[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]

Re: Access and Allies



Depending on your state's public records laws, while public records of a
state university might be open, privately donated papers might indeed be
eligible for donor-imposed restrictions.  If the collection is sufficiently
important that a restriction *of limited duration* is acceptable to you,
better to simply require the donor's permission for each use rather than
expecting the archives to determine whether someone fits into the "class" of
authorized researchers.  Interpreting someone else's standards can be -- uh
-- hairy? -- and you're liable to antagonize the donor if you draw the line
somewhere other than the donor intended.  If the donor wants only certain
people to access the papers, put the burden on the donor to determine who
those people are.  If the donor wants the restriction applied for an
unreasonable length of time, maybe it's too soon for them to be in the
archives at all.

Beth "Opinions-R-Us" Golding
Florida State Archives
egolding@mail.dos.state.fl.us

A posting from the Archives & Archivists LISTSERV List!

To subscribe or unsubscribe, send e-mail to listserv@listserv.muohio.edu
      In body of message:  SUB ARCHIVES firstname lastname
                    *or*:  UNSUB ARCHIVES
To post a message, send e-mail to archives@listserv.muohio.edu

Or to do *anything* (and enjoy doing it!), use the web interface at
     http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/archives.html

Problems?  Send e-mail to Robert F Schmidt <rschmidt@lib.muohio.edu>