"As you know, effective July 1, 2013 the Georgia Archives transferred to the Board of Regents. The Governor and General Assembly approved a budget increase of $300,000 for FY 14 in the Archives budget. The funds have allowed the Archives to open to the public two additional days a week, Wednesday and Thursday, from 8:30 am to 5:00 pm. The new hours become effective July 31, 2013. The additional staff will also allow for increased conservation and processing activities of the Archives collections.

So far, the Archives has hired Allison Hudgins, who began working in Reference Services beginning August 2. Allison, who has an MLIS from Valdosta State and a BA from Mercer, comes to us from the Cobb County Library System. She also gained valuable experience as a student assistant at Mercer University Special Collections. A new Conservator is scheduled to start October 1. This position will not only perform conservation duties but will assist in the Original Document Reading Area when needed. The Georgia Archives is also currently in the process of reviewing applications for another Reference Archivist position.

In addition, Archives staff have already begun discussing partnership opportunities to engage USG students and faculty in its work. As part of the USG, the Archives will be able to tap the enormous range of faculty, staff, and student talent to assist with its mission. The Georgia Archives hopes to resume its internship programs this semester by having two interns at the Archives. These interns will learn and work with reference staff and with me.

Thanks to the staff of the University System of Georgia, the staff of the Office of Secretary of State, and the staff of the Archives, the transition from SOS has gone quite well. The transition was a massive undertaking and it is close to being finished. Although our website has transitioned to USG, some of its pages are down. We will work to get these pages back up but know that the whole site will be replaced in the coming months with a completely new website. Please forgive us for any inconvenience.

I want to thank everyone for their support. Without you, the Georgia Archives would not be doing as well as it is. The Council of State Archivists has awarded its Advocacy Award to the Friends of Georgia Archives at the joint SAA-CoSA meeting earlier this month. Although the award was given to FOGAH, know that all of you share in it.

I am excited about what the future holds and believe the Archives is heading in a good direction. I look forward to the coming years and to meeting and working with more of you. Thank you all for your strong support of the Archives through the years, especially over the last several months. I invite each of you to come to the Georgia Archives and see OUR TREASURES.


Christopher M. Davidson, J.D.
Director, Georgia Archives
Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia
5800 Jonesboro Road
Morrow, GA 30260
http://www.GeorgiaArchives.org "

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Thanks to Maria Rottler.