2026 ACA Election

Why is maintaining your CA important to you in 2026 and beyond?

This is an exciting and challenging time to be in an information management profession. As archivists, we have an opportunity to shape the information landscape and ensure that new tools – AI and otherwise – draw on true and authentic information. The public increasingly relies on information that is not independently sourced and verified. It is incumbent on archivists and allied professions to ensure that we are at the forefront of the development of information management tools.

The Certified Archivist credential documents traditional knowledge of the core tenants of the field and a commitment to continued learning and development. As we look to 2026 and beyond, it is incumbent on us as professionals to ensure that this credential serves as shorthand for a body of knowledge, skill at practice, and commitment to meeting the information management needs of the moment.

Maintaining the Certified Archivist credential and ensuring that it continues to evolve to document the true nature and requirements of this profession is important to me because it stands for such a unique aggregation of skills – academic, practical and forward-looking. This credential is valuable shorthand that cuts across all of the professional pipelines where archivists can be found: federal government, state and local government, academia, the private sector. In a field where there are so many needs unique to the institutions we serve, and the budgets and requirements of those specific institutions, a credential that speaks to a common base of knowledge and expertise is incredibly valuable.

Why is maintaining your CA important to you in 2026 and beyond?

Maintaining my Certified Archivist (CA) credential is important to me because it reflects an ongoing commitment to professional standards, accountability, and continued growth within the archival field.

As the profession evolves in response to digital transformation, increasing volumes of information, and heightened expectations around access and stewardship, maintaining the CA ensures that I remain engaged with current practices and grounded in shared principles. It reinforces the importance of ethical responsibility, sound judgment, and consistency in how we manage and provide access to records and collections.

My professional background includes both archival work and executive financial leadership. In both areas, I have seen the value of structured standards, transparency, and continuing education in building trust and supporting effective decision-making. Maintaining my CA aligns with those values and supports my ability to contribute meaningfully to the profession.

Looking ahead, I view certification not as a one-time achievement, but as an ongoing responsibility. It provides a framework for staying informed, adapting to change, and upholding the integrity of archival practice in a complex and evolving information landscape.

Why is maintaining your CA important to you in 2026 and beyond?

I continue to maintain my CA because being a Certified Archivist should be just as important for archivists as being Board Certified is imperative for doctors and having passed the bar exam is crucial for lawyers. Certification or licensure is needed for many professions and should also be expected for archivists. So, although my archival work is now done as a volunteer, I want to continue to show my commitment to the profession.

Another example of my dedication to archival certification is when I took charge of the archives at the Los Alamos National Laboratory, I was their first Certified Archivist. Because I value having archivists who have proven their competence, in less than three years we had grown to having ten CAs. As the supervisor, this allowed me to have confidence in their abilities. This is why I always want to hire CAs and encouraged my other archivists to become certified.

Certification allows everybody involved (the employers, the researchers, and the archivists themselves) to be assured that the archivists involved are qualified.

Certification is important not only because it proves via the exam that the CAs have the knowledge to be an archivist, but they also have to stay current with the profession because they have to recertify.

Because of the critical role that the exam plays in determining who has and who does not have the competence to be an archivist, I pledge that I will do all I can to make the exam as good as possible.

Why is maintaining your CA important to you in 2026 and beyond?

Since becoming a CA in 2020, the credential has strengthened my confidence in my abilities and helped me stay grounded in the core principles of our profession through continuing education. I renewed my certification this year and intend to continue doing so, both to honor the effort it took me to achieve it and to support the ACA’s continued development.

With the removal of previous qualification requirements, the ACA has become a more accessible pathway to professional credentialing and opened the door for more early-career archivists and those who entered the field through nontraditional routes. If elected as Regent for Outreach, I would build on this momentum by continuing to build awareness and engagement.

Why is maintaining your CA important to you in 2026 and beyond?

As a freelance archival consultant, my CA is one of the clearest signals I can offer to prospective clients that I bring rigorous, peer-validated expertise to their collections. Many of the organizations I work with — historical societies, small museums, community heritage organizations — are making a significant decision when they bring in outside help. The CA tells them, before we ever meet, that I’ve met a professional standard the field itself has set and continues to uphold.

But the credential means more to me than a line on a proposal. Maintaining it means staying current — returning regularly to the literature, the emerging conversations, the shifting landscape of digital preservation and access. The archival field is not static, and I don’t want to be either. The continuing education requirement built into the CA isn’t a hurdle; it’s a discipline I’ve come to value.

There’s also a communal dimension. The ACA represents a community of practitioners who take the work seriously — who believe that what we do matters for the historical record and for the people who will depend on it. Remaining part of that community, renewing that commitment on a regular cycle, keeps me accountable not just to individual clients but to the profession as a whole.

As I look toward future institutional roles, I want to arrive with a record of sustained engagement — not just a credential earned and set aside, but one actively maintained through every season of my career.

Why is maintaining your CA important to you in 2026 and beyond?

I’ll be honest—I once considered letting my Certified Archivist (CA) credential lapse. Early on, I was highly engaged: attending conferences, presenting, and contributing my expertise. As my career aspirations within the U.S. Intelligence Community progressed, I began to question how relevant the certification was outside traditional archival settings.

Over time, that perspective changed. This past year, like many federal employees, I faced uncertainty that prompted me to reflect on my professional path. I was reminded of the effort required to earn both my Master of Library Science and CA certification—and of the flexibility and opportunity within the archival field. Maintaining my certification became less about a specific role and more about preserving a foundation I could continue to build upon, even in nontraditional spaces.

Renewing my certification also renewed my commitment to the profession. The value of the CA is directly tied to engagement: continuing education, professional networking, and the exchange of knowledge. These opportunities are readily available—and essential for growth.

Professionally, the CA designation reflects a commitment to the integrity, accessibility, and preservation of information—principles that are critical across sectors, particularly in government and national security environments. The credential not only validates technical expertise, but also reinforces a shared standard of excellence and accountability within the archival community.

Why is maintaining your CA important to you in 2026 and beyond?

Maintaining my Certified Archivist credential is enormously important to me. I first earned my CA, partially because I wanted to attain the certification but also because my new job required me to be certified or be willing to pursue it. I have always told people that the act of taking the test did not make me a better archivist – studying for the exam and all of its components did, though, and it showed me the areas that I excelled in (management), as well as the areas that were my weaker points (preservation). Throughout the years, maintaining my CA has been no easy feat, particularly after I started having children and then, due to my husband’s career, moving every few years. In the midst of all of that, I focused on what I considered to be utterly essential, and that included maintaining all of my professional certifications. I tell my children how important these credentials are to me and hope that my work will be an example to them. I know as time passes and the children become more independent, leaving me more time to focus on myself and my career, that I will need to have this certification to be relevant in the field. Right now keeping my CA forces me to be active in the field, and even in the last few years I am amazed at how much things have changed, particularly in the digital realm with implications from AI. I am proud to be a Certified Archivist!

Why is maintaining your CA important to you in 2026 and beyond?

Maintaining Certified Archivist status reflects an ongoing commitment to professional excellence, ethical practice, and continued learning. Certification signifies that I meet established standards in archival knowledge and practice, while also holding myself accountable to staying current in a field that continues to evolve. As new technologies, methodologies, and perspectives shape archival work, remaining certified ensures that I am actively engaging with emerging research and best practices. Equally important is the opportunity to stay connected with a broad and dynamic professional community. Through this network, I am able to exchange ideas, learn from colleagues, and contribute to conversations that strengthen the field. I value environments where multiple viewpoints are respected and where collaboration leads to thoughtful, inclusive practices. Maintaining certification also reinforces my dedication to responsible stewardship of records and to serving communities with care and integrity. It encourages me to remain adaptable and attentive, so archives can better represent and support a wide range of voices and experiences. Continuing as a Certified Archivist signifies a professional standard and a personal commitment to growth, connection, and meaningful contributions to the archival profession.