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On-Site Reviews Give Helpful Suggestions Repositories in the NNY Library Network’s seven-county region are continuing to take advantage of having an on-site review conducted at their facilities. The Advisory and Technical Assistance site reviews are funded through the NYS Archives and are provided by the Network at no cost to repositories. A site review was conducted at the Fort Covington Reading Center and Museum on March 4, 2003. The consultant suggested that with regard to policy documents, a gift form should be written in 2003, and the extent of gifts should be defined; for care and handling, historical records should be housed in a clean, dry and secure space; for arrangement and description, the principles of provenance and order should be observed; and regarding access and archival security, the historical records should be accessible during set hours and only when trained volunteers are present. A site review was conducted at the Sherman Free Library in Port Henry on Feb. 12, 2003. It was recommended by the consultant that a mission statement for the historical records programs be written and adopted by the library board in 2003; regarding care and handling, historical records should be housed in archival quality containers appropriate to the format; regarding access and archival security, a call slip system should be initiated to provide a positive use statistic for the historical records collection and as a deterrent to theft/mutilation; and regarding outreach, participation in Archives Week was highly encouraged. A site review was conducted at The Town of Moira Historical Association on Sept. 10, 2002. The consultant recommended that for continuing education, the participation in regional Roundtables by the board and volunteers was highly encouraged; regarding care and handling, professionals should be consulted for preservation needs beyond the standard in-house procedures; regarding archival security, a screen door should be installed to prevent damage to artifacts and historical records; and regarding arrangement and description, the implementation of PastPerfect be considered by total collection management. A site review was conducted at the Westville Historical Organization in Constable on Jan. 11, 2003. With regard to arrangement and description, the consultant suggested as time and volunteer time permits, there should be an expansion of interim guides to provide additional access to records; regarding access and archival security, volunteers should support collection access by direct patron service, and by photocopying and collection maintenance; regarding outreach, community groups should be addressed as a membership activity and encourage volunteers along with donations of artifacts and historical records; and regarding volunteer programs, one or two people should set up and coordinate the volunteer program. An on-site visit was conducted at the Oxbow Historical Association on Oct. 29, 2002. The consultant suggested that regarding basic elements, a collection policy is needed and should be consistent with the mission statement; regarding facilities and storage, there should be a goal to try and maintain a stable temperature and humidity year round; and regarding arrangement and description, the records should be kept together on the basis of who created them and in the arrangement in which they were originally kept when in active use. During all site visits, comments made by the consultants are only recommendations; they are all optional suggestions. Remember, no repository is too small or too large to be considered for an on-site review, and follow-up visits are also conducted. To be considered for a review, print and fill out the form which may be found at www.nnyln.org/dhpapplication.html and send it back to the NNYLN.