METRO is pleased to announce the 2019 METRO Digitization Grant Program awards. All of the funded projects will provide free online access to unique/rare materials in the collections of METRO member institutions. METRO members selected to receive the grants, totaling approximately $25,000, include Brooklyn Historical Society, The Grolier Club, and New York Public Radio.
Brooklyn Historical Society - Packer Collegiate Institute Records
The Packer Collegiate Institute was established as the Brooklyn Female Academy on Joralemon Street in the Brooklyn Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn in 1845. In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, Packer rose to national preeminence in female education. In 1972, the Institute shifted to a co-educational model. This extensive collection sheds light on the history of education in Brooklyn and the United States. A significant portion of audiovisual material in the collection is from the 1995-1996 school production, “Day in the Life.” The “Day in the Life” series highlights interview questions and discussions asked of seventeen students and staff at Packer Institute to illustrate the impact the school had on their lives. Interviewees are asked about academics, extracurricular activities, the building and grounds, interactions with students and faculty, and every day occurrences at Packer. Additional audiovisual material in the collection spans the period 1931-1972, and includes footage of Packer events, educational films, and a student film. The material offers new insights on students’ educational experiences and on childhood in Brooklyn.
The Grolier Club - William Stannard’s ‘The Art Exemplar”
William Stannard’s The Art Exemplar (London, 1859?) is a mid-nineteenth-century encyclopedia of illustration processes. In addition to describing traditional processes such as etching and wood engraving, The Art Exemplar covers techniques that were new and experimental at the time. Some of these processes, such as Anaglyptography—a mechanical process of converting a three-dimensional design to an engraved plate—were in use for only a short time and are otherwise difficult to research. The techniques are thoroughly described, and nearly all are illustrated with an original print from Stannard’s own collection. The Grolier Club has one of only 11 known copies of this book in existence.
New York Public Radio - On The Media 1998-2000
Since 1993, WNYC’s seminal program On the Media investigates “how the media shapes our world view.” The WNYC Archives’ collection of early On the Media broadcasts is significant because it is both a profile and a chronicle of the media just before and during the infancy of the internet age. It is also a critical compendium of discussions on many of the issues involving the media, journalism, and reporters that continue to resurface regardless of era. The show’s lively and provocative exchanges provide listeners with a captivating look at the inner workings of news operations while exploring the impact of decisions by editors, producers, and media executives on elections, public policy, and the shaping of public opinion and attitudes. Funding from a previous METRO grant and from the National Recording Preservation Foundation has allowed the NYPR Archives team to digitize the first episodes from 1993 through May 1997. The current METRO grant will provide funding to digitize the remaining early OTM collection covering episodes from 1998-2000.
ABOUT METRO DIGITIZATION FUNDING
Since 2005, METRO’s Digitization Grant program has awarded over $925,000 to help fund 95 projects at 55 METRO member institutions. The program supports the implementation of digitization projects among METRO member libraries and archives. METRO’s digitization program is supported by funds from the New York State Regional Bibliographic Database Program.