Collections Aid

Museum Studies and Public Engagement

A graduate student wearing blue latex gloves uses a magnifying glass to inspect an item at the Delaware Historical Society Research Library in Wilmington, Delaware.

University of Delaware graduate student Rachel Nelson inspects a framed diploma at the Delaware Historical Society Research Library in Wilmington, Delaware, in January 2019.

Left image of a large pile of boxes and documents and right image of smiling students and faculty with an organized rolling shelp of boxes and documents.

At the Delaware Historical Society (DHS) Research Library, January 2024 — Two weeks of “conservation triage" helped the team of (from left to right) Emily Collopy, Samantha Hertel, Akimah Kumar, Lu Ann De Cunzo and Leigh Rifenburg turn the library annex into an organized space ready for the next steps.

Smiling students and faculty in group photo at Howard High School Alumni Association in Wilmington, Delaware.

Howard High School Alumni Association, Wilmington Delaware, on January 17–20, and January 23–27, 2023.

Group photos of students and faculty at C-AID project work sites.

C-AID 2022 teams at St. Johns African Methodist Church in Newark (January 28), Christina Cultural Arts Center (January 24–27) and Metropolitan Wilmington Urban League (January 17–22).

SWAT 2020 team of graduate students at Greenbank Mills and Phillips Farm in Wilmington, Delaware.

SWAT Team 2020 at Greenbank Mills and Phillips Farm, Wilmington, Delaware, on January 13–16 and January 20–23.

SWAT 2019 team of graduate students at Delaware Historical Archives in Wilmington, Delaware.

The 10th Annual Collections SWAT Team took place at the Delaware Historical Society Archives, Wilmington, Delaware, on January 7-10 and January 14–17, 2019. The team worked with Chief Curator, Leigh Rifenburg, and Preservation Librarian, Bill Robinson, on clearing, organizing, and pre-cataloging a large office full of collections items that ranged from early American republic receipts to modern-day political and protest signs.

A group a graduate students outside the Rockwood Mansion and Museum in Wilmington, Delaware.

At the Rockwood Mansion and Museum in Wilmington, Delaware (January 8–11 and January 15–18, 2018), graduate students worked with the museum coordinator, Loretta Spigel, cleaning and organizing the large storage room in the Carriage House conference center; revising the “room books” that list the item in each room of the house tour; cleaning and beginning a cataloging process for the large family collection of books; and working on the complex process of cleaning up collection catalog records and related paper files.

The 2017 SWAT team of graduate students and faculty a the Historical Society of Cecil County in Elkton, Maryland.

At the Historical Society of Cecil County, in Elkton, Maryland (January 9–12 and January 16–19), the 2017 Collections SWAT focused on the vast textile collections. The students worked with curator Lisa Dolor to identify, clean, photograph and rehouse over 550 objects. These ranged from a 10-piece Quaker wedding dress from 1870 to Vietnam-era military uniforms. The students helped identify all WWI objects in the collection for an exhibition in April. There was also a complete assessment of the Society’s Military Museum collection. A curatorial workspace was created in a former storage space.

What is Collections Aid?

Collections Aid (C-AID) is a two-week service project held each January. University of Delaware students help institutional partners and community organizations preserve and organize their collections and related information. C-AID is open to advanced undergraduates enrolled in the Museum Studies and Public Engagement (MSPE) minor and graduate students pursuing the MSPE certificate. Graduate students earn credit toward the certificate.

What students do

Students gain valuable hands-on experience, applying what they have learned in the classroom to the planning and execution of collections overhauls that go beyond traditional internships. Depending on a partner's needs, their work may include:

Organizing storage facilities
Building collections housing
Improving institutional or catalog records

This work leaves a lasting legacy of stronger preservation, greater knowledge of collections and better access.

Projects and partners

C-AID typically, though not exclusively, serves smaller organizations that do not have enough professional staff to complete a project. Students work with museums and historical societies, as well as organizations that may not consider themselves museums. Recent partners include:

Middletown Historical Society
Christina Cultural Arts Center
Delaware Historical Society Research Library
Metropolitan Wilmington Urban League
St. John African Methodist Church

See C-AID in action

Read "Untold stories of the First State" for a closer look at the students' work at the Delaware Historical Society Research Library.

Untold stories of the First State

How C-AID has grown

C-AID projects were originally funded by a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services from 2011 to 2015. A gift from UOVO Fine Art Storage, annual support from the University of Delaware and Delaware Humanities, and contributions from local suppliers have sustained the program since then.

In 2026, C-AID added Cyber C-AID alongside its traditional hands-on projects. The addition reflects the growing digital work of cultural institutions, from online exhibitions to digital databases, and gives students experience with the digital demands of the field. The inaugural Cyber C-AID project focused on updating Sustaining Places, a popular UD online resource.

Bring C-AID to your organization

If your organization is interested in being considered for a C-AID project, please contact the Museum Studies and Public Engagement Program at museumstudies@udel.edu.