Processing plan overview

When you’ve completed the collection survey, write a processing plan or proposal. Submits the processing plan to your supervisor for feedback and discussion. No refoldering or rearrangement of the collection should take place until after this meeting. The proposal should include as much descriptive detail of the collection as possible; much of this can/should be reused (and added to, if necessary) for the front matter of the finding aid. Gathering more information upfront and thinking critically about the collection from the outset should result in less structural change throughout processing. In addition, a greater intellectual engagement from the archivist at the beginning of a processing project may make it easier for more than one person (including students) to work on a collection.

Generally, the Processing Proposal includes:

1. A general OVERVIEW, which consists of:

   • a short biographical or historical note, including information relevant to any arrangement decisions;

   • a description of the collection's size, the various accessions, and any weeding opportunities;

   • a list of the kinds and quantity of materials found in the collection (including electronic records);

   • mention of significant processing or other problems;

   • provenance information and description of any existing order;

   • potential issues with restrictions or closures based on donor wishes or material types

   • apparent research strengths of the collection and expected documentation that is lacking.

   • any questions that resulted from your equity pause.

2. ARRANGEMENT: an outline of likely series and sub-series, pointing out merits and limitations of various options, as appropriate. Include general sizes (# of cartons, boxes) of each series, as well as kinds of materials within each.

3. A recommended PROCESSING LEVEL or levels, with an explanation of its/their appropriateness to the particular collection, given its access and preservation requirements.

4. A reasonably detailed SUMMARY of the WORK that will be required to complete the processing and arrangement of the papers, including explanation of any unusually time-consuming tasks and a presentation of options for using assistance effectively. The proposal should specify which tasks, if any, can be assigned to processing assistants and students.

5. DURATION: an estimate of the amount of time required to complete all work on the collection. In some cases, a preliminary processing calendar may also be required, including benchmarks for the completion of portions of the collection.

6. SUPPLIES: a list of any special or unusually voluminous archival supply needs.

7. PRESERVATION: an overview of preservation concerns, with specific mention of significant (i.e., costly/time consuming) conservation needs.

8. STORAGE: a statement outlining significant special storage needs/problems (e.g., framed artwork).

9. PRINTED MATERIAL (e.g. books, serials, newspapers, pamphlets, and ephemeral imprints): a statement describing how much is in the collection, and how much of it needs to be appraised by relevant curator.  

In some cases, archivists may need to physically re-arrange material in order to more accurately describe its content. If you feel this would help you in writing the processing plan, discuss it with Kelcy Shepherd or Mark Vassar before doing so.

See Processing Plan Template for specific questions to answer in your plan.