Uh....So you do what for a living?

Ok. So maintaining this blog has not exactly been on the top of my to-do list. But now with some time on my hands perhaps I should start cultivating this part of my social media presence.

And I start with this…..

Since my decision to become an archivist, people have asked me what it is I’m actually studying. And after completing half of my degree, I still don’t know what to answer. I feel slightly embarrassed by this, because I literally can’t do my own profession justice.

So the situation usually goes like this:

I meet a person at a casual social setting—be it at a bar, restaurant, friend’s house party, etc. We exchange pleasantries… “Hi my name is….?” “How do you know so and so?” and whatever….

And then it happens… “So what are you going to school for?” Crap. Not again.

I give my blanket response which is, “Well I’m going to school for Library and Information Science.”

This situation goes one of two ways.

The first of which is the one I prefer, sadly. “oh cool my aunt/sister/cousin/boyfriend did/is doing that.” And then they drop it. And move on. This does not happen often.

The second outcome is far more awkward and happens a lot more often. A blank stare and “what do you do with that?”

Sigh….

“I’m going to school to be a librarian.” Usually that satisfies people but I get a few intrepid individuals who probe further.

“Oh, like what kind?”

“I want to be an Archivist.”

Another blank stare…. “What does an archivist do/What do you want to do?”

And here is where it gets messy. I always find myself using jargon causing this uncomfortable gap that I just don’t know how to seal.

Some answers I have given:

• "I arrange and describe unique materials"—Yes, I have actually given this TEXTBOOK and TERRIBLE answer.
• "I want to work with born-digital materials/electronic records. I find them fascinating"—this usually makes people change the subject…. :o(
• "It’s a special type of librarian that works with rare materials"….Again not the BEST answer.
• "Clean out dead famous people’s attics/basements and make it available to researchers"—this one gets a chuckle although it’s not completely true.
• "I organize people’s papers so researchers can use them"—which I think is good but not a complete answer. But it’s the best I’ve come up with so far.

I’m sure you guys have come across the same situation. Please share your best answer and enlighten me and others who have the same question.

Peace,

Am

Well then....It's been awhile

I haven't written as much as I would have liked. And I don't like it. I'm going to fix that. Promise.

I have some interesting ideas for upcoming posts:

• The Magic of Grant Writing
• Branding Your Archives Using Social Networking
• Balancing Student and Professional Life
• The Library of Congress's announcement (yeah, yeah i know) and Google Reply

Stay tuned.

Part of writing this blog is to help me expand my own knowledge. Please give me a reason to write other than my for my own sanity! So, if you have any ideas that you would like to me write about let me know!

I'm cool like that.

Peace,

Am

A quick note on Drupal

Hola,

On a whim I went to workshop tonight on Drupal. For those of you who don't know, Drupal is an open source web based Content Management System (CMS) employed by many organizations including libraries like the New York Public Library.

Since I was getting nothing done in my apartment, it seemed worthwhile to brave the mile walk in the rain. I'm so glad I did. Though this workshop was a brief introduction into what Drupal is, I immediately saw its potential for use in archives. It can do a lot. User profiles. Advanced search capabilities. Blog posts. Calendars. You Name it! It's easy to use and it's highly customizable. Oh and it's free!

More specifically, archivists can use Drupal to manage their websites' content such as EAD finding aids, user generated content, and regular ol' reference requests. I found two projects employing Drupal --the Dickinson College Archives and the Asian/Pacific American Archives Survey--on thesecretmirror.com. Check out the posts here!

I've only just been introduced to Drupal so I don't really know of potential drawbacks. But please do some investigating. I know I will.

Much love,

Am

A trip into social media

Hello again!

When I signed up for Twitter, it became evident that I am part of a change that is happening in the archival profession. Archivists are surfing the net blogging and twittering and pointing to some good stuff. Moreover, by lurking around twitter for about an hour I was able to find Archives*Open, SAA, the Library of Congress and other archivists. All of these amazing feeds point the way to jobs, blogs and amazing collection on the web. I even found some other students doing what I am doing.

Last night I saw a tweet for the position for a digital archivist at Yale…I want this job. Not only would I get to work with born-digital material but I would “explore and propose new technologies, including Web 2.0, to meet research and reference needs of patrons and staff.” That was just in the first paragraph of the responsibilities and it was enough to hook me. The rest of the responsibilities and qualifications can be found here.

I used to scoff at social media but reading Mary Samouelian’s article “Embracing Web 2.0: Archives and the Newest Generation of Web Applications” swayed me. These emerging technologies can be quite useful to any archivist trying to promote access to their collections. Take a look. Also Elizabeth Yakel is worth looking at as well. Samouelian cites her articles several times in her own.

In particular take a look at Magia Ghetu Krause and Elizabeth Yakel’s, article “Interaction in Virtual Archives: The Polar Bear Expedition Digital Collections Next Generation Finding Aid.” They investigate whether or not patrons are using the web 2.0 tools put in place by the Finding Aids Next Generation Research Group at the University of Michigan. Their findings were a depressing “not so much.”

However, Krause and Yakel are hopeful that more users would be more inclined to use those as time went on. In the 2.5 years since the article was written the research landscape is heading in that direction. The Yale position denotes an awareness of this shift. As researchers and archivists alike become more comfortable with technology, repositories employing web 2.0 applications like Yale and the University of Michigan will become commonplace.

And I will get the job I want!


Citations:

Mary Samouelian, “Embracing Web 2.0: Archives and the Newest Generation of Web Applications.” American Archivist 72 (Spring/Summer 2009)

Magia Ghetu Krause and Elizabeth Yakel, “Interaction in Virtual Archives: The Polar Bear Expedition: Digital Collections Next Generation Finding Aid,” American Archivist 70 (Fall/Winter 2007)

Job posting accessed 3 Mar 2010: https://listserv.nd.edu/cgi-bin/wa?A2=ind1003&L=CODE4LIB&D=1&T=0&O=D&P=141878


Much love,

Am

Let me introduce myself

Ladies and Gentlemen:

I graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Communication from Bryant University with concentrations in Business Administration and Legal Studies. I'm currently seeking a Master's degree in Library Science with a concentration in Archives Management at Simmons College. Digitization and electronic records have caught my fancy and I see myself entering that area when I earn my degree.

Now that I've laid out my zazzy credentials, I started this blog to:

• Work on my writing
• Investigate and explain my thoughts on archival literature
• Document my experience as a professional and a student
• Give something new to the archival community
• And quiet my friends who told me I should...
  

I trust their advice and with that, please feel free to offer your advice, resources you think I should check out and what have you.

Much love,

Am