Washington State School for the Blind’s Donald Donaldson Museum and Archives Collections Care

FAIN: PG-271725-20

Washington State University (Pullman, WA 99164-0001)
Robert Schimelpfenig (Project Director: January 2020 to January 2023)

The purchase of storage furniture and preservation supplies, as well as a training workshop for staff and volunteers in the care and handling of collections that document the history of the Washington State School for the Blind (WSSB).  Founded in 1886 as part of a larger organization, the WSSB established its independence in 1911 and continues to operate today as the region’s oldest school for blind and visually impaired youth.  Building on an existing partnership between the Washington State University Vancouver Library and WSSB, the project would help staff and student volunteers from both schools to care for the unique collections, which include over 400 objects, such as older recording technology and braille machines, as well as 230 linear feet of braille maps and books, school records, memorabilia, slides, and photographs.  WSSB faculty plan to integrate the materials into their curriculum, and the preservation workshop would be open to the staff of neighboring historical organizations.

The Washington State School for the Blind (WSSB) Museum and Archives documents a history of the school and its students. These histories are encapsulated through a series of print and braille collections, scrapbooks, photographs and an assortment of bygone technologies and mediums that have aided in the learning of the visually impaired from the time the school was established 130 years ago. With limited staff and no formal archival foundation, these collections have remained inaccessible. Following a 2019 preservation pre-assessment, WSSB with the help of the WSUV Library have drafted policies and procedures, recruited volunteers and secured funding for one part-time archives position. To further this project, we propose hosting preservation training workshops and purchasing storage supplies to help implement preservation standards and support employees as they begin the first phase of managing collections.