Coordinating Committees

Digital Initiatives Coordinating Committee

Progress Report to CUWL, April 21, 2008

DICC Members -  Joshua Ranger, Chair UW-Oshkosh; Paul Beck UW-La Crosse; Michael Doylen UW-Milwaukee;  Michael Edmonds Wisconsin Historical Society;  Peter Gorman UW-Madison; Carol Hagness UW-Stout; Mark Rozmarynowski UW-Baraboo; Vicki Tobias UW-Madison; Tony Gulig UW-Whitewater, Faculty; Patrick Wilkinson CUWL; Lisa Jewell-UW System

The DICC as a whole was scheduled to meet April 10th.  The meeting was cancelled due to an illness of the chair’s son.  The group met via teleconference that same day, however, to discuss two issues: access to sensitive materials in digital collections and to consider three new UWDC proposals. 

SENSITIVE MATERIALS

The issue of “sensitive materials” came up during the digitization work of the records of the Gay People’s Union which published a news, entertainment, and literary magazine for approximately 15 years in the 1970s and 1980s.  In a few instances, UWDCC staff members found some material in these magazine that may be inappropriate for young researchers: photographs with full frontal nudity (no intercourse or sex acts); sexually graphic drawings; and erotic fiction and poetry.

The UWDCC staff and the DICC continue to believe strongly in the important social and historical value of the Gay People’s Union collection. We do, however, understand our responsibility to our world-wide, multi-age audience and the University System’s reputation. A proposed project of Klu Klux Klan materials brought up other “sensitivity” questions as well.

The DICC discussed the situation and agreed that committee members Doylen, Tobias and Gorman would investigate technical means to “guard”--not prevent--access to the magazine portion of the collection while still permitting discovery.  Most specifically, this solution would offer a description on the home page of the digital collection that informs researchers about the content of the collection, one that takes care not to prejudge the material or the sensibilities of our online users. We also may employ some sort of technical means of guarding access.  This MAY include routing all online traffic through the "front door" of the collection so that researchers do not discover individual parts of it out of context. There may be other options as well. UWDCC staff and the DICC will report back to CUWL on how we plan to proceed on this front. 

At the same time, the group will formally draft a policy position on controversial material that is consistent with the mission of both the digital programs of UW System as well as that of the University itself.  The DICC will formally recommend these solutions to CUWL at a subsequent meeting. Until that time, reformatting of the Gay People’s Union material will continue.

ACTION ITEMS: PROGRESS REPORTS

Action Item 1 – Comprehensive digital plan.

The digital plan is currently being drafted by Ranger to be reviewed by the remainder of the working group.

Action Item 2 – Assessment

Tobias and working group member Melissa McLimans have been working with UW-Madison Assessment Librarian, Nola Walker to flush out objectives, outcomes, scope and methodology of the assessment program. A formal status report was not given due to the meeting change of the 10th. This will be given officially at a make-up meeting in May. 

Action Item 3 – MINDS@UW

The MINDS@UW working group met twice. Once in February and again on April 9th. Due to the cancellation of the meeting of the 10th a full report on their progress was not given but will be at a May “make-up” meeting. The group has been brainstorming ideas for important changes to the MINDS model as well as preparing a survey of library directors. 

Action Item 4 -  Migration of off-line media

It was determined that an effort to work on similar issues at UW-Madison is only in its nascent stage.  It was hoped that this action item could have “piggy-backed” on those efforts.  At this point the timeline for deliverables on this action item must be adjusted to the late fall. DICC respectfully asks CUWL for this extension.

PROJECT PROPOSALS

At its April 10th meeting the DICC approved the following projects:

1) Annual Report of the Commissioner of Indian Affairs – 60 bound volumes of this important government document series from WHS. Proposed by Dr. Anthony Gulig, UW-Whitewater. Estimated cost: $13,403.

2) Additions to the Great Lakes Maritime History Project - 450 glass plates and 170 period prints and stereo cards from UW-Superior. Estimated cost: $1,121.64

3) Ku Klux Klan in Northwestern Wisconsin, circa 1915-1950 - 10 pamphlets, newspaper clippings, ephemera, archival papers and records, two robes from UW-River Falls and UW-Eau Claire. Estimate cost: $1,298.50.

  • Special note on KKK collection.  We consider this a “special circumstances” case that requires CUWL attention. The KKK material is a very popular set of materials that is used consistently at Eau Claire and River Falls as well as elsewhere in the ARC system. Currently, for example, it’s being used at UW-Oshkosh for a course on the history of the early 20th century. It has incredible research potential for the study of KKK in the north, racial and religious prejudices in the early 20th century, etc. The materials, however, contain membership lists that contain names of people who may be still alive or have families still in the community. There is some concern that “publishing” these records on the web could embarrass certain individuals. The DICC’s perspective is that these records have been widely available for years and used by countless students from the region and no backlash or fallout has been recorded. Membership lists are handwritten and therefore will not be discoverable via OCR. Some typed documents might include names of Klan leadership, although they arguably are entitled to slightly less privacy. 
    Similarly to the Gay People’s Union material, we plan to employ some “about” text that deals with the sensitivity issue. However, we do not believe the technical solution to force entry through the home page will be needed. The policy the DICC will draft on sensitive material will deal with hate-group related material as well as sexual content. The DICC seeks general agreement from CUWL that this plan of action vis-à-vis the KKK collection is acceptable.


Respectfully submitted, April 21, 2008
Joshua P. Ranger
Chair, Digital Initiatives Coordinating Committee.