Gifts and Transfers
Thank you for thinking of us! We welcome gifts of books and archival materials that fall within the scope of our collecting activities, that will enhance the strengths of our collections, and that support Reed students and faculty in the curriculum.
Gifts of materials are accepted by Special Collections and Archives with the understanding that, once received, they are owned by the college. Materials with restrictions on access or use will generally not be accepted. Special Collections and Archives is unable to collect items where resources do not allow us to meet the collection’s space requirements or preservation needs.
Current Collecting Areas
Reed College Special Collections and Archives is actively seeking materials in the following areas:
- Archival materials of student organizations (both formal and informal groups). "Archival materials" might include posters or flyers, emails, Google group posts, Facebook pages, Google drive documents, YouTube videos, social media posts, audio or AV recordings, websites, etc.
- Student publications (print and web-based)
- Student oral histories
- Archival materials of college offices and departments (print, digital, web-based)
- Letters, diaries, photographs or audio-visual recordings (analog and digital) of student life at Reed College, from any era
- Social justice and environmental activism
- Historical documents / artifacts from underrepresented or marginalized groups
Donation Process
Please contact us at archives@reed.edu if you would like to make a gift or transfer materials to Special Collections and Archives. Staff will arrange a brief consultation to talk about what you would like to donate, the amount of materials, how they are organized, to review the donation or transfer form, and to discuss next steps.
Donation form (for materials from Reed College students, alumni, faculty)
Transfer form (for materials from Reed College staff, departments, or committees)
Context is very important for making sense of historical records, and understanding the organization and order of materials is one way that archivists preserve context. For that reason, it is ideal to talk to Special Collections and Archives staff before boxing up papers or making copies of files. Digital materials are particularly susceptible to a lose of context due to the ease of copying and moving. The archivist will be able to make a secure copy in a manner that ensures preservation for the future.