• 2024-11-05

The National Central Library and Taipei First Girls' High School, a century-old institution, signed a collaboration agreement on October 17, 2024, to digitize historical documents. The agreement was signed by Director-General Han-ching Wang of the National Central Library and Principal Chih-yuan Chen of Taipei First Girls' High School. This partnership will focus on the digital preservation of school historical images from the Japanese colonial period.

Since 2019 when NCL began its " Digitization of Century-Old Educational Documents and Taiwan Memory Collaboration Project," it has collaborated with numerous established high schools across Taiwan to digitally preserve historical images and document collections. The results of these efforts are made accessible through the library's "Taiwan Memory" and "Chinese eBook Database" platforms, offering opportunities for further exploration and value-added applications. Taipei First Girls High School is the 19^th partner with the National Central Library on this project.

In her speech, Director-General Wang highlighted that the collaboration was inspired by Taipei First Girls High School's need to organize its school history. The school had requested several postcards from the Japanese colonial period archived in Taiwan Memory, which ultimately paved the way for this partnership. Prior to the signing of the agreement, the National Central Library collaborated with the school to engage its TGF Student Ambassadors in a summer service-learning program. Under the guidance of NCL staff and the sutdents’ teach Wei-chun Tsai, they actively participated in organizing historical artifacts and compiling an inventory of documents. This hands-on approach not only allowed students to immerse themselves in their school’s historical context but also underscored the profound significance of the partnership in advancing digital preservation efforts.

Principal Chih-yuan Chen stated that Taipei First Girls' High School, with its 120-year history, holds a wealth of memories left by past faculty and students, which are invaluable assets to the school’s heritage. He expressed hope that today’s ceremony would serve as a foundation for continued collaboration between the two parties. Looking ahead, as the school moves toward its 150^th and even 200^th anniversaries, efforts to preserve its historical records will remain steadfast and well-executed.

Following the signing ceremony, the NCL team visited Taipei First Girls High School’s historical archives room to review the school’s historical images and documents slated for digitization. The results of this collaboration will gradually be made available for browsing on NCL’s Taiwan Memory system. Through this partnership, not only will the system's collection of yearbooks and campus images be further enriched, but it will also contribute to documenting key chapters in the history of education in Taiwan.