Mississippi Digital Library Preservation Assessment

FAIN: PG-51924-13

University of Southern Mississippi (Hattiesburg, MS 39406-0001)
Diane DeCesare Ross (Project Director: May 2012 to November 2014)

A preservation assessment of more than 70,000 digital objects drawn from fourteen libraries and archives from throughout Mississippi. They include digital surrogates of documents, photographs, museum objects, oral history recordings, and public records related to the civil rights movement and other topics in the history of the state, region, and nation. Some of the resources represented in the project include The Papers of Ulysses S. Grant (Mississippi State University), Blues Photographs (University of Mississippi), and the De Grummond Children's Literature Collection (University of Southern Mississippi). The statewide collaboration has led to free access to these resources by scholars, teachers, students, and the general public. The planned workshop on best practices for sustaining digital collections would be open to persons from across the state. Other participating institutions include Jackson State University, Gulf Park College for Women, Hinds County Community College, Delta State University, and Columbus-Lowndes Public Library.

The University of Southern Mississippi Libraries is seeking support to address digital preservation needs of the Mississippi Digital Library, which is the cooperative digital library program for the state. Funding will be used to hire two consultants to conduct a preservation needs assessment for the Mississippi Digital Library. The consultants will assess current policies, practices, and conditions, prepare a report summarizing their findings, suggest needed training, and help draft a long-range plan for the care and preservation of these digital collections. Funding will also be used to provide a one-day workshop on evaluating digital preservation risks, standards for digital preservation, and best practices for sustaining digital collections. The ultimate goal of this project is to gain the knowledge needed for the statewide digital library program to adequately address digital preservation concerns.