Donating to the University Archives
Collection Overview
The University Archives contains the official records of Minnesota State University, Mankato. University departments and offices create these records while conducting normal University business. These records include but are not limited to departmental meeting minutes, committee reports, and historical information. Information in the Archives ranges in date from the forming of the Mankato State Normal School in 1868 to the present.
Priorities
- Minnesota State Mankato Departmental Records
- Meeting Minutes
- Reports
- Budget Overviews
- Program and Curriculum proposals
- Minnesota State Mankato Organizational Records
- Student organization meeting minutes
- Student organization budgets
- Program reviews
- Athletic programs
- Photographs
Who donates to this collection?
Materials for this collection only come from university departments and offices. Information ranges in date from the forming of the Mankato Normal School in 1868 to the present. Materials documenting University life, activities, and individuals not generally represented in the official records of the University will be considered for accession to the Southern Minnesota Historical Center collection or the Hall of Champions display. Please check these pages for information regarding donations to these two collections. These records include but are not limited to collections about Alumni, faculty/staff, and student organizations.
What format of materials can be donated to the University Archives?
The nature of an Archives is to collect primarily print based material but as technology changes so does the Archives. We currently accept: papers, books (ledgers, diaries, scrapbooks), audio and video cassette, CDs, DVDs, photographs, blueprints, maps, artifacts (smaller items only), and electronic records (in limited quantities). If you have a format not listed that you would like to donate, please contact the Archives and Special Collections Librarian.
Accepting donated materials to the University Archives
Only the Archives and Special Collections Librarian can formally accept collections. Please contact the Archivist before sending any material to the Archives. All donors will be asked to sign a Donor Agreement addressing title and rights ownership.
Limitations
While there are many worthy historical collections, the Archives cannot accept all donated material. The Archives reserves the right to refuse a collection that exceeds its financial and materials resources to care for it, or that has too high a maintenance cost in proportion to the probable research benefits. If the collection is not within the collecting scope of the Archives, the Archivist will make every effort to help the donor find a more appropriate repository. If the collecting focus of the Archives changes, the Archivist has the option of removing collections that no longer reflect the nature of the Archives.
