Elections

2024 BAS Election: Meet the Candidates

Thank you to all of our excellent candidates standing in the 2024 Business Archives Section (BAS) election. Please take some time to review their statements and get to know them so you can make an informed choice. 

You will be voting for one candidate for each of the following positions:

• Vice Chair/Chair-Elect, three-year term
• Secretary, one-year term
• Vice Editor/Editor-Elect, two-year term
• Education Chair, one-year term
• Member-at-Large, one-year term

Ballots will be managed by SAA staff; keep an eye on your inbox for when the ballot opens!

BALLOT

Vice Chair/Chair-Elect Candidate

The following candidate is running for the Vice Chair/Chair-Elect position: 

Alison Quirion

Archivist, Santa Monica Studio

BIO:

After spending 20 years as a marketer in the entertainment industry, I decided to pursue my interest in asset management, archives, and information organization. In Spring 2021, I received my MLIS degree from San José State University, and in November 2021, I officially started my career as an archivist, working for Santa Monica Studio, an internal development team owned by Sony Interactive Entertainment, and best known for their PlayStation franchise, God of War. I never expected to work again in a corporate setting and I’m really happy that it turned out that way. I earned a Digital Archives Specialist (DAS) certificate from SAA in September 2022. I’m based in Long Beach, California. I’m a member of the Society of California Archivists as well as the current Regional Representative for the SAA Solo Archivists section.

CANDIDATE’S STATEMENT:

Coming from an entertainment marketing background and finding myself as a business archivist has helped me to appreciate the unique nature and pleasure of working in business archives. There are challenges, of course, but overall, I strongly believe this is a profession that deserves more focus and advocacy. The Business Archives section has been a valuable resource to me since starting my second career and I would like to pay it forward. My goal is to help business archivists connect with each other and resources, whether it is at the Annual Meeting, virtual coffee chats, in the newsletter, local meetups, or through topic-specific presentations. There is a great opportunity to increase exposure and highlight the work of business archivists within SAA, and as Vice Chair/Chair Elect, that would be an initiative I would focus on. I personally love sharing the work I do in video games, and I love learning about all kinds of corporate collections and how each archivist approaches their work. 

Secretary Candidates

The following candidates are running for the Secretary position: 

Stephanie Branas

Project Archivist, Best Friends Animal Society

BIO:

I originally received a BA in History from Wilkes University in 2011, along with a Pennsylvania Teaching Certificate. I was a substitute teacher for over five years until I decided to move to attend grad school. I received my MA in History with an Archives Concentration from UMass Boston in 2020.

In early 2022 I drove 2500 miles with my cat to begin my first professional position at an animal sanctuary in the middle of nowhere. This was supposed to be a temporary project position, for only a year; I have now been here for over two years! I’m the first archivist for Best Friends Animal Society, taking on the challenge of collecting, organizing, and providing access to 40 years of documentation, all as a solo archivist. Some of the highlights of my job include presenting on the Archives and history of Best Friends for new employee onboarding, designing a functional archival space (from two basic offices), and setting up exhibits at the Sanctuary and for events and conferences.

CANDIDATE’S STATEMENT:

The resources available through the Society of American Archivists has been invaluable to me as an early-career archivist and serving on the Business Archives Section steering committee would allow me to be more involved in helping others in the same way. Being a corporate archivist can be isolating and it is incredibly important to provide support, guidance, and networking opportunities for others in the same situation. It would be an honor to serve on the Steering Committee and to promote Business Archives as the robust section that it is. I am a champion note-taker and would relish the opportunity to record the actions of the steering committee. Thank you for your consideration!

Renee Hytry Derrington

Brand Historian, Managing Principal Design, Formica Corporation

BIO:

Renee Hytry Derrington is the Brand Historian at Formica Corporation after a 40-year career in product design.  She started at Kohler Co, then focused her career at Formica Group where she managed product design development in Asia, Europe, North America, South America, Australia/New Zealand.  Renee came into the company’s archivist role after leading the international efforts for Formica Group’s 100^th anniversary and researched for a book to celebrate the brand’s 110^th anniversary.  Presently, she is working to preserve and document existing physical and digital assets, working with major institutions to install Formica historic objects for public viewing.

Supportive of the nonprofit world, Renee as a long-term member of Color Marketing Group – a 60-year forecasting organization.  She has served on the Board where she expanded international activities in Asia, Europe and Latin America gaining the President’s award.  Presently, she serves on the Executive Committee as Secretary, her 2^nd term.  Beyond the board responsibilities, Renee is documenting and organizing the nonprofit’s archives with the intent to donate.

Renee serves on several academic boards, two at The Ohio State University: College of Arts & Science -Dean’s Advisory Council and the Design Department’s Alumni Board.  As well as on the University of Minnesota, College of Design, Dean’s Advisory Board.

Starting with a degree in Architecture from UW-Milwaukee and a Master of Industrial Design at The Ohio State University; Interior Design magazine recognized Renee for a “Lifetime of HiPNess” in 2018. Renee lives on 14 acres on Lake Michigan in her ‘all Formica and Kohler home’ with her husband and growing animal family.

CANDIDATE'S STATEMENT:

During my long tenure with Formica Corporation, I became the part-time de facto historian partially out of love for the brand, but also a keen interest in preserving history.   To learn more about my second profession, I joined SAA and attended my first conference during COVID.  I attended a virtual BAS ‘cocktail party’ and started to chat with the participants.  I was delighted as the BAS members were very giving of their knowledge and time, I had offers to reach out for more information and tour corporate archives.  I went on to attend the SAA conferences in Boston and Washington DC, the Midwest Archives Conference in Chicago.  I attended last October’s Business Archives Seminar at Ford Experience and continued to meet more of the great BAS members.  All members representing great companies and brands!

I was struck by the limited topics dedicated to Business Archivists during conferences, surprised as BAS members are tied into corporate profit centers and can make a real difference for their companies and society at large.   With taking on the BAS Secretary role, I will use my nonprofit experience as well as learn more about the community.  Ultimately, I want to increase the profile of BAS within SAA, selfishly as I’d like our community to have more opportunities to both share content as SAA conferences, as well as have access to more content to expand and grow Business Archivists skills and knowledge.

Vice Editor/Editor-Elect Candidates

The following candidates are running for the Vice Editor/Editor-Elect position: 

Sam Citarella

Assistant Archivist, Tiffany & Co.

BIO:

Sam is the Assistant Archivist at Tiffany & Co., where she works to preserve and digitize the most important records documenting the company’s manufacturing and design history. In consultation with the Director, she makes available archival collections that have the potential to be of the greatest value to the company’s business needs and inspire creativity among key company stakeholders. She also leads the digital asset management strategies of The Tiffany Archives.

Prior to joining Tiffany & Co. Sam was the Assistant Archivist at the New York Stock Exchange. She received a MA in American Studies from George Washington University and a MS in Archives Management from Simmons University.

CANDIDATE’S STATEMENT:

I am running for Vice Editor because I’d like to enrich my involvement with the Business Archives Section (BAS). For the past 4 years, I have served in Secretary, Member-At-Large, and Early Career Member positions. These three positions have provided excellent opportunities to network with other business-minded archivists, but I am ready to increase my involvement in the BAS. I feel I am a strong candidate for the Vice Editor position because of my creativity and attention to detail. In my job as Assistant Archivist at Tiffany & Co., I support social media, public relations and marketing teams and am involved in publications projects regularly. I feel these skillsets would translate well to the responsibilities of the Vice Editor. If elected, I would bring fresh perspectives and ideas to the section and continue to support the fantastic work being done by the BAS.  Thank you for your consideration!

Jennifer Sirotkin

Archivist, Chick-fil-A Inc.

BIO:

I became Chick-fil-A, Inc.’s first archivist in 2016.  The program is less than ten years old but has grown rapidly.

I have a Masters in Archival Studies from Clayton State University and became a Certified Archivist in 2018.  While in school, I interned at both the National Archives and Records Administration – Atlanta (2015) and at the Athens Clarke County Library’s Heritage Room and Archives (2016).  I was able to be Richard Pearce Moses’ graduate research assistant 2014-2015 and aid his work on the InterPARES project.

Before attending graduate school, I worked at one of Emory University’s libraries for over 20 years.  It was the smallest of their libraries and allowed me to experience all roles.  This is how I was first exposed to archives and realized that this was the profession for me.

CANDIDATE’S STATEMENT:

I would be honored to serve the Business Archives Section as vice editor.  The work of this group and the knowledge of its members has helped me immensely in my career.  I would love the opportunity to give back as part of the steering committee.

Education Chair Candidates

The following candidates are running for the Education Chair position: 

Samantha Bradbeer Stephens, CA

Historian and Archivist, Hallmark Archives, Hallmark Cards, Inc.

BIO:

Samantha Bradbeer Stephens has served as the historian and archivist for Hallmark Cards, Inc. since 2011. Prior to Hallmark, she acquired hands-on experience at several libraries and museums, including the Ike Skelton Combined Arms Research Library and the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History.  

Samantha is a Certified Archivist, and holds a B.A. in Anthropology from the University of Kansas and a M.A. in Museum Studies from Johns Hopkins University. Samantha is an active member of the business archives sections of several organizations, including the Midwest Archives Conference, Society of American Archivists, and International Council on Archives. She has also held several leadership positions in local organizations, and recently served as the president/senior co-chair of the Kansas City Area Archivists.   

In her spare time, she shares her knowledge of management and preservation of archival materials with future record managers as an adjunct professor at Haskell Indian Nations University.  

Fun fact: Samantha has personally collected Archie comics and related merchandise for over 25 years. She shares her extensive collection on Instagram under @archiecomicscollector.

CANDIDATE’S STATEMENT:

As a lone arranger for nearly half my career, I feel particularly strong and connected in an educational setting - from attending conferences and workshops to leading creative and preservation workshops.

BAS-related events help us to learn and retain concepts of preservation, while cultivating analytical, communication, team building, and technical skills. It is also an opportunity – especially for those working with limited staff and resources - to collaborate and transform their archives.

Continuing education, networking, and personal growth experiences through BAS will help all of us further our goals, and, if elected Education Chair, I’d be happy to help continue this important mission.

Tesa Lark Burns

 Archivist, Hershey Community Archives

BIO:

Tesa Lark Burns serves as Archivist for Hershey Community Archives (HCA), where she works to collect, preserve, and make available collections related to the life and legacies of Milton and Catherine Hershey and the community and businesses they established.  As part of the HCA team, she manages collections and provides research and reference services for the Hershey corporate entities (The Hershey Company, Hershey Entertainment & Resorts Company, Hershey Trust Company, and The M.S. Hershey Foundation).  Additionally, she supports HCA’s work serving the local community of Hershey, PA and various community organizations.  She particularly enjoys researching fascinating aspects of the companies’ histories and overseeing implementation of HCA’s online database.

Tesa earned her B.A. in Archaeology from Dickinson College in 2015, M.A. in American Studies from Penn State Harrisburg in 2019, and Graduate Certificate in Archival Studies from Louisiana State University in 2020.  She has been a member of the HCA team since 2017.

CANDIDATE’S STATEMENT:

Since becoming involved with SAA two years ago, the Business Archives Section has been by far the most valuable resource the Society has to offer.  I have benefited immensely from the programming and networking opportunities BAS provides for its members.  Business archivists are a unique, hard-working, and supportive group, and I am running for Education Chair to serve and give back to this constituency.

One issue that has garnered my attention since becoming part of BAS is the lack of business archives programming at the SAA Annual Meeting.  It was exciting and gratifying to see that in 2024, not only were there a number of business archives sessions proposed, but several were accepted.  Additionally, earlier this year, alongside other passionate BAS members, I advocated to SAA Council to continue supporting an in-person BAS Colloquium.  As Education Chair, I will continue to advocate for this kind of programming – not only to enrich offerings for business archivists in SAA, but to educate the profession as a whole (especially students and early-career archivists) about what we do and why it is important.

Member-at-Large Candidates

The following candidates are running for the Member-at-Large position: 

Michael Bullington

Senior Archives Manager, McDonald’s Corporation

BIO:

I have served as a business archivist for over 35 years working at Rush Medical Center, Kraft Foods and for the past 19 years at McDonald’s Corporation. Giving back to the profession is important to me as I am the past chair of the Business Archives Section, former Academy of Certified Archivists President, past Chair of the Illinois State Records Advisory Board, Co-Chair of the SAA and Midwest Archives Conference Local Arrangements Committees, SAA Program Committee member and SAA Salary Task Force member. I also served as a reviewer of SAA’s Managing Business Archives.

CANDIDATE’S STATEMENT:

I have witnessed a tremendous transformation and maturation of the Business Archives Section since I first became a member. As Member-at-Large, I hope to provide advice and counsel to the board based upon my experience as an archivist and section member.

Joe Stolarick

Archivist, Clair Global

BIO:

In 2023, Joe was hired by Clair Global to start the company’s archives program. Clair Global (Lititz, PA) is a technology company that specializes in delivering top-tier live production services, seamless systems integration, and cutting-edge audio products. Joe’s background in library science and audio production provides a solid foundation for his work.

Prior to 2023, Joe served as Digital Archivist for the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation. There, he established the Foundation's digital archives program. Before that, he worked as an audio engineer, co-managing the Louisiana State Museum’s state-of-the-art concert venue at the New Orleans Jazz Museum. Joe began his career as an Assistant Engineer for George Blood LP and Production Intern for Smithsonian Folkways Recordings. He holds his MLIS from Drexel University and a BA in Music from Lebanon Valley College (Annville, PA).

CANDIDATE’S STATEMENT:

When I started at Clair, I knew I needed to better understand what it means to be a business archivist. The Business Archives Section allowed me to connect with members and resources that have since proven invaluable. More than just a source of information, the BAS is a community of thoughtful professionals who are generous with their time and knowledge. Everyone I spoke with wanted me to succeed.  As Member-At-Large, I look forward to making my own contributions to this community and assisting young/new business archivists as they navigate similar waters.

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