The document summarizes the Digital Archives Specialist (DAS) certificate program developed by the Society of American Archivists (SAA). It provides an overview of the program's curriculum, courses, requirements, and administration. The DAS program offers a structured curriculum and online training to help archivists and records managers develop skills in managing born-digital records and digital archives. It aims to provide a single educational vision and integrated learning approach across its course offerings.

1. Geof Huth
Central New York ARMA
Herkimer, New York | 29 April 2014
slideshare.net/geofhuth
geofhuth@gmail.com

2.  Digital Archives Specialist curriculum
 Certificate of the same name
 Anyone who has completed this successfully
 Not a certification program
◦ Archival certification is by ACA

3.  Non-degree program to help one develop
specialized knowledge in specific fields
 Document demonstrating the achievement of
that knowledge
 Not a formal professional certification
◦ Such as CRM or CA

4.  SAA provides archival training
◦ To its members and others
 Digital Archives was an SAA priority
 Electronic records training still needed
 DAS offers a coordinated training program
◦ Training and tools to manage digital records

5.  May 2010
◦ Digital Archives Continuing Education Task Force
formed
◦ Charge: create detailed digital archives curriculum
 Fall & Winter 2010-2012
◦ Met in person in Chicago and via conference calls
 February-May 2011
◦ Report submitted and reviewed
 May 2011
◦ SAA Council approved Certificate Program

6.  DACE Task Force
◦ Developed initial recommendations
◦ Set the general course for DAS
 DAS Continuing Education Subcommittee
◦ Part of SAA’s Education Committee
◦ Developing the details of DAS
◦ Overseeing its development and expansion

7.  Geoffrey Huth
(chair, from New York State Archives)
 Jackie Esposito
(Pennsylvania State University)
 Mahnaz Ghaznavi
(Loyola Marymount University)
 David Kay
(Little Airplane Productions)
 Helen Tibbo
(ex officio, University of NC, Chapel Hill)

8.  Focus on born-digital records
◦ Not digitized records
◦ Focus students on the natively digital
 Integrate e-records work into archives work
◦ Do not treated as a separate activity
◦ Demonstrate it as a vital element of archives

9.  A single educational vision
 Structured curriculum
◦ Tiers
◦ Metadata on each course
 Develop online system to review curriculum
 Integrate learning across course offerings
 Measure success of the program

10. 1. Understand nature of electronic records
2. Communicate requirements, roles, and
responsibilities
3. Formulate strategies for managing digital
archives

11. 1. Integrate new technologies within existing
archival functions
2. Continue archival work with new
technologies
3. Manage originals and access copies
4. Provide dependable services to customers

12.  Archivist Practitioner
◦ Hands-on, front-line archivist who manages or will
manage electronic records personally
 Archivist Manager
◦ Archivist who has oversight over the work of other
archivists and who may manage records directly
 The Archivist Administrator
◦ Archivist who oversees archivist managers and
ensures general capacity to manage digital archives

13.  IT professional
◦ In charge of various levels of IT in an organization
and responsible for providing IT support to an
archives
 Legal professional
◦ Responsible for providing legal advice and support
to an archives
 Librarian
◦ Responsible for publications and their use
(including digital publications) and may also deal
with digital archival records

14.  Museum professional
◦ Responsible for management and use of cultural
and scientific artifacts who may have responsibility
for digital archival records
 Records manager
◦ Responsible for the management of records of an
organization across their life cycle who also may
have responsibility for the management of an
organization’s archives

15.  1. Foundational Courses
◦ Essential skills
◦ Focus is on practitioners
◦ Information to implement in the next year
 2. Tactical and Strategic Courses
◦ Skills to make significant changes in organizations
◦ Focus on managers
◦ Information to implement in the next five years

16.  3. Tools and Services Courses
◦ Focus on tools and services for digital archives
◦ Focus on practitioners
◦ Information to implement immediately
 4. Transformational Courses
◦ Skills to transform institutions into digital archives
◦ Focus on administrators
◦ Information to implement over the next ten years

17.  Basic Electronic Records
 Basics of Managing Electronic Records
 Thinking Digital
 Standards for Digital Archives
 Beginner’s Guide to Metadata
 Appraisal of Electronic Records
 Digital Curation
 Arrangement and Description of E-Records I

18.  Electronic Records: The Next Step
 Accessioning and Ingest of Electronic Records
 Arrangement and Description of E-Records II
 Digital Repositories
 Preserving Digital Archives
 Copyright Issues for Digital Archives
 Developing Specifications and RFPs for
Recordkeeping Systems

19.  Digital Archives and Libraries
 Providing Access to Digital Archives
 Inreach and Outreach for Digital Archives
 Privacy and Confidentiality Issues in Digital
Archives

20.  Archival Content Management Systems
 Achieving Email Account Preservation with
XML
 Digital Forensics for Archivists
 Using and Understanding PDF/A as a
Preservation Format

21.  Information Architecture
 Managing E-Records in Archives and Special
Collections
 Digital Curation Planning and Sustainable
Futures

22.  Helpful knowledge about digital archives
 Ability to integrate archives and RIM
 Some courses incorporate RIM training
 Provides some detailed technical training
 Training in email and metadata management
 Training on legal issues
 Information on file formats and preservation

23.  4 Foundational Courses
 3 Tactical and Strategic Courses
 1 Tools and Services Courses
 1 Transformational Course

24.  Take an assessment quiz before registering
◦ To determine if you need the training
◦ If not, don’t take that training
◦ Take only the test

25.  Option 1: Course + Exam
◦ Take a ½-day, 1-day, or 2-day course
◦ Take and pass exam within a week
 Option 2: Exam
◦ Pay a small fee and test out
 Option 3: Webinar + Exam
◦ Take a 90-minute webinar
◦ Take and pass exam within a week
◦ Additional attendees need to purchase the exam

26.  Within 24 months
◦ Attend the nine required courses
◦ Pass each course with score of 85% or better
 Some may test out of Foundational courses
 Pass a comprehensive examination
◦ Within 5 months of 24-month period
 Renew certificate every five years

27.  Exam will test all core competencies
 Much longer that the post-course tests
 Requires broad knowledge from candidates
 Offered at various locations across US
 First offered in March 2013

28.  Fees vary
 Fees for members are cheaper
◦ $95 for ½-day
◦ $185 for 1-day
◦ $299 for 2-day
 Package discount
◦ 7 courses and exams at the regular rate
◦ And receive 2 free courses and exams
◦ For $1,265 total, saving $341

29.  Conference of Inter-Mountain Archivists (CIMA)
 Midwest Archives Conference (MAC)
 New England Archivists (NEA)
 Society of Southwest Archivists (SSA)
 Society of California Archivists (SCA)
 New York Archivists Roundtable (NYART)
 Society of Georgia Archivists (SGA)

30.  A consortium in Philadelphia
 Penn State
 Association of College and Research Libraries
◦ With one week of courses in Syracuse
 Any group can do this
◦ Contact Solveig De Sutter at SAA

31.  Multiple-choice questions
 Completed online
 Can navigate the exam and change answers

32.  Webinars
◦ 10 questions and 1 hour to complete
◦ One free quiz; others at $35/$55
 Half-day Courses
◦ 15 questions and 90 minutes to complete
 One-day Courses
◦ 20 questions and 2 hours to complete
 Two-day Courses
◦ 30 questions and 4 hours to complete
 Passing grade is 85%

33.  May retake the quiz within a week
◦ $35-member/$55 non-member retake fee
 If you fail a third time
◦ Must retake the course (at a reduced rate)
◦ Then must retake the quiz
 Quiz changes each time given
◦ Many more questions exist than need for one quiz

34.  961 attended DAS courses in last year
 600 individuals have taken exams
 55 individuals are at the six-course threshold
 89 individuals awarded the DAS Certificate

35.  Used test validation processes and principles
 Used a consulting psychometrician
 SAA DAS Subcommittee
◦ Took item writing analysis
◦ Developed job task analysis table of specifications
◦ Developed a key validation item analysis
◦ Developed standards for item writing
 Applicants tested on the entire curriculum
◦ Except for Tools and Services courses

36.  Has to be taken 29 months after first course
 100 questions
 Tests on three major domains
◦ Foundational: 55%
◦ Tactical and Strategic: 35%
◦ Transformational: 10%

37.  May retake examination within six months
 Before subsequent retakes
◦ Must take additional course work
◦ Based on area of weakness identified in exam

38.  August 2013 (New Orleans)
 November 2013 (Austin, Boston, Chicago,
Cheney, Minneapolis, Nashville, and Provo)
 February 2014 (Austin, Boston, Chicago,
Fairfax, Los Angeles, New Orleans, and NY)
 August 2014 (Washington, DC)
 November 2014 (cities with at least 5 takers)

39.  Certificate expires in five years
 Renewal requires taking 4 one-day courses
◦ 2 webinars equal a one-day course
◦ Up to 4 webinars allowed
 Only 1course counts toward renewal in first
year after receiving certificate
 Only 1 foundational course toward renewal
 Balance of courses, any combination of others

40.  Still unknown
◦ Anecdotal evidence says some archives want it
 Every job opportunity requires
◦ You prove the many values of yourself
◦ You demonstrate your knowledge
 A DAS certificate demonstrates learning
◦ Employers may prefer DAS certificate holders
◦ Nevertheless, DAS still provides valuable training

41.  Visit SAA’s Website
 http://www2.archivists.org/prof-education/das/
 Talk to SAA’s Education Director
◦ Solveig De Sutter
 Talk to DAS Course Instructors

42. slideshare.net/geofhuth