Webinars & Workshops

The following formats, Occasional Lecture Series and Workshops, are regularly organized and offered by the MARAC Education Committee. Workshops and other educational programming are offered online via Zoom, in person, and the day before in-person conferences.  Other educational proposals are welcome and will be considered – they do not need to fit into the proposed structure. Proposals for new educational offerings are always welcome!

The Education Committee follows the MARAC Privacy and Confidentiality Policy for all communications with instructors and participants.

Upcoming Events 

Date: Wednesday, March 26, 2025
Title: Caucus Conversations: The Future of Digital Archiving at the Maryland State Archives
Time: 12-1 PM EST
Venue: MARAC Zoom
Cost: Free (attendance is limited to 100)

Registration is not required. Contact [email protected] for Zoom invitation.

Description: Staff from the Maryland State Archives discuss their experiences with the “ready-or-not-it’s-happening” transition to digital records. Panelists will cover the high level view of the issue of digital records as it relates to Maryland government records. Then they will zoom in to two specific areas: government publications and oversize property records (plats).  The session will cover identification of challenges, potential workflows, and a successful use case in managing the ingest of born digital records. This presentation is not only to review the experience in Maryland, but allow the attendees to talk about their own adventures in digital records. The presentation will allow 30 minutes for questions, comments, and responses.

The Caucus Conversations are a new series of webinars developed and sponsored by MARAC’s state caucuses. Attendance is open and not limited to caucus members. 

This webinar will not be recorded. 

Instructors: Kathryn Baringer, Director of Appraisal and Description; Megan Craynon, Deputy Director of Special Collections and Library Services; and James Watson, Director of Imaging Services, Maryland State Archives

Organizer: Jen Gathings, Maryland Caucus Representative and Collection Strategies Archivist, Special Collections & University Archives, University of Maryland Libraries

Speaker Biographies:
Kathryn Baringer is the Director of Appraisal and Description at the Maryland State Archives. She graduated from Youngstown State University with a B.A. and Masters in History. She has worked at the Maryland State Archives for 18 years. In her position, she assists Maryland government agencies with records management issues; appraises records to identify those with permanent value; and works to ensure permanent records are transferred to the Maryland State Archives in a manner that provides for their preservation and accessibility.

Megan Craynon is the Deputy Director of Special Collections & Conservation, and Director of Library Services at the Maryland State Archives. She holds a B.A. in History and an MLIS both from the University of Maryland, College. Megan has been working at the State Archives since 2011 and in addition to her regular duties managing Special Collections and Library Services, is co-director of the Indigenous records project and a leading member of the Archives' reparative description team. She has been an active member of the Mid-Atlantic Regional Archives Conference (MARAC) since 2016, currently serving as both a member of the Scholarship committee and the editorial board for The Practical Archivist

James Watson is the Director of Digital Acquisition, Processing and Publication at the Maryland State Archives. He graduated from the University of Maryland Baltimore County and has worked at the Maryland State Archives for 19 years. His duties include the oversight of permanent and non-permanent digitization projects both inside the Archives and for agencies at all levels of government. In addition, his staff oversees the management of all land record and plat images that are transferred on a daily basis.

 Webinars

45-90 minutes, lecture-based instruction with 10-30 minutes of Q&A

  • Share your expertise/experience in an Archival Community of Practice Discussion.
  • 45 to 90 min informal discussion and/or presentation with discussion/Q+A (some combination thereof)
  • Typically online via zoom in webinar or informal formats
  • These are free events and are typically recorded unless otherwise requested. (Q+A is never recorded)
  • Any CE points must be sought by the participants individually
  • Can also be in the format of a community of practice conversation

Conference Workshops
60 minutes – 6 hours, instruction includes participation such as hands-on activities, discussion, break-out sessions (more than a lecture or webinar)

  • In person workshops. Half-day: 3 hours (9-12 or 1-4) with one (1) fifteen minute break with light refreshments; Full-day: 6 hours (9-4) with two (2) fifteen minute breaks with light refreshments and one hour lunch break on your own. Workshops typically take place the day before the conference starts.
  • Workshops (with participation) are not recorded; question and answer sections of webinars will not be recorded. 

Off-Conference Workshops
60 minutes – 6 hours, instruction includes participation such as hands-on activities, discussion, break-out sessions (more than a lecture or webinar)

  • In person and/or virtual. Off-conference events have more flexibility and will be determined by the venue, instructor, and content. Virtual workshops over 3 hours will typically be split into 2 days.
  • Workshops (with participation) are not recorded; question and answer sections of webinars will not be recorded. 

Workshops Pricing & Compensation

The standard cost of attending a workshop is between $50 and $100, depending on the length of the workshop. Instructors for workshops are compensated based on current rates. (Please contact us for details.)

Instructor Expectations

Workshop Instructors are expected to meet the Society of American Archivists' Archival Continuing Education (ACE) Guidelines regarding instructor qualifications, delivery methods for adult learning, and areas of archival knowledge.

Wherever possible, resources will be made available to participants (slides, handouts) and to members via the digital repository (DRUM).  If you cannot make resources available, please explain why. 

Accessibility guidelines - presentation and materials must comply with accepted practice. If you cannot make resources accessible, please explain why.

Workshop Proposals 

Please visit our Previous & Upcoming Workshops page for information on accessing or attending workshops. If you are interested in giving a workshop, click the button below to submit a proposal. Other educational proposals are welcome and will be considered – they do not need to fit into the described structure.

Presentation Proposal Form

 Last revised October 2023