Digitization Projects, 1998-2010, Funded by LSTA through the New York State Library

Library System

Project

Brooklyn Public Library

$69,500

$69,500

$81,225

Buffalo and Erie County Public Library

LSTA Project Year 1999: Digitization Planning Grant evaluated the feasibility, practicability, and cost of creating digital collections from important special collections in high public demand. The project evaluated participating libraries readiness to create or manage a digital collection.

$5,596

Capital District Library Council

LSTA Project Years 2008-2010 The CDLC Digitization Project has proposed the training of library personnel on standards and management of digital collections. Guidelines for metadata, CONTENTdm and digitization processes have been developed as training tools available to libraries. A project web site to showcase digital collections is in development. A primary outcome for this project will be expanding the knowledge of library staff, giving them the ability to add to the growing historical collections of the member institutions.

$21,250

LSTA Project Year 2007-08: Don’t Be Afraid! Hands-on Digitization provided training to staff members of member libraries interested in digitizing a portion of their library materials. Training participants gained specific knowledge of digitization processes and procedures to incorporate into their library’s collection parameters and learned to promote the availability of these resources.  15 site visits and more than 100 follow-up consultations with a Field Trainer and project coordinators extended the impact of the training. Through workshops, 121 people from 11 participating institutions gained skills on digital collections. A complete digital record was completed for approximately 60 % of the resources planned, and further work in this endeavor has continued beyond the grant end date.

$17,500

PLAN-Training Program Descriptions: http://cdlc.org/Programs_And_Services/dhp/dhpwrksp.shtml

Digitization Plan: http://cdlc.org/pdfs/CDLCDigiPlan.pdf

Central New York Library Resources Council

LSTA Project Years 2008-10: Heritage CNY has proposed a broad modification of an earlier digitization plan and will begin creating digital collections for a public repository, rich in historical significance serving researchers, genealogists, students, tourists the world at large. This effort builds on a series of previous workshops which provided guidance to libraries on managing, sustaining and promoting digital collections.

$21,250

LSTA Project Year 2003: Preparing Central NY History for the Future, Part II - trained libraries and cultural heritage organizations in the creation of digitized collections. Fourteen workshops and symposia with 170 participants addressed technical and web considerations, metadata tags and legal issues. One valuable product of the training was a web-based resource. Program topics included technology, vendors, standardized practices and use of metadata.

$19,310

LSTA Project Year 2002: Preparing CNY History for the Future. Phase I provided staff and volunteers from libraries and historical agencies in Central New York with information and resources to develop a regional plan to make decisions about creating and using digital collections.

$35,000

Collections: http://www.clrc.org/digital2006

Digitization Plan: http://www.clrc.org/digital2006/DigiPlanSept10.pdf

Long Island Library Resources Council

LSTA Project Years 2008-10: Long Island Memories will undertake a digitization program promoting accepted standards and will provide training workshops for librarians and archivists to build access to the rich regional resources of Long Island. Invited speakers will address copyright, scanning and the management of collections in an open source format. The creation and launch of a new digitized collection will be the capstone for this project. Continuing partnership with area historical societies and smaller libraries throughout the area will be a rich resource for historical material.

$21,250

Metropolitan New York Library Council

LSTA Project Years 2005-2007: Planning and Training for Digitization created a comprehensive training program on digitization involving planning, selection, scanning, metadata creation, best practices standards, and mentoring to better position their members to initiate and complete digitization projects. METRO offered a series of digitization training classes, organized a digitization symposium on copyright and a vendor showcase, and developed a consultant/mentor network to provide "hands-on" digitization training and assistance. METRO hosted the METRO Digitization Expo on May 9, 2005, which included 15 vendors, and 13 workshops. 487 participants from over 75 member libraries attended the various events.

$113,000

LSTA Project Year Project Year 2003-04: METRO Regional Digitization Initiative (Phase II) - Knowledge and Practice developed a regional digitization initiative to identify and conserve materials,  enhanced members' digitization plans, increased  hands-on knowledge of the processes needed for digitization and access to the created digital  resources and collections. The Phase II project goals included facilitating the implementation of digitization projects among smaller METRO members and increasing collaboration among METRO members in sharing skills and information about digitization projects. Symposia on digitization included: outsourcing, metadata and equipment. More than 100 participants attended.  In a follow-up satisfaction survey, the programs received a high rating (4.5/5.)

$35,900

LSTA Project Year 2001-02: METRO Regional Digitization Initiative (Phase I) identified and encouraged member planning, as well as the actual creation of new digital collections. Member libraries contributed their records to a regional METRO Online Digitization Information Clearinghouse (MODIC) to help identify the new resources and their content. A Special Interest Group on Digitization was formed.  109 people from 74 institutions attended the symposium and/or downloaded the multimedia webcast presentation of the symposium online

$58,250

METRO Digitization Plan: http://www.metro.org/images/stories/pdfs/2007_digplan.pdf

Collections: http://www.metro.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=52&Itemid=236

Monroe County Library System

LSTA Project Year 2001-02: Developing a Digital Learning Network added selected documents and materials from regional institutions to the Rochester Images digital database, developed historical and contextual narratives to accompany the digitized materials and created pathfinders on the MCLS Web. The project was supported by collaborative partnerships with the Landmark Society of Western New York and the Genesee Country Village and Museum and focused on architecture.

$36,609

LSTA Project Year 2001-2: Rochester Images. In collaboration with the Rochester Museum and Science Center, this project digitized large format maps and newspapers and created Internet access to these resources. 3,500 new images were scanned bringing the total of digitized items to 19,000. 6 pathfinders were created to support local school curriculum.

$50,420

LSTA Project Year 2000: Rochester Images expanded its images database with 3,500 postcards and 1,500 photographic images from the City of Rochester’s Archives. The project adhered to a collection development process and worked on a uniform procedure for content and format for local history and map resources in the collections of Monroe County public libraries and those from town and village historians.

$62,298

LSTA Project Year 1999: Prototype of Digital Project: Image Data Base Action Plan Images from City of Rochester and Photolab were distributed electronically as a database for resource-sharing.

$18,775

LSTA Project Year1998: Image Data Action Plan: This cooperative project with the City of Rochester and area archives studied of the methods and costs of digitization and distributed an electronic data base of photographic and pictorial resources held by three agencies. The project entailed indexing, classification, and a prototype.

$18,775

Rochester Images & Pathfinders Collection: http://www2.libraryweb.org/index.asp?orgid=91&storyTypeID=&sid=&

Gateway: http://www2.libraryweb.org/index.asp?orgid=630&storyTypeID=&sid=&

Northern New York Library Network

LSTA Project Years 2008-.2010: Newspaper Digitization Project will offer access to a wider spectrum of historical newspapers for many localities in this region including those from Massena, Ogdensburg, Carthage, Lowville, and Malone. 124,000 additional pages will be digitized to expand the resources available through the network’s web site. This initiative will expand access to unique historical documents, records and audio-visual components sought by regional users.

$21,250

LSTA Project Year 2003: Digital Services Training broadened participants’ knowledge of digitization through a series of 12 workshops on such topics as digital project management, intellectual access to digital content and copyright, scanning, and digital cameras. 134 participants attended training. 27% of 66 member libraries completed a follow-up survey which determined that training, availability of a consultant, funding, and the management of electronic bibliographic records posed challenges for libraries in this arena.

$14,000

LSTA Project Year 2001: Digital Services Training provided scanning, copyright and technical training to 67 staff members representing 29 libraries in 6 training workshops.

$10,000

Digitization Plan: http://www.nnyln.org/digintro.html

Newspaper Gateway: http://news.nnyln.net/

Historical Collection: http://history.nnyln.org/

Rochester Regional Library Council (RRLC)

LSTA Project Year 2000:Home of Women's Rights: Digital Biographies of Western New York Suffragists digitized primary resource materials on the Women's Suffrage Movement held by a variety of Rochester area libraries and archives. By placing the digital biographies on a web site, these resources -- many of which were fragile and underutilized –became available to a wide audience of students, scholars, and the general public, without physically destroying the originals. This project developed a blueprint for regional digitization activities.

$49,654

LSTA Project Year 1999: Home of Women's Rights: Digitizing Rochester Area Collections on Women's Suffrage prepared the content, technology and awareness of regional libraries in support of a regional project to digitize collections related to women's suffrage.    

$29,275

Women's Suffrage Digitization Project Plan: http://rrlc.entrexp.com/documentview.asp?docID=56

Western NY Suffragists Collection: http://www.winningthevote.org/

South Central Regional Library Council (SCRLC)

LSTA Project Years 2008-10: Practical Digitizing: Decisions, Details and Development has proposed a series of “Boot Camps” addressing project management, scanning, metadata, open source software and copyright, etc. Resulting training materials shall be hosted on the SCRLC web site to mentor future trainees. Collections developed through the program will be maintained for the public and as future teaching resources. Four additional interactive workshops will provide a forum for sharing tips, project ideas and interest in the use of digital collections. One expected outcome is wider “hands-on” practice in creating digital collections by area libraries and historical societies.

$21,250

LSTA Project Year 2002: Planning for Digitizing Regionally - developed a regional plan identifying potential collections, strategic principles, priorities, current best practices, criteria for selection, long-term access, management and maintenance issues, and collaboration with other collection developers.

$13,900

LSTA Project Year 2001:  Dialogues on Digitization held planning forums and a series of five symposia regionally to increase awareness about digitization in libraries in New York State. 113 participants attended. Out of state representation from California and Colorado provided rich examples of mature projects and their use.  

$20,443

Digitization Plan: www.lakenet.org/Digitizing/2002digplan.pdf

Southeastern New York Library Resources Council

LSTA Project Years 2008-2010: Hudson River Valley Heritage Historic Newspapers has proposed a model demonstration project to digitize select historical newspapers for potential use as primary source documents by genealogists, students and historians. Designing a workflow and audience for additional newspaper conversions is an expected outcome of this initiative.

$21,250

LSTA Project Years 2005-2007:  Technology Training for Digital Projects provided a series of workshops to teach staff from libraries and cultural heritage institutions how to digitize materials for inclusion in a regional, digital collection. Thirty people were recruited from SENYLRC cultural institutions to learn specific skills such as scanning, creating metadata, and managing digital projects using standards associated with contributing to a shared regional resource. Access to historical documents and unique materials from archives and repositories throughout the Hudson Valley are available at http://www.hrvh.org/collections/index.htm.  Products from this initiative included six workshops, two training documents and one web page. There were 172 participants. 131 digital objects were enhanced or created.

$33,827

LSTA Project Year 2002: Southeastern Regional Digital Information Institute provided workshops addressing a number of technology issues facing staff in the libraries and archival communities.

$28,941

LSTA Project Year 2001: Planning for a Southeastern Regional Digital Library developed a regional digital program plan that included identifying and prioritizing of collections for digitization. Participation in two workshops included representation by 51 participants. 173 public libraries and 4 historical societies were able to benefit from this initiative.   

$41,777

Digitization Plan: http://www.hrvh.org/about/plan.htm

Suffolk Cooperative Library System

LSTA Project Years 2008-10: Suffolk Historic Newspapers has proposed adding more newspaper content and local historical resources in an indexed and searchable digital collection. Collaboration with historical societies and schools on special topics will help build an audience of students, researchers and genealogists for these rare and unique regional resources.

$27,400

LSTA Project Year 2007-08: Suffolk Historic Newspapers provided training and scanning of additional Suffolk County newspapers doubling the previous number of pages. Two new resources were digitized including early annals of The Sag Harbor Express and The Suffolk County News. Usage of the site has increased based in part on greater promotion and training for the public and library staff. Enlarging the educational focus was a continuing goal.

$20,000

Suffolk Historic Newspapers Page: http://shn.suffolk.lib.ny.us/

Digital Projects Information: http://shn.suffolk.lib.ny.us/about.htm

Western New York Library Resources Council (WNYLRC)

LSTA Project Years 2008-2010: Expanding Western New York Legacy: Preserving and Digitizing Collections Training has proposed a series of institutes to develop staff skills in digitization and preservation. Participants will learn conservation methods and work with image and print collections that will be added to a regional online collection.  

$21,250

LSTA Project Year 2005-7 Developing a Regional Approach to Digitization in Western New York developed a regional digitization plan in the project’s first year and monitored the successful implementation of regional projects in the second year. The regional digitization plan will provide a framework to be used by members and WNYLRC for conducting digitization projects in the region as well as providing in-depth information on emerging technologies, methodologies and specific standards that WNYLRC will adopt as a structural model for the region. A total of ten workshops were held for 131 attendees. A survey, a training booklet, one web page, and a Digitization Plan were developed.

$80,998

LSTA Project Year 2000:  Development and Application of Guidelines for Digital Conservation Projects developed a model decision-making process for digital conversion projects in the region and the state; for integrating digital conversion projects into the larger, overall collection development process; and for helping to ensure that digital technologies will be employed in support of pragmatic access goals.

$25,705

LSTA Project Year 1999:  Digital Libraries Access Planning Project supported Western New York regional efforts to develop individual and institutional capacity for building digital libraries.

$32,050

LSTA Project Year 1998: Digitizing of Environmental Special Collections: Two Case Studies represented a collaboration between WNYLRC and the libraries of the University at Buffalo to use digitization as an access tool to make important content available to the region, state and nation. The two collections included records relating to the Love Canal and other hazardous waste issues in Western NY for the period of 1979-1990 and the text & extensive graphics of the entries in the biennial Rudy Bruner Award for Excellence in Urban Design. Documents are available through a publicly-accessible Internet Web site.

$23,420

LSTA Project Year 1998:  Digital Library Training Program prepared staff to think strategically about creating and promoting a digital collection and conserving materials in a digital format for wider availability. Topics included document selection, regional partnerships and technical skill development.

$31,000

Digitization Plan: http://www.wnylrc.org/documentView.asp?docid=151&sid

Collection: http://WNYLegacy.org

$1,247,238