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This year we have a few positions up for election in the Archival Educators Section:
We have a slate of great candidates. One is nominated for vice-chair and five for the steering committee. Please learn more about the candidates and cast your vote!
Vice-Chair/Chair Elect (2-year commitment, 1 year as Vice-Chair and 1 year as Chair): Serves as Vice-Chair from the conclusion of the 2024 annual meeting through the 2025 meeting; works with the Chair and Steering Committee in establishing an agenda for the year; works to ensure that sessions of interest to Section members appear on the SAA program for the following year; prepares for term of service as Chair in 2025-2026; takes minutes during the annual Section meeting. One candidate will be elected.
Steering Committee Member (2-year commitment): Serves for two years from the end of the 2024 meeting through the 2026 meeting; assists in planning for the annual meeting; participates in Steering Committee meetings; helps set the agenda for the year; and contributes to section initiatives or priorities. Up to 4 candidates may be elected.
Below you will find the names, biographical information, and candidate statements for each person nominated. Please review this information prior to voting!
Ana Roeschley is Assistant Professor and Director of Archival Studies in the Department of Information Science at the University of North Texas (UNT). She is the founder and Co-Director of the Archives Learning Lab—a research lab dedicated to investigating the relationships between people and archives in an ever-changing world. She is the Principal Investigator of the IMLS-supported, Records of Refuge: Supporting Refugee Communities’ Archival Needs (RoR)—a three-year research project that aims to close research gaps on the documentary and archival needs of refugees in the United States. Previously, she was Assistant Professor of Professional Practice in the School of Library & Information Science at Louisiana State University. Before beginning her academic career, Dr. Roeschley worked in the Downs-Jones Library and Archives at Huston-Tillotson University. Her previous research has been published in a number of venues including American Archivist, Library and Information Science Research, and Archival Science. AnaRoeschley.com
Statement: If elected Vice Chair/Chair-Elect of the Archival Educators Section, I aim to dedicate my role to the pursuit of a more equitable and accessible profession for our all of our students. My core teaching belief is that we must meet students where they are, rather than expecting them to meet any imagined criteria of what a student “should be.” This belief has influenced every aspect of my teaching, from curriculum development to the creation of accessible online lectures and beyond. Each learning environment requires different approaches which are guided by one goal—to ensure that the needs of students are met regardless of students’ circumstances. This belief has had to expand beyond my approach to my curriculum in the classroom and into my role as a faculty advisor and the Director of Archival Studies at UNT as I work with students who need hands-on practical experience but cannot participate in unpaid internships.
According to the A*CENSUS II, the proportion of people in the archives profession who identify as Black, Indigenous, or People of Color (BIPOC) only accounts for 16% of archivists. In addition to this unequitable representation, the majority of A*CENSUS II respondents do not believe that the archives profession is adequately addressing the issue. While this is a systematic problem that requires continuous investments by all of SAA, the Archival Educators Section has an opportunity to explore how the high barrier of entry to the field may be perpetuating the challenges of inequity. Relying on unpaid internships as the primary option for experiential learning in archives is a barrier to success for many individuals who must work full-time, take care of families, or cannot take on the financial burdens of both graduate school and unpaid labor. If elected, I will use my role to push our field to meet archival studies students where they are by creating opportunities to ensure that they are not excluded from the field due to the barriers of unpaid internships. I know that such opportunities are possible because of my role as co-PI for the IMLS-funded Stewarding Cultural Heritage grant which resulted in a paid internship program for our students interning at the Mexican American Civil Rights Institute. I will work with the Archival Educators Section to find resources that can support a fund that will provide stipends for student interns. Additionally, I will use my time in this role to support the development of section workshops and webinars on successful alternatives to the unpaid internship model, so as to open a dialogue towards more equitable approaches to experiential learning.
Note: candidates listed alphabetically by last name.
Sarah Buchanan is an associate professor in the iSchool at the University of Missouri. She serves as the emphasis leader for Archival Studies, and is founding faculty advisor for Mizzou’s active SAA student chapter. Previously she was a museum archivist. Her research investigates provenance research methods, data storytelling with archives, and preservation of audiovisual collections - advising the American Archive of Public Broadcasting Preservation Fellowship at Mizzou with KOPN Community Radio.
Statement: Supporting archival education is a shared endeavor among SAA members. Our collective efforts can create vital spaces and support for new ideas and collaborations to strengthen our work. In SAA I recently contributed to the CORDA (Committee on Research, Data, and Assessment) R&I Roadmap which can especially help students engage in archival research. I would enjoy the opportunity to continue advancing AES activities together in the archival education community.
Michele Combs is the Lead Archivist at Syracuse University’s Special Collections Resource Center (SCRC). She has taught numerous workshops and units on Encoded Archival Description (EAD) for various groups including MARAC and for Syracuse University’s i-School IST 628 course, and served as co-instructor for the archival processing segment of the course for the past four years. She has also given presentations on other topics including controlled vocabularies.
Statement: Michele has taught a 2-session unit on Encoded Archival Description for Syracuse University’s i-School IST 628 course for the past 15 years. Since 2020, she has partnered with the adjunct instructor for the course to provide hands-on archival processing experience using SCRC’s collections; students are given an unprocessed collection and, during the semester, survey the collection, create a processing plan, process the collection, and create an EAD finding aid. Michele is a firm believer that all archival students – not just those who are able to do an internship or practicum -- should have the chance to perform hands-on processing work with real materials. As a candidate for the Archival Educators Steering Committee, she hopes to contribute to expanding opportunities for experiential learning (and tempt more LIS students into an archival career!)
Adam Kriesberg is an Assistant Professor at Simmons University School of Library and Information Science.
Statement: My name is Adam Kriesberg, I am an Assistant Professor at the Simmons University School of Library and Information Science. I have been a member of the steering committee for the past few years and would love to keep serving in this capacity. My commitment to archival education is deep and I am excited to continue working on behalf of archival educators and education initiatives within SAA and across the profession more broadly.
Kristen J. Nyitray is Director of Special Collections and University Archives, and University Archivist at Stony Brook University, State University of New York.
Statement: Kristen has designed and taught experiential learning curricula in archival contexts for more than two decades. She is committed to advancing holistic approaches in archival education and fostering diverse opportunities for future archivists. A holistic approach in archival education not only addresses technical skills, but also embraces and integrates cultural and ethical dimensions. Serving on the Archival Educators Steering Committee of the Society of American Archivists (SAA) offers a unique opportunity to discuss and enhance educational programs. These programs are crucial for preparing current and aspiring archivists to manage collections that reflect a broad spectrum of experiences.
Katie Salzmann is the Lead Archivist at The Wittliff Collections at Texas State University and serves as adjunct faculty of Archives Management in the Public History program.
Statement: Katie has taught Archives Management in the Public History program at Texas State University since 2005 and is committed to equipping the next generation of archivists for success, as well as fostering and developing entree into the archival profession for individuals from non-traditional educational paths. As Lead Archivist for The Wittliff Collections, Katie has mentored dozens of graduate and undergraduate students through internships and other experiential learning opportunities. She has served as the past Chair of SAA's Committee on Education as well as on the Manuscript Repositories Section steering committee, and she served as President of the Society of Southwest Archivists. She would welcome the opportunity to reconnect and collaborate with SAA archival educators and stakeholders.
Each member of the Archival Educators Section in good standing is eligible to vote. Section members will receive voting instructions with links to the election ballot via email during July. This voting information will be sent via SAA.