Charles Harbutt taught photography at Parsons School of Design from the early 1990s until his death in 2015. He served as the president of the photographic cooperative Magnum twice, and his work appeared in many publications and exhibitions. The collection consists of material created and assembled by Harbutt for his Parsons classes.

The Parsons School of Design Centenary Oral History Project consists of recorded sound interviews with twelve individuals as well as two audio monologues by the project's manager, Martica Sawin. The interviews, recorded in 1994, cover the history of different academic departments and design disciplines over the course of the twentieth century as experienced by former and then-current instructors and administrators. Recordings are all in English.