The School Sisters of Notre Dame North American Archives has received the 2022 Governor's Award for Archival Achievement from the Wisconsin Historical Society. The award is administered in cooperation with the Board of Curators and the Wisconsin Historical Records Advisory Board with support of the National Historical Publications and Records Commission.

About the Archives

The School Sisters of Notre Dame (SSND), an international congregation of Catholic women religious, opened the North American Archives (NAA) in 2018. The collection includes more than 2,000 linear feet of records and historic artifacts from the establishment of the congregation in North America in 1847 to the present. The archives, located at Mount Mary University, is housed in a renovated facility with environmental controls meeting archival standards. The NAA and its staff preserve and make available the archives of the eight original provinces of the School Sisters of Notre Dame.

The School Sisters of Notre Dame North American Archives brings together important archival material that was previously housed in separate, province-based archives in the United States and Canada. In 2017, a professionally trained, lay archivist was hired by the congregation to take over management of the archives, which was previously managed by sister archivists.

The consolidation of the collection makes for easier access to materials that previously had been housed in multiple locations. Additionally, three full-time staff care for the collection, and it is the facility is regularly open to the public by appointment.

Staff have also made a strong effort to promote the archives to the general public and within the congregation. The archivist has written articles for various SSND publications, a six-part series for the Elm Grove News-Independent, and for the NAA website. Staff have also provided photos, information, and archival materials to various media platforms.

The School Sisters of Notre Dame recognized the importance of the organization's records and worked to increase both the care of, and access to, these materials. The School Sisters of Notre Dame's commitment to creating a new facility, hiring professional staff, and increasing public access to their holdings represents a significant archival achievement.

About the Archival Achievement Award

The award recognizes a historical records repository's outstanding work in preserving and providing access to Wisconsin's historical records.

The Wisconsin Historical Society and the Wisconsin Historical Records Advisory Board jointly sponsor the Governor's Archives Awards annually. A panel of judges from the Wisconsin Historical Society and the Wisconsin Historical Records Advisory Board recommended these organizations receive the award. The Wisconsin Historical Society's Board of Curators approved the 2022 Governor's Archives Awards.

Learn More

• Learn about the Governor's Archives Awards

  Learn how to nominate organizations for these awards.

• About the Wisconsin Historical Records Advisory Board

• Learn about the Board of Curators Awards