The biggest challenge by far is the preliminary work, which must be completed before the semester begins.  In order to work with either the APS or Penn Museum collections, a good deal of paperwork must be filled out securing permission from the curatorial staff.  Because this material is rarely used by students designing digital exhibits for the web, this can require creating new forms and convincing very conservative curators that the material will be used for educational purposes  I find that it is essential, too, to communicate openly and honestly with institutional administrators at every level to help them understand that such projects are mutually beneficial to the archive, the students, and the indigenous communities.  Having done so, the next challenge is to locate enough relevant material to keep the students occupied for a month and to ensure that the resulting exhibit is of high enough quality that it will be valuable to the Native American communities, and the general public.  In addition, contacts must be set up in the Native American communities and visits to the APS for the Native American scholars program must be coordinated with Penn’s semester schedule to create an opportunity for the elders to speak to the class (this is not always possible, but has worked on occasion).

Pedagogically, it takes at least a month to provide the students with enough historical, anthropological, religious, and cultural background so that they can identify primary important materials.  Because some of the material is considered to be sacred, students must also be taught protocols about culturally sensitive objects.  This is made even more difficult because the Society of American Archivists has delayed issuing protocols concerning Native American cultural sensitivities.  A recent Mellon grant to the APS to digitize more than 3000 hours of audio recordings related to Native American cultures allowed for the creation of a Native American advisory board to address this issue.  This is cutting edge work that interests some of the students, and I currently have two independent study students working on documenting and implementing protocols for cultural sensitivity at the APS.

It can also be difficult to teach the students to be respectful of how Native people see their own culture.  The idea, for example, that museum artifacts are considered animate objects—or living beings— is sometimes beyond the intellectual reach of certain students.  The success of the projects, therefore, often depends on the students’ respect for and intellectual understanding of the culture.  The performance of the students is very uneven, with some students going on to win grants to pursue further work in the area and others sitting quietly in the corner.