Archival Association Leadership Listserv (AALL) Established to Facilitate Communication Among U.S. Archival Organizations

Archival association leaders in the United States now have a new way to communicate with one another via a recently established listserv sponsored by the Council of State Historical Records Coordinators (COSHRC) and the Society of American Archivists (SAA). Launched in February 2003, the Archival Association Leadership List (AALL) will allow for quick distribution of announcements about new programs or publications, alerts about significant legislation, sharing of advice and best practices about association management, and other issues that face the leaders of these organizations everyday.

"There has been a growing interest in providing ways to facilitate information exchange among the 65 archival associations now serving the archival community nationwide," notes Timothy Slavin, COSHRC president, who goes on to say, "We hope it will also encourage efforts toward further cooperation and collaboration among the associations."

The invitation to participate is in the process of being sent to the presidents (or principal contacts) of each of the archival professional associations. In addition to the president (or principal contact), four other individuals from each organization (for a total of 5) who serve in leadership positions are invited to join. These might include officers (president, vice president, secretary, treasurer, etc.), governing board members, chairs of key committees (education, publications, program, advocacy, public relations), newsletter and journal editors, webmasters, and paid staff. In this way, multiple ties among the organizations are encouraged while keeping the total size of the listserv subscriber base within manageable proportions.

According to Peter Hirtle, SAA president, "We appreciate the opportunity to host this list and are looking forward to providing a venue for exchange among archival leaders in the United States."

If you are the president or principal contact for a U.S. based archival association and have not yet received your invitation to participate, please contact Jenifer Burlis-Freilich, jbfreilich@coshrc.org, COSHRC assistant program director. For more information about the listserv, please contact Jenifer Burlis-Freilich, COSHRC, at jbfreilich@coshrc.org or Debbie Nolan, SAA, at dnolan@archivists.org.