W. Frank Steely Library Special Collections & Archives Sustainable Preservation Environment Planning Project

FAIN: PF-50256-12

Northern Kentucky University Research Foundation (Highland Heights, KY 41099-0001)
Lois Hamill (Project Director: December 2011 to September 2014)

A planning project for a sustainable preservation environment for three special collections that focus on the history and culture of northern Kentucky and the university's archives.

The W. Frank Steely Library, Eva G. Farris Special Collections & Schlachter University Archives (SC&A), at Northern Kentucky University (NKU) requests $40,000 plus an additional $10,000 for recommended activities for a National Endowment for the Humanities Sustaining Cultural Heritage Collections planning grant. This would fund the next phase of a comprehensive plan to create and maintain a sustainable preservation environment for the long term protection of its collections. This planning grant project would result in the evaluation of the SC&A’s existing environmental climate and performance characteristics and operational practices related to the current HVAC system servicing the Archives. The results would drive a plan to develop a sustainable preservation environment with specific steps for improved operation, effectiveness and energy efficiency. The project would be a collaborative effort of Steely SC&A personnel, NKU’s Facilities Management division, and preservation research experts from the Image Permanence Institute.