UFL Smathers Library and Partners Awarded IMLS Grant

NISO Member News

Gainesville, FL | August 10, 2022

The George A. Smathers Libraries at the University of Florida, in collaboration with the University of Miami (UM) Libraries, the Farmworker Association of Florida, and the Rural Women’s Health Project, will design, plan, and document partnerships between academic libraries and community-based organizations that identify collaborative practices and strategies to document the experiences of farmworker communities. The Institute of Museum and Library Services fund this $136,126 National Leadership Grant.

The project team will hold community events to acquire farmworker oral histories, conduct outreach to potential partners for future participation, and host a final virtual symposium to share project findings and plan next steps. The team will produce a documented plan for sustainable archival workflows that mitigate the risk for record creators and users, and that provide democratic, safe, and respectful ways of access, which will serve as a national prototype for the planning of partnerships between other academic libraries and community-based organizations. Subrecipient, UM Libraries, will coordinate planning activities focused on south Florida in collaboration with the project team, local community organization partners, and national consultants.