Topics in Preservation Science
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A Public Trust at Risk: Findings of the Heritage Health Index
ABOUT THE LECTURE:
The Heritage Health Index, published in 2005, was the first survey to assess the condition of U.S. collections held by institutions, large and small, from internationally renowned art museums and research libraries to local historical societies and archives. Heritage Preservation, the country’s leading conservation advocate, conducted the study in partnership with the Institute of Museum and Library Services. The survey was developed with the input of 35 national associations and federal agencies, including the staff of the Library of Congress. To date, 25,000 copies of A Public Trust at Risk: The Heritage Health Index Report on the State of America’s Collections have been distributed, and the data has received national and international press attention. This talk will outline the major findings and data pertaining to library materials to help inform the Library of Congress’s internal studies of the condition and preservation needs of its collections.
For more information: http://www.heritagehealthindex.org
ABOUT THE SPEAKER:
Kristen Overbeck Laise is the Vice President for Collections Care Programs
at Heritage Preservation, a national, non-profit organization that advocates
for collections. She directed the Heritage Health Index, the first comprehensive
survey of the condition and preservation needs of U.S. collections. The
survey, which released its results in December 2005, was coordinated
by Heritage Preservation in partnership with the Institute of Museum
and Library Services (IMLS) with funding from the Getty Foundation and
other private foundations. Ms. Laise is currently directing another national
initiative, Rescue Public Murals. Previously, she coordinated the Conservation
Assessment Program, a technical assistance program for small museums
administered by Heritage Preservation in cooperation with IMLS. She holds
a BA in History from Earlham College and a MA in Art History from the
University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she worked with the History of
Cartography Project.