Case Study: University of Mary Washington achieves broader community engagement and long-term digital preservation with Preservica

Using digital preservation to engage the community in new ways at UMW

The University of Mary Washington (UMW) Special Collections and University Archives needed a secure, low‑maintenance way to protect and unify a wide range of materials—rare books, journals, WWI posters, student newspapers and yearbooks—while also making them more accessible for researchers, students, alumni and the public. With limited local IT resources and a desire to support outreach, teaching and future born‑digital content, UMW sought a cloud solution that would simplify preservation and boost engagement.

In 2017 UMW adopted Preservica’s cloud‑hosted active digital preservation platform and Universal Access portal, gaining turnkey technical support, an easy discovery interface and a global user community. The result was consolidated digital collections, faster access for researchers, increased alumni and public engagement (for example, Instagram outreach and WWI posters made available for the centenary), and a clear path to preserve born‑digital materials and support collaborative teaching projects.

University of Mary Washington

Angie White

Digital Resources Librarian