Blue Ridge Community College Archive and Special Collections Collection Policy
Mission Statement
The Blue Ridge Community College Libraries provide collections, resources, and services to support academic success, professional development, and life-long learning.
The mission of the Blue Ridge Community College Archive and Special Collections is to collect, preserve, and share records and materials, use our resources and technologies to promote community-driven archiving, and connect members of the community through scholarly and personal research.
Access and Use
It is the goal of the Blue Ridge Community College Archive to provide equitable access to as much of their collection as possible while respecting any personal privacy, confidentiality, and regulated information that may be present. Donors may place restrictions on duplication, reuse, or access that last for a specified and agreed upon time period.
General Scope
The purpose of the Blue Ridge Community College Archive and Special Collections is to preserve the rich and unique history of the college, its faculty and students, and the local culture of the surrounding counties of Henderson, Transylvania, and Buncombe and beyond. This scope was chosen with the launch of the Local History Project, and it remains the focus of the archive as well. We aim to serve as a repository that can address the research needs of students, faculty, researchers, and interested members of the community. In order to accomplish this goal, the scope of our collections focuses on materials and records produced by and about the faculty, staff, and students of Blue Ridge Community College as well as records and materials related to the history and cultural traditions of Western North Carolina.
Materials and Format
Blue Ridge Community College Archive will focus acquisition efforts on the following materials:
- Official college publications, communications, and printed materials
- Records identified as having long-term historical value
- Records designated for transferal to the archive by the NC Community College System Retention Schedule
- Records, publications, and materials of current students and alumni
- Records, publications, and materials of current and former faculty and staff
- Records, publications, and materials relating to the history of current and past programs and departments
- Records and publications of local businesses, culture centers, and community members that reflect the history and culture of the area
Our acquisitions focus has no limits on formats as our archive is open to collecting materials and records in a variety of print and digital formats including but not limited to:
- Paper-based records
- Born-digital records
- Audio-visual records
- Artifacts*
- Artworks
- Textiles
*Artifacts is a broad term and encompasses a large variety of man-made objects. Artifacts will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis for acquisition.
Acquisitions
The Blue Ridge Community College Archive and Special Collections acquires records and materials through several acquisition channels. For most acquisition transactions, a deed of gift form will need to be filled out and signed as physical proof of transferal of ownership of the materials and records. Questions about intellectual property rights, copyright, and collection access can be answered can be addressed prior to any donation or during a donation appointment. The archive will not accept collections that have to be permanently closed to researchers, but we are open to discussion about closure for reasonable time frames.
Acquisitions through Donation
Community members, students, and faculty are more than welcome to consider donating materials, records, or entire collections to the archive. The Blue Ridge Community College Archive’s special collections grew out of the Local History Project and is meant to reflect the history of the local community and serve its research needs. We rely on our community members and local organizations to help us build an authentic and inclusive collection that is representative of its people and culture.
Acquisitions through Transfer from College Departments
Records documenting the development and growth of the college are acquired through department transfer. These records and materials would reflect the professional, scholarly, and artistic works of students, faculty, and staff. For more information about the community college retention and disposition schedule, contact the Archive or click here.
Non-custodial Acquisitions
One of Blue Ridge Community College Archive and Special Collections’ goals is to engage the local community and build non-custodial partnerships with community members by promoting the preservation of their oral history and/or family history. A non-custodial agreement would typically consist of the collection creator or community maintaining possession of the original or physical materials while the archive keeps a digitized copy with the permission of the creator or community.
For more information on our digitization services and commitment to empowering community-driven archiving practices, see our Archive Studio Policy.
Relationship with other Repositories and Related Collections
Dozens of passionate communities and organizations in Western North Carolina have been working for years on preserving local history. The Blue Ridge Community College Archive and Special Collections strives to collect materials with an awareness of other local repositories and their collection scopes. Our aim is to avoid dividing a collection between institutions. Therefore, we may recommend donating materials to a different repository, or we may transfer ownership of a donation in the event that the materials in question are beyond the scope of our archive or would fit better elsewhere.
Collecting Areas
The Blue Ridge Community College Archive and Special Collections has several collecting areas of interest as we seek to develop our archive.
Faculty and Student Materials
The Archive collects records and materials that reflect the intellectual and cultural history and growth of Blue Ridge Community College from 1969 to present day. Such records and materials include but are not limited to:
- Publications
- Presentations
- Yearbooks
- Course Catalogs
- Awards
- Artworks
- Photographs
- Campus Projects
- Oral Histories
Local History and Culture Materials
The Archive’s special collections is meant to hold historical materials that help preserve the unique stories of the people, places, and events of the surrounding counties and help the local community maintain its connection to its past. These records and materials can cover both historical and current people, places, and events. Such records and materials include but are not limited to:
- Maps
- Scrapbooks
- Photographs
- Letters
- Newspapers
- Advertisements
Oral History Program
Developing oral history collections was at the heart of the Local History Project and remains a foundational element of the Archive. We hope to continuously grow these collections to preserve as many stories and shared histories as possible. Our oral history projects will cover both local history and the College’s history.
Strengths and Priorities
The current strengths of the Blue Ridge Community College Archive and Special Collections are our collections that cover the history of the College. We have several collections, encompassing yearbooks, catalogs, photographs, newspapers, and student publications, dating back to the college’s founding. Our collection priorities are expanding our College record collections and increasing the records and materials we have that represent our community beyond the college campus, especially our oral history collection.
Collection Limitations
Below is a list of topics and resources we do not collect. Typically, there will be one of three reasons why we do not accept records or materials into our Archive: materials are more applicable to a different repository, records have no long-term historical value, or materials are a duplication of current collection items. There may be instances where we cannot accept an electronic record or artifact due to preservation concerns.
- Other academic institution’s records or materials
- Student files with identifiable information: transcripts, grades, registration records, diplomas, etc
- Raw research data
- Personnel files from employers
- More than three duplicate copies of the same record
- State records
- Human or animal remains
- Materials from minors without written consent by a parent or legal guardian
- Large or fragile items that are better suited to a museum (i.e. historical clothing, banners, furniture, household items, etc)
- Damaged items or items with visible mold/exposure to pests (i.e. rodents, bedbugs, etc)
- Records or materials with permanent access restrictions or unreasonable access restrictions
Language
There are no language restrictions on the archive’s acquisition scope, but the majority of our records and materials are in English.
Dates of Coverage
There are no date restrictions on the archive’s collecting scope, but the majority of our records and materials are from 1969 to the present day.
Geographical Coverage
The primary geographic focus of the Archive’s scope is on Henderson County, Transylvania County, and Buncombe County. Records and materials from outside those areas but that are connected to Western North Carolina and Appalachian history will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.
Local History Project Access Requirements
Materials donated specifically to the Local History Project are required to be made open and immediately accessible to researchers and community members as outlined in the Bright Ideas Grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), which funds the project. This applies to materials donated to the archive from December 2022 until December 2023.
Deaccessioning
Deaccessioning is a necessary and important process to maintain a healthy and representative archival collection. Deaccessioned items may be returned to the donor (based on donor agreement at time of donation), transferred to another repository, or discarded. Staff consider the following when determining if a record or resource is suitable for deaccessioning.
- Is the record or material still part of the collection’s scope and focus?
- Has the record or material deteriorated to the point that it is beyond preservation, duplication, or digitization? Is it no longer accessible or usable due to its current state?
- Has the record or materials been exposed to damaging environmental conditions, such as mold, water, fire, or pests?