Richard Cox writes: > Incentives. Why would any organization do self-evaluation? SAA should > lobby with certain funding agencies to make it a requirement that an > organization has done self-study before getting certain types of > grants (not all, but certain kinds that merit evidence of a repository's > future direction). I don't think this is a good idea. Implicit here is that all archival institutions, no matter how small or resource deficient, should meet SAA's otherwise sound guidelines before receiving funds. (certain kinds that is). This would be akin to NEA requiring small community theaters to meet standards of the Guthrie or Kennedy Center. Small archives and museums throughout the country are especially deserving of all kinds of grant monies to maintain and preserve historical materials, even though they may not have the resources to meet the letter of SAA's guidelines. These institutions, which enrich thousands of small towns and communities, should not be considered second class citizens in the competitive bidding process. SAA should perhaps consider conducting a survey to gain better insight into whether institutions are presently meeting the guidelines. Based on this data, SAA could present its findings to the profession. Many have an approximate idea of where they stand, but a good comparative survey would be revealing to those actually working in and running archives. It would also provide sound data for crafting a future direction for the guidelines. Bruce Montgomery Univ. of Colorado