CHLAVM-POL-ROT-01 — Rotation Policy (Rotation & Refresh)

Organization: Canadian Hispanic Latin American Virtual Museum (CHLAVM)
Document ID: CHLAVM-POL-ROT-01
Applies to: All content published or displayed in CHLAVM’s virtual galleries and feature placements, including the homepage, gallery landing pages, immersive/WebXR placements, access derivatives, captions, transcripts, alt text, and required metadata.
Status: Final (v1.0)
Owner (role): Collections Manager
Owner name: TBD
Approvals: Executive Director; Board (if required)
Review cycle: Annually and when significant operational or governance changes occur

  Download this policy as PDF (It opens in a new tab)

1. Purpose

This policy establishes the requirements and procedures for rotating and updating exhibition content within the CHLAVM virtual museum. It ensures that exhibition materials are reviewed and refreshed on a defined schedule to maintain relevance and support visitor engagement.

2. Scope

This policy applies to:

• • Featured items presented on the homepage and gallery landing pages.
  • Gallery displays, immersive WebXR placements, and corresponding two-dimensional alternatives.
  • Marketing copy, captions, transcripts, alternative text, and metadata prepared for publication or republication.

3. Policy statement

CHLAVM conducts scheduled rotation and refresh of exhibition content to sustain engagement and ensure the virtual museum remains current. All activities must preserve original files, retain prior versions through controlled archiving, and must not display items without verified permissions. CHLAVM maintains a documented rotation plan and follows scheduled cycles to confirm rights status and verify accessibility and performance, including 2D alignment where applicable.

4. Definitions

1. • Rotation: A scheduled cycle for publishing, unpublishing, or updating content to meet programming, relevance, or stewardship requirements.
   • Rotation schedule: The planned timing for refreshing, re-featuring, or removing content from spotlight placements.
   • Rotation plan/rotation record: The documented plan and tracking entry that specifies target dates, responsible roles, review schedule, and success measures for each rotation cycle.
   • Refresh: Updating displayed content with improved versions while archiving previous versions.
   • Archive display: Removing items from public display while retaining them in the permanent collection record and preserving master records.
   • Takedown: Removal of public access based on rights, errors, sensitivity, or content lifecycle decisions.
   • Featured items: Content highlighted prominently on the homepage or gallery entrance pages.

5. Requirements

5.1 Rotation plan and scheduling (required)

1. 1. 1. Maintain a rotation plan that includes target dates, responsible owners, and success measures. Avoid setting deadlines on weekends.
      2. At a minimum, the rotation plan must identify all placements, items or sets involved, planned start and end dates, required QA steps, a rights verification checkpoint, and any rollback notes.

5.2 Rotation and refresh actions (required)

5.3 When to archive or remove items (required triggers)

5.4 Accessibility and performance re-testing (required)

When re-featuring, updating, or refreshing an item, perform an accessibility and performance review. Check and confirm that the 2D alternatives are up to date.

5.5 Documentation and traceability (required)

1. • Record changes in the tracker and update marketing copy and alt text when placements are modified.
   • Record all changes to scope, layout, or technical approach in accordance with CHLAVM governance procedures. Routine content updates are excluded.

6. Roles and responsibilities

1. • Executive Director: Approves escalations related to rights expiry, removal requests, and major exceptions.
   • Collections Manager (Owner): Maintains the rotation plan and confirms completion and documentation for each cycle.
   • Web Publisher: Manages feature placement, publishing, and unpublishing, and ensures public pages remain accessible.
   • Digital Asset Manager: Archives previous versions and maintains version links and status updates in records.
   • Quality Assurance Reviewer: Conducts accessibility and performance spot checks and records pass/fail results.
   • Rights Coordinator: Confirms the validity of rights for the new display period and manages expiry and removal actions.

7. Records and required outputs

1. • Maintain a rotation plan or calendar, along with per-cycle rotation records that include dates, owner, cadence, and success measures.
   • Document rotation or refresh log entries for each item or placement, including the reason for action and links to archived versions.
   • Maintain QA records for accessibility and performance spot-checks, as well as notes confirming rights.
   • Where applicable, document material updates in accordance with CHLAVM governance procedures.

8. Acceptance criteria (pass/fail)

A rotation cycle is considered complete only when all of the following conditions are met:

1. • A rotation record is created and includes dates, assigned owner, cadence, and defined success measures.
   • Rights status is verified for all items displayed during the new period.
   • Accessibility and performance spot checks are completed with passing results, and 2D alternative alignment is confirmed.
   • All records are updated. Previous versions are archived. Preservation masters are retained.
   • Any changes to scope, layout, or technical approach must be formally documented in the relevant project or governance records.

9. Rotation operations review schedule

Conduct this review every six months using the operational checklist below:

• ☐ Review current featured items and upcoming rotations.
• ☐ Identify new content candidates for featuring.
• ☐ Assess engagement and curatorial balance; rotate out low-performing items as needed.
• ☐ Check for available quality updates.
• ☐ Repair or temporarily unpublish broken or corrupt files.
• ☐ Verify rights validity for all displayed items.
• ☐ Re-run accessibility and performance; confirm alignment of 2D alternatives.
• ☐ Update homepage and featured sections; revise alt text and copy as needed.
• ☐ Record the review completion date and outcomes in the tracker or log.