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Tara Laver
Vice Chair/Chair-Elect
Tara Laver
Senior Archivist
The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art
I have been the archivist at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City for 5 years. During that time, I have particularly focused on increasing access to our collections both internally and externally and outreach to engage the public and staff in the history of the museum through social media, exhibitions, and events. Before coming to the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, I spent about 20 years working in university special collections, primarily as curator of a large regional history manuscript repository. I am particularly interested in how some of the skills and emphases of working in that environment transfer to the museum space, as well as what we in museum archives can learn from colleagues in business settings.
Having made the move into museum archives well into my career, I have found the Museum Archives Section to be a supportive and helpful group that provides invaluable, specific resources to its members. After serving for two terms as the section’s secretary and as a member of the Working Group over two projects, I would welcome the opportunity to provide the next level of leadership as the section considers how it can now best serve the needs and interests of its members. A successful section requires not only strong leadership but also member engagement, which has proven hard to sustain with the personal and professional demands of the last 2+ pandemic years. I would hope to initiate activities to help further a sense of community in the group, and to create new opportunities for members to share lessons learned and reflect on how the pandemic and renewed emphasis on diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility at our parent institutions affect and intersect with the work of museum archives and archivists, and where we all go from here.
Recording Secretary
Kelly Burton
Media Archivist
National Gallery of Art
My name is Kelly Burton, and I received my MA in Archives and Records Management from Western Washington University. As the first Media Archivist at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC, my primary role has been to spearhead the development and implementation of various policies pertaining to long-term care of time-based archival media at the museum. Prior to the National Gallery, I designed and implemented an audiovisual archives program for the Montana Historical Society – also a hybrid museum/research institution – while engaging in outreach efforts such as film screenings, media interviews, journal articles, and social media posts. I have a deep interest in the intersection of history and art and have greatly enjoyed learning how museums use film, video and audio to further their educational mandates.
My previous experience in professional organizations has been primarily related to audiovisual and regional archives groups, and I look forward to gaining a greater understanding of the unique issues which pertain to museums through involvement in the Museum Archives Section of SAA. This section provides an excellent opportunity for dialogue among museum professionals, and I hope to contribute to these efforts in the role of Secretary.
Web Liaison
Kelli Yakabu
Digitization Archivist
John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum
My name is Kelli Yakabu. I am the Digitization Archivist at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston, MA. I hold a BA in English and American Ethnic Studies and a Master’s degree in Library and Information Science, both from the University of Washington. I currently serve on the SAA Appointments Committee and am a member of the National Best Practices for Archival Accessioning Working Group: Labor, Ethics, Relationships, and Workplace Environment subgroup.
I am excited for the opportunity to become more involved with the Museum Archives section. I understand the importance of providing online access to the group’s news, events, and other activities, especially as an early-career archivist. While pursuing my MLIS degree, I served in leadership positions for various student organizations, including positions that required maintenance and updating of the organization’s webpage. I hope to bring these skills, experiences, and values to the web liaison position.
