Graduate students in the School of Library & Information Science partnered with Jackson County Historical Society to perform a technical evaluation for building an online compendium of Jackson County, Iowa history. 

The Jackson County Historical Society is a non-profit archival group based in Maquoketa, Iowa. They have six exhibits on display, all of which are supported from a vast archive of artifacts. The group’s immediate need was to establish an accessible platform in which to house all of their information for preservation and reference for future exhibits. Jackson County Historical Society requested guidance in selecting and implementing a platform on which to build an online compendium of Jackson County, Iowa history.  

In consideration of the potential technical solutions, Jackson County Historical Society's information needs included:
●   Accommodations for short- and long-form articles, photos, and other media
●   A searchable index - metadata compatibility was a plus
●   Space for the organization’s branding and partial control of visual design
●   A user-friendly data-entry interface that can be utilized across all technological expertise levels
 

As part of their project, two student-groups proposed and evaluated 5 tech solutions to meet Jackson County Historical Society's needs for an online compendium of Jackson County, Iowa history.