Bastian / Yakel (15 July 2004) ICA Vienna 4
however, address Cox's comment on the training of archivists. As we will demonstrate later,
there are clearly defined archival education programs supported by a large body of archival
literature. Furthermore, a number of these programs have significantly differentiated
themselves from the history, library, and information science programs in which they are
hosted.
Andrew Abbott views professions as fluid and approaches his study from a
jurisdictional basis. Abbott sees professions as defined by a set of tasks and vying for control
of those tasks in the market place. These tasks are "tied directly to a system of knowledge
that formalizes the skills on which this work proceeds."
8
Abbot goes on to say that the
"ability of a profession to sustain its jurisdiction lies partly in the power and prestige of its
academic knowledge." This implies that an agreed upon knowledge exists in order to sustain
professional jurisdiction and that there must be an established mechanism for introducing and
assimilating new knowledge into its core. Abbott also discusses the how internal changes
within a profession affect its jurisdiction. Academic education is a key site where internal
changes can begin.
Formal archival education in the United States began in 1940 with the appointment of
Ernst Posner at American University. He taught one course, `History and Administration of
Archives.' Over the course of the ensuing two decades, the American University program
grew adding courses on comparative archival history, administrative history of the federal
government, and administration of current government records were added.
9
Previous
studies of curricula have relied on self-reports to the SAA Education Directory. Robert M.
Warner's 1971 survey reported seven universities with single courses and eight with two or
more courses.
10
In 1979, Lawrence McCrank identified nine library schools offering
