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My first exposure to oral history was an assignment for a college history class focused on women in 20th century America. I interviewed a family friend about her experience as an immigrant in the 1970s, and despite having known her for more than a decade, I learned a great deal about her life. But I hadn’t received much guidance on how to conduct an interview, and I failed to broach the subjects I truly wanted to ask about. Although I probably got a decent grade, it really was not a successful interview.
Now, as a Program Specialist with the Veterans History Project at the Library of Congress, I have the opportunity to work with oral histories conducted by donors from around the country. Our collections come from professionals with years of experience, passionate volunteers, and students who may be just as much in need of guidance as I once was. In working with these collections, I have come to appreciate the rich cultural importance and research value of oral histories, as well as the need for education, outreach, and collaboration, to ensure that interviewers have the tools they need to preserve their subject’s history, and that archivists are able to make those histories available to all who seek to learn from them.
Over the last two years, as an Oral History Section Steering Committee member, I helped to guide the section’s programs and activities, and through our 2013 Live Web Chat, explored new methods of engaging with section membership and the broader oral history community. As Vice Chair of the section, I would continue to find ways to help section members and leadership share information about emerging technologies, best practices, and legal issues in the field of oral history.
I received my MLS with a specialization in Archives, Records and Information Management from the University of Maryland, and my BA in History from the University of California, Davis. I have been a member of SAA since 2005, and I would be honored to serve as Vice Chair of the Oral History Section.
Peter has been a certified archivist since 2005; his professional experience includes special collections work at University of California (San Diego and La Jolla), Union College (New York), Northern Arizona University, and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. He is currently the Head of Special Collections and Archives of Cline Library at Northern Arizona University.
Statement of Interest:
Throughout my career as an archivist, I have been drawn to the stories of people, places, and organizations. While in graduate school, I was introduced to oral history and the value of the stories shared through oral history. Oral history allows archivists/historians an more active role in the documentation of history. It also provides an opportunity to connect directly with intriguing people, history, and donors. I can say without qualification, my involvement with oral history has been one of the most rewarding aspects of my professional career.
Over the course of my career, my involvement and experience with oral history includes conducting interviews, developing oral history projects, contending with ethical and legal issues involving oral history, and managing the preservation of and access to a wide range of recording format from early formats to born digital high definition. I have been a member of the Oral History Section of SAA since graduate school (2003). Although I have yet to actively serve in the Oral History Section, I would very much like to begin contributing in the capacity of a member of the steering committee. Serving in this role would allow me to expand my understanding of oral history, learn from my colleagues, and reciprocally, I would hope that my experience will contribute to and enrich the Oral History Section and community.
Should I be elected to the Steering Committee, I will bring over ten years of professional experience as an archivist and three years of leadership experience at the departmental level. I have served on numerous professional committees at the state and regional level and understand the challenges and rewards of working with colleagues from a distance. I would be honored to serve my fellow Oral History Section members and relish the opportunity to become more involved with this committee and the oral history profession.
Allison Schein earned a Bachelors degree in Audio, Arts and Acoustics from Columbia College Chicago in 2008. She then received her MLIS from Dominican University in 2012 in order to become an audio archivist. After receiving her archivist certification in 2013 she became the Archivist for the Creative Audio Archive at Experimental Sound Studio, where she had been the Archive Manager since 2011. She is also the Archive Manager for the Studs Terkel Radio Archive, collaborating with such partners as the Library of Congress, WFMT The Radio Network, the Chicago History Museum, Pop Up Archive and Dominican University’s Graduate School of Library and Information Science. Prior projects include processing the photography archives of Johnson Publishing Company and metadata assistance for Northwestern University Library’s Digital Collections department.
Daniel Weddington is the Digital Archivist at the Swem Library Special Collections Research Center at the College of William & Mary. Daniel coordinates digital production, heads digital archive administration for the Special Collections Research Center, and is coordinating the implementation of William & Mary’s online publication platform, W&M Publish. He will soon lead implementation of Oral History Metadata Synchronizer (OHMS) on Omeka to provide online access to W&M Special Collections Research Center's oral history collections. Daniel is a former Library Associate at Eastern Kentucky University, where he worked for Special Collections and Archives as well as the Business Library and Academic Commons. He has an M.L.I.S. from the University of Kentucky, where he worked with Doug Boyd at the Nunn Center for Oral History. He also has a B.A. in History from Eastern Kentucky University.
Whitenack has been employed by the Hershey Community Archives since 1985. In 1990, she became Archivist and Director of the Archives. As director, she is responsible for managing an active archives serving Hershey, Pennsylvania’s corporate and local community. The Archives’ oral history program began in 1988 and today has over 530 interviews with people from all aspects of Hershey: executives, factory workers, teachers, religious leaders, athletes, community members, local business owners, etc.
Whitenack joined SAA in 1988. Since then, she has presented at numerous conferences, and served as the liaison between the Oral History Association and SAA 1999-2001. She previously served on the SAA OH steering committee 1999-2000.
Whitenack is also active in other archival and oral history organizations. She has been an active member of the Mid-Atlantic Region Archives Conference (MARAC) since 1985. She is past-president of Oral History in the Mid-Atlantic Region (OHMAR) and has presented numerous times at the Oral History Association (OHA). She is the 2012 recipient of OHMAR’s prestigious Forrest Pogue Award, recognizing significant contributions to the field of oral history.
Whitenack received a B.A. in history from Wittenberg University, Springfield, Ohio and her M.A. in American History with Certification in Museum Studies from the University of Delaware.