The Preservation Unit oversees the protection and treatment of the University of Arkansas Libraries' physical collections in order to facilitate long-term preservation and access for all users.
In other words, we're involved in...
A preservation program is designed to maintain collections as a whole in the best possible condition, for as long as they are needed, by minimizing and preventing damage. Preservation encompasses policies, principles, and practices for preventive strategies, and conservation encompasses the treatment and repair of individual items to slow decay or restore to a usable form.
Preventive collection care is the most cost effective and efficient means of extending useful life of a collection. Remedial actions, such as binding, repair, conservation treatment, and reformatting, are performed to ensure continued access to collections. The administrator of a preservation program is often responsible for seeking outside funding to further preservation goals, managing preservation employees, and coordinating with other departments on preservation needs.
Preservation and conservation encompass a range of activities associated with maintaining materials for use in original physical form or in other usable ways appropriate for the institution and collection.
The Preservation Unit reports to the Head of Content Services. The lab is temporarily operating from LINX during building renovations in Mullins Library.
Mary Leverance, Preservation and Conservation Coordinator, oversees the work of the unit, and focuses on the preservation program and preventive conservation for the Libraries' collections.
Sally Crutcher, Preservation and Binding Supervisor, focuses on conservation of the Libraries' paper-based collections and oversees commercial binding.
Amber Cooper, Preservation and Binding Assistant, handles incoming and outgoing commercial binding and assists with conservation of collection materials.
As Safe Zone Allies, we believe that all students and people in the campus community should be treated equally and fairly regardless of sexual orientation and gender identity. We are are supportive and affirming of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender students and employees and their identities, and we are committed to listen without judgment, provide safe spaces for visitors to share their concerns, and refer visitors appropriately to resources for assistance.
Digital preservation, as defined by the Digital Preservation Coalition, is a formal endeavor to ensure that digital information of continuing value remains accessible and usable.
The Preservation Unit is interested in the digital preservation of materials in the Libraries, but we do not play an active role in it. The Digital Services Department and Special Collections manage digital preservation for their individual holdings.