Access Beyond Borders Expanding Open-Access Theological Research Through Digitization

Abstract

The Graduate Theological Union (GTU) received an Atla Digitization Grant which was used to pay for staff scanning operators supplied by the Internet Archive (IA). The initial appeal for funds focused on digitizing the John Capistran Borley Collection of Islamic Manuscripts; a collection of manuscripts that is frequently used in class visits and student scholarship. The collection was deemed in need of pre-digitization conservation work and removed from the initial appeal, but new public domain materials were identified to scan. The project also served as a testing ground for the second collaborative initiative between IA and the GTU which involved the installation of their scanning equipment for use onsite at the GTU.