My apologies if this has been announced already. I imagine the current Wikipedian in Residence at the National Archives is a known quantity to many of you already. Dominic graciously agreed to visit to the Library of Congress to talk about his experience working with Wikipedia at NARA. The talk is open to the public so please feel free to spread the word. I'm personally hoping that Dominic's visit will be an opportunity to talk about how LC (and ogs) can use and promote Wikipedia more effectively.

//Ed

Cultural Institutions and Wikipedia: a Mutually Beneficial Relationship Dominic McDevitt-Parks 1:30 - 3:00 6th floor, James Madison Memorial Building http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cultural_Institutions_and_Wikipedia.p...

Over the past few years, cultural institutions have formed partnerships with Wikipedia in order to increase their visibility on the web and connect with a vibrant community of online volunteers. As a purpose-driven, non-profit educational project, Wikipedia and its sister sites have shared values and interests with cultural institutions that are only now being fully realized. The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) has become an enthusiastic and vocal participant in this movement to build bridges with Wikipedia and its community in the past year. Using specific examples, McDevitt-Parks will discuss how NARA views the partnership as a vehicle for increasing access to holdings, citizen engagement, and openness, while addressing practical concerns and challenges institutions will likely face if they choose to become involved.

Dominic McDevitt-Parks is the Wikipedian in Residence at the National Archives and Records Administration and has served in that role since May 2011. He came to NARA from the Archives Management program at Simmons College and also holds a B.A. in history from Reed College. He has been a volunteer Wikipedia contributor since 2004.