MEC Library Archives: Home

The word "archives" may mean a lot of different things. The Dictionary of Archives Terminology of the Society of American Archivists defines it as follows:

1. records created or received by a person, family, or organization and preserved because of their continuing value
2. inactive records of continuing value
3. the organically created records of continuing value, particularly when the organization itself maintains the records
4. non-record material selected, preserved, managed, presented, and used in the same manner as archives

The Medgar Evers College Archives contain records that chronicle the history and academic achievements of the College as well as materials of historical value generated by individuals and organizations.

Archives are repositories that provide access to primary source materials.

Primary sources are records that provide first-hand (i.e. coming from the original source or personal experience) information. Examples of primary sources are: letters, diaries, memoirs, speeches, interviews, photographs, oral histories, autobiographies, published research findings, case studies, conference papers, patents, surveys, and raw data.

If you are interested in our collections, please contact: 

Yelena Novitskaya, Archives & Special Collections Librarian

ynovitskaya@mec.cuny.edu

archival record (n.)

1. materials created or received by a person, family, or organization, public or private, in the conduct of their affairs that are preserved because of the enduring value contained in the information they contain or as evidence of the functions and responsibilities of their creator

arrangement (n.)

1. the process of organizing materials with respect to their provenance and original order, to protect their context and to achieve physical or intellectual control over the materials
2. the organization and sequence of items within a collection

collection (n.)

1. a set of archival or (more commonly) manuscript materials
2. materials assembled by a person, organization, or repository from a variety of sources; an artificial collection

finding aid (n.)

1. a description that typically consists of contextual and structural information about an archival resource

original order (n.)

1. the organization and sequence of records established by the creator of the records

provenance (n.)

1. information regarding the origins, custody, and ownership of an item or collection

series (n.)

1. a group of similar records that are arranged according to a filing system and that are related as the result of being created, received, or used in the same activity; a file group; a record series
2. a group of items, each with its own title, also bearing a collective title for the group as a whole 

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   Source: Society of American Archivists. Dictionary of Archives Terminology