We have an archive in our Library. We recently got a large donation of research that was used by the donor in the process of researching a book (we have the book in our catalog).
We were hoping the research was primary and original, but upon review, it largely consisted of:
Dear Discombobulated:
We at [redacted higher ed institution] are considering digitizing our past yearbooks and storing them in an institutional repository which has the option of materials being password protected or available publicly. We are also considering using these photos in future advertising materials.
We have had a lot of questions about yearbooks over the years of Ask the Lawyer.[1] We'll answer this submission with the understanding that for those who want further and deeper information, there's more to read in the "ATL" vault.
Since the 1970s, Villa Maria College has published an annual anthology of student work called Skald (https://www.villa.edu/campus-life/skald/).
To address this question, I took a look at several issues of "Skald Art & Literary Magazine."
Each issue was interesting, but it was viewing the works collectively that brought true rewards.
Every issue was a different size, was informed by a different design sensibility, and had a different type of binding.
Our local public library has started a collection of donated yearbooks from the high school. They requested to receive or purchase new yearbooks as they were published. As the yearbook contains underage students, information about their sports and clubs, we felt that this was protected personal information and should not be publicly accessible.
I appreciate the care behind this question: when yearbook information is being assembled, not many people are thinking about all the places the publication could potentially go.
(Question has been slightly modified to maintain anonymity)
My institution has a small number of documents in our archives related to previous graduate students. Some are definitely educational records (transcripts, field placement evaluations).
I am always fascinated by the transformation documents can undergo, simply by operation of law, circumstance, or time. For instance:
I received a request from a former student of [a local high school] in which her name appears on a yearbook page citing student activities. As the page is part of a whole PDF of the entire yearbook, "removing her name" would require taking down the entire yearbook.
Our archive was part of a regional project to initiate, scan, and make available church records from predominantly African American churches within a city. As part of this project, student/graduate assistants went to the particular churches, scanned the historical records as digital files, and provided those files to [our archive] for public access.
This question is at the vertex of the law and ethics. What an institution may be positioned to do with archival images legally might not be what our society demands ethically. And if the issue impacts real people with real feelings, this conflict can lead to legal claims—regardless of solid footing based on precedent and the law.
Is it permissible to make digital copies of choral music that is legally owned by the institution to students in choral and instrumental ensembles? Some students may be studying remotely and mailing physical copies may result in lost or non-returned copies.
There are four ways it can be permissible:
I've recently come across a situation where people are ripping DVDs they own to a digitized format in Roku. I'm providing the link at the end of this question. My concern is how is this possible? Primarily intended for personal use but I can see where this could expand out to a slippery slope where it is then more individuals get copies, etc.
“Slippery slope,” indeed. The member has identified a battleground in the “1201 wars.”
