Don Lueders often refers to records management as a long-established and
noble profession.  The profession retains its core purposes but how RMs
work has seen a lot of change in the last twenty years.  I've posted here
in recent months about some of those changes and their impact on the
creators of records, records managers, archivists, historians, and others.
Now I'd like to hear from you.

I'm a bridge builder by nature, believe in outreach, and as noted in my
last message here, enjoyed my contact on the List in 2005 with Rick Barry,
among others. I recently blogged about a historian who tries to build
bridges in other areas of online engagement in a post I wrote about the
ethos of historians and archivists, including at the National Archives in
the context of its "Remembering Vietnam" exhibit.  https://
archivalexplorations.wordpress
.com/2018/01/28/the-years-teach-much-the-days-never-knew/

Those of you who work for employers who are open to pitches based on
preserving knowledge for history may find some of the quotes from the
people I write about at the link useful for positive incentivization. The
best historians go where the evidence takes them and strive to understand
their subjects, rather than weaponizing their words or using them out of
context or cherry picking evidence. Which brings me to my question for you.

I've been lucky to work in the field of history in the Federal government,
in addition to working on archives and RM assignments within the government
during my long career. Part of my bridge building to academic historians
involves explaining the theories and practice of RM and its part in their
research as what I sometimes call "the ultimate end users" of preserved
records.

One of the subjects of my blog post has written about the value of an "Oath
for Experts."  His purpose in trying to craft one was on expert testimony
and advice given by historians but also conveying core values.  Along the
broader lines that he describes in my blog post, what would you tell
academic historians about the essence of RM?

I'm thinking in terms of an elevator speech but a little beyond that.  The
sort of thing you'd tell someone if you met them at a reception outside a
RM event and wanted to represent the human face of RM in a way that goes
beyond a link online to professional training materials or to theory.
(I've found news stories largely useless in illuminating actual RM
practice, since those often try to explain records issues ("this happened")
without ever mentioning the records managers in those workplaces..)

A short take on the RM ethos, as you see yourself personifying it based on
your work experiences, navigation of challenges, accomplishments.  A
reflection, as in my post, about how "The Years Teach Much That the Days
Never Knew."  Since you work in so many different settings and work
cultures, something to add diversity and strong texture to the rich
elements I can use, in building bridges about RM as I talk to various
practitioners of the history profession.

Maarja
@ArchivesMaarja
Blog:  https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__archivalexplorations.wordpress.com_&d=DwIBaQ&c=pZJPUDQ3SB9JplYbifm4nt2lEVG5pWx2KikqINpWlZM&r=b5NZPQUb9_r2rQ3Zd74ATT3aSs9yKyRnJLOhqJvd7fE&m=g9cmZesa12-b30pgOWGvuVWOWFGpaCnfhcdFuIzXIPg&s=UXVyCsSEEX6AFXFjgVi26rfUqsSq9HkkuDmI3RXkT1A&e=
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