Professional Organizations and Coalitions

Professional Organizations and Coalitions

The following are links to archival, library, museum, historic preservation, and educational associations’ resource webpages on advocacy.

• American Alliance of Museums (AAM) Advocacy
• American Association of School Librarians (AASL) Advocacy Resources
• American Association for State and Local History (AASLH) Advocacy
• American Library Association (ALA) Office for Library Advocacy
• Association for Career & Technical Education (ACTE) Policy and Advocacy
• Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) sponsors reports, articles, presentations, and other authoritative publications that can be culled for information useful to making the case for archives
• Council of State Archivists (CoSA) Resources
• Credit Union Central of Canada (CUCC) Government Relations & Advocacy
• Kennedy Center Alliance for Arts Education Network (KCAAEN) Arts Education Advocacy Toolkit
• National Art Education Association (NAEA) Advocacy
• National Assembly of State Arts Agencies (NASAA) Advocacy
• National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS) Advocacy and Policy
• National Humanities Alliance (NHA) Resources for Advocates
• Preservation Action is a national grassroots lobby for historic preservation
• Regional Archival Associations Consortium (RAAC)
  • Advocacy Subcommittee
  • Directory of Archival Organizations in the United States and Canada

Government Agencies

Information about how to advocate for appropriate funding of granting agencies and about resources offered by government agencies regarding advocacy:

• IMLS Grants to States includes LSTA Grants to States–profiles for each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico and program goals for 2008-2012
• IMLS National Initiatives and Partnerships planning grants are designed to foster networks among organizations in a state, commonwealth, or territory to provide safe conditions for its collections, develop emergency plans, assign responsibility for collections care, and marshal public and private support for collections care
• National Endowment for the Humanities grants information
• National Historic Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC) Project List by State
• National Park Service Fund a Preservation Project—projects include a wide range of activities from bricks-and-mortar rehabilitation to neighborhood surveys and documentation efforts.

Policy and Issues Organizations

The following are links to public policy advocacy and watchdog organizations:

• Center for Responsive Politics: At CRP’s OpenSecrets.org Action Center, archival advocates can identify the ways in which money operates in U.S. politics and its effects on government policies, including those concerning library and archives resources.
• Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW): CREW’s resource page provides a gateway to the mission and activities of this important watchdog agency.
• The National Coalition for History: A consortium of over 50 organizations that advocates on federal, state and local legislative and regulatory issues. The coalition is made up of a diverse number of groups representing historians, archivists, researchers, teachers, students, documentary editors, preservationists, political scientists, museum professionals and other stakeholders.
• EveryLibrary: A political action committee dedicated to building voter support for libraries.