By Sarah Wilkinson
DHPSNY, in collaboration with the New York Council of Nonprofits (NYCON), facilitates Strategic Planning Assistance to help cultural organizations across New York State build clarity and capacity. In this guest article, Sarah Wilkinson — who brings over 20 years of experience guiding mission-driven organizations through strategic planning, communications, and program development — shares a behind-the-scenes look of what the process entails and why it matters.
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What did your playlists look like in 2025? If you’re a Spotify (or Apple Music, or YouTube Music) listener, you’ve probably already scrolled through this year’s “Wrapped”-style recap of your most-played tracks. Last year, we joined the fun with 2024 DHPS Tips Wrapped, rounding up the preservation posts that got the most reads.
This year, we’re staying in our lane and going all-in on one of our favorite preservation tools: the archival box. Instead of songs on a playlist, think of…
DHPSNY is excited to partner with the Internet Archive’s Community Webs program to support New York State libraries, historical societies, museums, and community-based heritage organizations in building capacity for web archiving and digital preservation.
This free program runs February through June 2026 and includes training, mentorship, and guided project work, culminating in a July showcase. Participants will gain access to the Internet Archive’s tools and platforms, including Archive-It for web archiving and…
In DHPSNY's final webinar of the year, University at Buffalo's Hope Dunbar & Saguna Shankar shared their methodical approach to reviewing and redacting sensitive 1970s testimonials, detailing how they navigated the intersecting challenges of legal requirements, privacy concerns, and ethical stewardship. This session offered valuable insights for archival professionals managing collections that contain sensitive personal information while trying to maximize their research value and historical significance.
In this recent DHPSNY webinar, Senior Curator Amanda Massie and Deaccession Curator Natalie DeQuarto shared insights from New York State’s Bureau of Historic Sites, which manages historic collections from more than 34 sites, including some that began collecting 175 years ago. Together, they discussed the challenges of caring for a growing collection of roughly one million objects and the strategies used to align with current field standards. The webinar highlighted the Bureau’s first Deaccession Curator role, exploring methods for responsibly removing items, considerations for preservation…
Sometimes the archives field feels like it was designed to cause maximum alphabetical amusement. There are so many A-words, you almost need an archaeologist (or an archivist) to dig you out. So, let's take on the challenge with a cheeky wink, wandering through the wonderful world of archival A-words: access copy, accessible, accession, acquisition, appraisal, archive, archival, arrangement, authenticity, and authority.
Access/Accessible
In archival practice, access refers to the ability to locate, retrieve,…
Each year, DHPSNY Dialogues bring cultural heritage professionals together to engage in meaningful discussions about the challenges and opportunities shaping our field. In 2025, our series focuses on Collections for the Future of New York, asking: What can we, as practitioners — both paid and volunteer — do to build and steward collections for the communities of tomorrow?
At our September 15 program, Welcoming and Inclusive Archive Practices:…
In a recent DHPSNY webinar, Julia Fell from Bethel Woods gave us an inside look at the Museum’s evolving internship program. Since 2021, both remote, in-semester internships and in-person summer internships have focused on collecting and processing oral histories related to the 1969 Woodstock Music & Art Fair, the Museum’s primary interpretive topic. Julia shared how the program has been managed, highlight key successes, and reflect on lessons learned along the way.
This past July, we concluded DHPSNY's Summer 2025 Planning & Assessment Services application period and are excited to announce that 12 collecting institutions have been selected by our independent field reviewers to receive free DHPSNY services. We commend these institutions for their commitment to strengthening their preservation programs and practices, and it’s an honor to collaborate with them as they advance their missions.
Explore the list of recipients below; learn more in the…
Each September, National Preparedness Month reminds us of the importance of being proactive about emergencies, not just in our homes, but also in our institutions. For libraries, archives, museums, and historical societies, preparation is more than fire drills or flood kits. It’s about preserving our collections, the very core of our missions, before a crisis occurs.
This year, we invite you to turn that intention into action by enrolling in our upcoming online course, Planning for Preservation: Creating a Long-Range Preservation Plan…