they should include. We gave away centimeter rulers so they could determine the dimensions of items, particularly photographs, which can be included as part of the descriptive information. This reinforced the importance of hands-on participation in the development of metadata. Less conceptual, more practical has been a lesson learned. In addition, we know metadata is a topic that deserves more attention that can be given during an overview workshop. Selection of content to digitize deserves a conversation that can probably best happen during a site visit. Participants may think too broadly, rather than realizing the value of specific local historic content. Newspapers are often the first part of the conversation, either because participants are unaware of the newspaper digitization project by the Oklahoma Historical Society or of copyright issues for newer content. With limited time and staff, prioritizing unique, or the most appropriate, collection content for digitization is essential. As critical as site visits are, it is hard for ODL staff to have time away from other work to visit many locations, which makes opportunities for participants to network and discuss collections and projects at workshops and conferences important. Participants benefit from learning about what other organizations have made available because it can spark ideas for digital projects for them, as well as help them better serve their constituents. We think continued support of past participants is essential. Content is added, additional skills are learned and used, workshops keep momentum and interest for digital collections growing. We have realized the significance of these projects as we move collections to a national platform for increased accessibility. Oklahoma historical content can grow on these platforms.
Do you anticipate continuing this project after the current reporting period ends:
No
Do you anticipate any change in level of effort in managing this project:
No
Explain:

Do you anticipate changing the types of activities and objectives addressed by the project:
No
Explain:

Was an evaluation conducted for this project:
No
Was a final written evaluation report produced:
No
Can the final written evaluation report be shared publicly on the IMLS website:
No
Was the evaluation conducted by project staff (either SLAA or local library) or by a third-party evaluator:
Project Staff
What data collection tools were used for any report outcomes and outputs:
Did you collect any media for the data:
What types of methods were used to analyze collected data:
Other:
How were participants (or items) selected:
What type of research design did you use to compare the value for any reported output or outcome:
Exemplary: No
Exemplary Narrative
Project Tags: Digitization projects