El Cerrito Historical Society Collection Policy
PURPOSE
The mission of the El Cerrito Historical Society (“the Society”) is to preserve the heritage of El Cerrito and the surrounding area for the benefit of present and future generations. To fulfill this mission the Society promotes the procurement, preservation, study, display and interpretation of local landforms, people, documents and physical artifacts important to the history of the area.
The Dorothy and Sundar Shadi History Room (“the Shadi Room”) is the archive of the El Cerrito Historical Society. The Shadi Room operates under the direction of the Curator. The Curator reports to the Society’s Board of Directors (“the Society’s Board”.). The objective of the Shadi Room is to collect, organize, catalog, and conserve photographs, interviews, records, drawings, books, newspapers, magazines and journals, reports, maps, ephemera, physical artifacts, and other relevant materials (“the Materials” or “these Materials”) that document the history, growth, and development of El Cerrito and the surrounding area.
CONSTITUENTS
The Society actively collects, identifies, preserves and makes the Materials available to a variety of institutions and individuals. These include the Society itself as it does it work; those performing research and publication advancing the general knowledge of El Cerrito and the surrounding area; the City of El Cerrito and the Society’s institutional partners; active Society members; and the public at large.
ACQUISITIONS POLICY
The Society actively collects and preserves these Materials over the period of time ranging from the arrival of Anza party to the present. Any items dated to before the arrival of the Anza party, as well as those that appear to have originated after the Anza expedition but which appear to be of Native American origin, may only be collected upon authorization of the Society’s Board.
At the discretion of the Curator, items in the Society’s collection which appear to be from out of the area or which do not directly reference El Cerrito or the surrounding area may be maintained in the Shadi Room if the Curator feels they have important research value for the Society or its constituencies.
The Society acquires the Materials via donations, bequests, transfers, and any similar transactions that pass title of the Materials to the Society. Acquisition via purchase requires an action of the Society’s Board. Loans are accepted only under special circumstances. Acceptance of any items requires the signing of a Deed of Gift or similar document. It is not the policy of the Society to accept restricted or confidential materials.
The Society will consider accepting most donations but, due to space limitations, can only accept large items under very restricted conditions as dictated by the item’s relevance, condition and utility. In these cases the Deed of Gift must specifically state that the item may be stored outside of the Shadi Room.
The Society’s collection and exhibits will be influenced by changes in cultural and educational trends, common museum policies, and the desire to improve or upgrade the Society’s collection. The Society will be guided by this Policy when making decisions about acquisitions and disposals. Objects will be kept as long as they retain their physical integrity, authenticity and usefulness for the Society's purposes.
LOAN OF MATERIALS
Materials from the Shadi Room may be loaned to other museums, to other institutions, or to individuals for limited time periods and under specific terms and conditions. The Collection Committee, which shall be chaired by the Curator and made up of two to four additional board members, shall be responsible for deciding whether or not to loan Materials and for negotiating all documents related to the loan.
The institution or person borrowing the Materials shall be responsible for ensuring the physical security of the Materials and the integrity of the Materials; may be expected to bear the costs of transportation of the Materials; shall provide insurance on the Materials to fair market or replacement cost; and shall attribute the Materials to the El Cerrito Historical Society in any use.
The Shadi Room may borrow Materials from other museums or other institutions for specified periods of time and conditions.
DISPOSAL OF MATERIALS
The Society may determine that certain of the Materials are “out of field”, duplicative, of poor quality, redundant or otherwise not appropriate for the Society’s collection. These Materials may be de-accessioned according to the Society’s stated policy through sale, trade, or gift to other museums or by sale or trade to individuals. Specific reasons for de-accessioning may include but are not limited to:
The object is not consistent with the Society’s mission or Acquisitions Policy.
The object is a duplicate or is a poorer quality copy of an item already in the collection.
The object is dangerous or may cause damage to other objects in the collection, storage or display facilities, or to individuals working at or visiting the Shadi Room.
The object is in poor condition.
The object is/was donated as a “conditional gift” or “indefinite gift.” (Exceptions can be made on case-by-case basis.)
DE-ACCESSION PROCEDURE
The Curator may propose items for de-accession to the Collection Committee. The final decision for an object's de-accession and disposition may only be made by a consensus of the Collection Committee.
When disposing of an object, the Curator must first determine that the Society has the legal right to do so by a searching the Society’s records to locate a “Deed of Gift” Agreement, other similar agreement, or attempt to locate the object's original owner or donor. Once this right has been verified the item may be disposed of as follows:
If the object for disposition is of local historical value then it shall be first offered to local museums or institutions whose scope of collection includes the item.
If the object for disposition has no significant local historical value, is of little general historical value, and if no museum or other institution is interested in obtaining the object for their permanent collection, then the object may be sold at a sale or auction to the highest bidder. All proceeds from the sale shall go to the Society. If sale of the object is not feasible then it may be given away or thrown away.
A permanent record of the de-accession and subsequent disposition of the object will be kept on file at the Shadi Room as part of the permanent collection records.
MANAGEMENT, MAINTENANCE & CONSERVATION
The Materials are an essential part of the program of the El Cerrito Historical Society. The Society’s first obligation is to the Materials. The Society will monitor the condition of the Materials, paying special attention to condition and the need for general or special maintenance. All physical care for the Materials shall reflect best efforts to meet professionally accepted standards.
APPRAISALS
Although all donations are tax deductible and the donor bears all responsibility for valuation, the Society will render assistance within the prudent limits. Any appraisal or authentication must represent an honest and objective judgment and must include an indication of how the determination was made.
TRUTH IN PRESENTATION
The Society will responsibly use the Materials for the creation and dissemination of knowledge with intellectual honesty and objectivity. The Society may address a wide variety of historical, cultural, social, political, artistic or scientific issues - all to be approached objectively and without prejudice. The Society will use every effort to ensure that exhibits are honest and objective and do not perpetuate myths or stereotypes.
PERSONAL COLLECTING & DEALING
Individual members of the Society acquiring, collecting and owning objects can enhance professional knowledge and judgment. However, the Society’s policy is that no Society volunteer or employee may i) compete with the Society in any personal collecting activity or ii) use a Society affiliation to promote his or her personal collecting activities. Persons affiliated with the Society may not acquire any of the Materials unless the Materials are first offered at public sale and the Society’s rules for disposition have been followed.
Adopted July 2014