Module 6 of the Tracing Our Roots, Reclaiming Our Legacy Course

Family history research does not end with discovery—it continues through care, preservation, and intentional stewardship.

Preserving Your Legacy: Digitizing, Organizing & Protecting Family Memories is a focused, self-paced course that also serves as Module 6 of the full program, Tracing Our Roots, Reclaiming Our Legacy. This course is designed to help learners safeguard genealogical materials and ensure that family memories remain accessible, meaningful, and protected for future generations.

This module provides practical, approachable guidance for digitizing photographs and documents, organizing digital files, and caring for both physical and digital family archives. The emphasis is on sustainability, accessibility, and care—rather than technical perfection.

About the Course

Led by Archivist and Genealogist Dr. Aisha La’Don Abdul Rahman, MLIS, PhD, this focused course—also offered as Module 6 of Tracing Our Roots, Reclaiming Our Legacy—equips you with:

• Practical methods for digitizing family documents, photographs, and heirlooms
• Systems for organizing digital files into a usable family archive
• Strategies for protecting research from loss, damage, or technological failure
• Guidance for sharing family history with care, boundaries, and intention
• A long-term perspective on preservation as intergenerational legacy work

This is genealogy as legacy work—rooted in care, sustainability, and cultural responsibility.

Who This Course Is For

This module is ideal for:

• Individuals who have begun genealogical research and want to preserve it properly
• Family historians concerned about losing photos, documents, or digital files
• Learners managing inherited family materials without an archival background
• Researchers preparing to share family history with relatives or future generations
• Anyone seeking practical, non-overwhelming preservation strategies

No prior archival or technical experience is required.

What You Will Learn

By the end of this module, you will be able to:

• Digitize family documents, photographs, and heirlooms using best practices
• Organize digital collections for clarity, access, and long-term use
• Protect genealogical research through backup and preservation strategies
• Share family history with relatives while honoring privacy and boundaries
• Continue preservation work across generations with intention and care
• Understand heritage travel as a form of place-based memory preservation

Why Take This Module

Too often, valuable family materials are lost—not because they lack meaning, but because there is no clear plan for care and preservation.

This module helps you:

• Reduce the risk of loss, damage, or digital decay
• Create an organized, accessible family archive
• Preserve your research beyond your own lifetime
• Transform collected materials into a protected legacy

Preservation is not about perfection—it is about responsibility and continuity.

Course Structure

• Self-paced online learning
• One foundational lesson with guided topics
• Pre-recorded video instruction
• Step-by-step tutorials and practical frameworks
• Lifetime access to course materials

You may return to this module whenever new materials, memories, or questions arise.

About the Instructor

Aisha La’Don Abdul Rahman, MLIS is an archivist, genealogist, and digital preservation specialist with over two decades of experience working in cultural heritage, archives, and legacy preservation. Her work centers African American memory, ethical storytelling, and sustainable approaches to preserving family and community histories.