Author Laura Uglean Jackson has successfully published the book she set out to: a compilation of real-life case studies that provide models for others to reference as they address “questions, challenges, and issues encountered during reappraisal and deaccessioning activities”

Archival Issues

Jackson (Archives and Special Collections Librarian, Univ. of Northern Colorado) has spent much of her career advocating for and developing deaccessioning and reappraisal strategies for archives and special collections. In this volume, she brings together a number of useful case studies that demonstrate and illustrate various scenarios employing deaccessioning and reappraisal techniques and decision-making processes. Taken together these studies provide the first full-length treatment of the often-contentious practice of removing records of enduring value and other collections materials from archives and special collections—materials often thought by donors to have found a permanent home. An important complement to and expansion of Guidelines for Reappraisal and Deaccessioning published online by the Society of American Archivists, this volume highlights many issues that lead to the need for deaccessioning and reappraisal, including space management and overcollecting due to poor or nonexistent collecting policies, and it also discusses the difference between deaccessioning and weeding. Jackson includes helpful plans, worksheets, and guidelines for creating and implementing reappraisal and deaccessioning policies, along with tips for helping prevent the need for such activities in the future.



Summing Up: Recommended. Graduate students, researchers, faculty, professionals.

Choice Reviews

[T]his book is likely to become a required text in many introductory archival theory and appraisal classes. It provides a succinct, historical summation of the debates that have surrounded reappraisal and deaccessioning while also offering examples and templates that have utility across a wide spectrum of collecting repositories, and ultimately shows how the Guidelines can become practice.

The American Archivist

This book should reassure doubters that reappraisal and deaccessioning can be successful and even delightful when it results in better support for collections and access for patrons. The chapters provide an instructive, sometimes entertaining, picture of what happens when an institution commits to separating from some of its holdings.

D. Claudia Thompson, Arrangement & Description Manager, American Heritage Center, University of Wyoming

Reappraisal and deaccessioning are essential functions of archival practice as we stride to develop sustainable and relevant collections in service to society. By bringing together professionally diverse perspectives that reflect on the value and challenges associated with reappraisal and deaccessioning, this book is a valuable resource for anyone looking to learn more about these foundational practices.

Matthew R. Francis, Archivist, Ohio Northern University

Deaccessioning has become an essential management tool with the power to move institutions towards achieving sustainability. These case studies demonstrate that SAA deaccessioning guidelines work in the hands of archivists who are not only willing to question backlogs and legacy practices but also brave enough to create a path forward.

Linda Whitaker, Former Director of Library and Archives, Arizona Historical Society