Leadership

Chair

Tracy Drake
Archivist
Reed College

Tracy Drake is an archivist at Reed College, focused on acquiring, preserving, and providing access to the historical and cultural records of the college. As an information professional, Tracy strives to provide equitable access to the stories of the Black experience. She believes in confronting difficult topics in our collective historical record while encouraging community archival practice. A graduate of Eastern Illinois University with a BS in African American Studies, an MA in history from Roosevelt University, and an MS in Library and Information Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. In 2019, she was chosen as the recipient of the SAA Brenda S. Banks travel award. Also, in 2018, she was chosen as a member of the American Library Association class of Emerging Leaders. Her scholarship and research focuses on anti-racism in society and information. 

Newsletter Editor

Bernadette Birzer
Archivist
Newcomb Archives and Vorloff Collection at Tulane University

Bernadette Birzer is the Archivist for Collection Management and Digital Initiatives at Newcomb Archives and Vorhoff Collection at Tulane University in New Orleans, LA. Her responsibilities include the management of archival and special collections material, the management of digital collections, and the long-term preservation of digital archives. She received an MLIS and a graduate certificate specializing in archives and special collections from the University of Southern Mississippi in 2012. Bernadette is a Certified archivist via the Academy of Certified Archivists and is completing a Master of Liberal Arts degree at Tulane University.

Webmaster

Zakiya Collier
Digital Archivist
Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture
The New York Public Library
e-mail

Zakiya Collier is the Digital Archivist at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture where she uses web archiving tools to expand the nature of archival collections to reflect 21st-century Black life and experiences. She holds an MA in Media, Culture, and Communication from New York University, an MLIS with a Certificate in Archives and Records Management from Long Island University, and a BA in Anthropology from the University of South Carolina. Zakiya is an affiliate of the Center for Critical Race and Digital Studies at New York University and an Interim Board Member of the Archival Education and Research Initiative. She became a Certified Archivist through the Academy of Certified Archivists (ACA) in September 2020. Her research and professional interests include Black feminist theory and praxis, Black archival practice, critical archival studies, community archives, and ethical archival practices. 

Steering Committee Member

Haian Abdirahman
Archivist
Andrew W. Mellon Foundation

Haian Abdirahman is the Archivist for the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. He holds a BA in English literature from North Dakota State University, as well as an MSIS and MPA from the University of Texas at Austin, with concentrations in archives, records management, and public administration. He previously worked as a graduate research assistant in the archives of the Hogg Foundation.  

Steering Committee Member

Brittany Newberry
Processing Archivist,  Robert W. Woodruff Library
Atlanta University Center
e-mail

Brittany Newberry is a Processing Archivist at the Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library. Brittany holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in English with a minor in American Ethnic Studies from Wake Forest University. She received a Master of Science degree in Library and Information Science with a concentration in Archives Management from Simmons College. She is a member of the Society of American Archivists and the Society of Georgia Archivists. Brittany is a steering committee member for the Society of American Archivists, Archivists and Archives of Color Section. She is a member of the Society of American Archivists Membership Committee, where she serves as an advisor for the Career Development Subcommittee. Brittany is the Assistant Communications Director for the Society of Georgia Archivists. She serves as chair of the ArchivesSpace User Advisory Council, member and co-lead of the Member Engagement sub-team, and as an ArchivesSpace trainer. Her research and professional interests include African American archives, Academic or Research archives, and Social Justice, Diversity and Archival Activism.

Steering Committee Member

Tamara Rayan
Archivist/Research Assistant
Alternative Toronto

Tamara Rayan is currently a 2019-2021 ARL/SAA Mosaic Program Fellow and the Archivist/Research Assistant for Alternative Toronto, a participatory, digital archive that documents Toronto’s countercultural, queer, trans, and activist histories from the 80s and 90s. She has a background in music performance and ethnomusicology, but in the last few years has shifted her focus and has just graduated from the Master of Information program at the University of Toronto with a specialization in Archives and Records Management. Her research interests are focused on the ways in which minority, marginalized, and racialized groups document and preserve their cultural heritage in the face of social pressure, colonialism, assimilation, and political oppression.