Interested in bringing the Mass. Memories Road Show to your community?
The Mass. Memories Road Show team aims to hold events in all 351 cities and towns in Massachusetts as well as every Boston neighborhood. You can get involved by helping to plan a future Mass. Memories Road Show. Events are arranged by application, and approximately 3-4 events are selected to be produced each year. We are currently accepting applications on a rolling basis.
We invite applications for two types of Road Shows:
- A Community Road Show includes residents throughout a specific city, town, or neighborhood. Organized in cooperation with a variety of local organizations, Community Road Shows invite current and former residents of a given place to share photographs that reflect their family history or life in the community. Before and during the event, we work with the local team to plan an event that celebrates the fact that all residents—regardless of language, culture, politics, or length of time in the community—play an essential role in its history. Preview the Community Road Show application form.
- Thematic Road Shows focus on a particular topic or theme, rather than a specific community. Thematic Road Shows cross geographic boundaries but still stress inclusiveness and welcoming disparate experiences. Thematic Road Show topics have included World War II experiences, living and working in public housing, the legacy of Massachusetts hip hop, and Chinese American experiences. Preview the Thematic Road Show application form.
Before applying, get in touch with us at library.archives@umb.edu to discuss your project and learn more about the process.
Once you have connected with a UMass Boston staff member, complete the Mass. Memories Road Show application form. A PDF copy of the form is available for your reference as you prepare your application.
Forms
Community Road Show Application Form / PDF version
Thematic Road Show Application Form / PDF version
Please note that the PDF copies of the forms are for your reference; only online applications will be accepted.
Labor and cost-sharing commitment
Most of the costs for Road Show planning, staffing, and processing are borne by the project’s sponsor, the Joseph P. Healey Library at UMass Boston. As part of the application process, local organizations are required to contribute key in-kind goods and services as described below.
If accepted to host a Mass. Memories Road Show, the Project Director and Local Planning Team will:
- Meet at least monthly to organize the event and recruit volunteers and contributors.
- Select a date and location for the event (with approval from UMass Boston staff).
- Arrange any necessary parking, transportation, signage, translation, non-technical equipment, and rentals for the event.
- Provide morning coffee and lunch for volunteers and staff at the event.
- Create, print, translate, and distribute any necessary press releases, flyers, postcards, videos, letters, or other outreach material about the event. Must reflect the diversity of the community and be bilingual where appropriate. Must include the provided sponsorship credits/logos and must be approved by UMass Boston staff prior to distribution.
- Provide 300-500 photocopies of Registration Forms and Photo Forms for use at the event.
- Write a brief history of your community to be distributed at the event.
- Recruit 100-250 contributors to attend the event (depending on the size of the community).
- Provide 15-20 volunteers to attend a 2-hour training session (preferably the afternoon or evening before the Road Show) and to help staff the event.
- Submit a $1,500 community participation fee to UMass Boston prior to the event.
- Document the Road Show planning process via minutes, correspondence, flyers, newspaper articles, TV programs, etc., and submit copies to UMass Boston after the event.
UMass Boston will provide:
- UMass staff participation in up to 16 hours of planning meetings (virtual and/or on site).
- 15 to 20 experienced Roadies to assist with the Road Show event.
- Laptop computers, scanners, cameras, and other equipment and supplies for the event.
- Videographer, interviewer, and video equipment for the event.
- Basic signage for stations at the event.
- Image, data, and video processing after the Road Show.
- Digital copies of all images and data collected at the Road Show.
- Training session for local volunteers (2-hour training, usually held the day before the event).
- The Mass. Memories Road Show Project Handbook with guidelines on organizing a Road Show.
- Permanent inclusion of photos, video, data and documentation in the UMass Boston Archives and online at openarchives.umb.edu.