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The 2019 election is for Vice-Chair/Chair Elect and Member-At-Large as well as an update to our Section standing rules. Election will run June 25-July 16. Section members will receive an email with a unique Survey Monkey link to vote.
Vice-Chair/Chair Elect
We have 2 candidates for 1 position.
- Dyani Feige, director of Preservation Services, Conservation Center for Art & Historic Artifacts
- Kara McClurken, director of Preservation Services, University of Virginia Library
Member-At-Large (Steering Committee)
We have 3 candidates for 1 position.
- Karen Gracy, associate professor, School of Information, Kent State University
- Chloe Singer, archivist, Columbus College of Art & Design
- Tanya Yule, project archivist, Hoover Institution Library & Archives, Stanford University
Scroll down for the candidates' bios and statements
Dyani Feige, director of Preservation Services at the Conservation Center for Art & Historic Artifacts (CCAHA), works with libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural organizations to conduct needs and risk assessments, assist in disaster planning, and help develop policy and planning documents for collections. She also develops and presents education programs on preservation and conservation concerns. Before joining the staff of CCAHA in 2010 as preservation specialist, Dyani worked in the Brooklyn Museum Libraries & Archives. She has also worked in the New York Public Library’s Preservation Division; for the Conference Board; and in the Special Collections & Archives at Kent State University. Dyani received her MS in Library and Information Science with a Certificate in Archives at Pratt Institute and her BM in Music Business from New York University. She is recognized as a Digital Archives Specialist through SAA.
STATEMENT: In my career at CCAHA, and previously in jobs working at repositories, I have been fortunate enough to work directly with a wide range of archival collections of all shapes and sizes. While understanding standards and best practices is important, I feel strongly that preservation is not a one-size-fits-all formula. I think I would provide a unique viewpoint to lead SAA’s Preservation Section in bringing my experience with the many different scalable solutions I have witnessed archives--large and small, urban and rural, related to artists and related to semi-trucks--implementing in order to be informed, responsible stewards of their collections. I would be honored and delighted to bring this perspective to serve as the Vice Chair/Chair-Elect for SAA’s Preservation Section.
Kara M. McClurken is the director of Preservation Services at the University of Virginia Library. She oversees all activities related to physical and digital preservation for the University Library, which includes audiovisual conservation, book and paper conservation, book repair and protective enclosures for circulating collections, commercial binding, digital preservation, disaster preparedness and recovery, environmental monitoring, outreach and consulting. Prior to coming to the University of Virginia, Kara served as preservation field services librarian for the Southeastern Library Network and worked in the Sophia Smith Collection at Smith College as a project archivist and preservation specialist. Kara has an M.L.S. with a concentration in Archives and Preservation, an M.A. in history from the University of Maryland where she worked in both Special Collections and the Preservation Department, and her A.B. from Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio. She currently serves on the Society of American Archivist’s Tragedy Response Initiative Task Force.
STATEMENT: The Preservation Section of the Society of American Archivists was my first professional association home as I began my career nearly 20 years ago. I have served the section in many roles over the years, including education, outreach, and fundraising for the National Disaster Relief Fund for Archives. For the past few years, I have served in leadership roles in our sister organization, the Preservation and Reformatting Section of the American Library Association. With the events that happened in Charlottesville on August 11-12, 2017, I have shifted my attention and study to emergency digital collecting. Preservation plays an important role in documenting the response to tragedies and emergencies and the Society of American Archivists is leading the way in providing resources for this important work. I would be honored to serve as Vice Chair/Chair-Elect for the section and to promote preservation in all its forms for our community and beyond.
Karen Gracy is an associate professor in the School of Information at Kent State University and has been a faculty member since 2007. She teaches and advises MLIS students in the areas of digital preservation and archival studies, with a particular interest in fostering new professionals in the areas of preservation and audiovisual archiving. Over her career, she has made numerous contributions to the archival literature, including a book on film preservation and articles on linked data and archives, adoption of new descriptive standards, and barriers to digital distribution of audiovisual archives, which have appeared journals such as The American Archivist, Archival Science, and the Journal of Documentation. She is currently working on a project to develop professional competencies for audiovisual archivists and advises an international research group studying management of knowledge in moving image archives.
STATEMENT: As an educator, I’ve often promoted and advocated for the work of the Preservation Section through my courses and as a past advisor of the Kent State Student Chapter of SAA. I would love to make a more substantial contribution to the work of the Section by becoming a Member-At-Large. I would be particularly interested in contributing to the educational and outreach goals of the Section. I look forward to working with the steering committee and Section members to identify and address Section priorities and help to develop new preservation resources and educational opportunities.
Chloe Singer is the archivist at Columbus College of Art & Design. Her background includes work in an audiovisual digitization lab as well as collection management within higher education. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in photography from The Ohio State University and a Master of Library and Information Science with a focus in archives, preservation and records management from the University of Pittsburgh. Singer is an active member of the Society of American Archivists and the Ohio Preservation Council where she currently serves as membership liaison.
STATEMENT: Please accept my self-nomination for SAA Preservation Section Member-At-Large. Caring for and preserving archival collections has always been a passion of mine. My experience working with collections in a higher education setting has offered me the opportunity to partner with departments across campus and around the community. I feel my strengths in outreach and community engagement will help the section promote preservation activities throughout SAA and the archival field. I welcome the opportunity to become more involved in SAA and work with the Preservation Section Steering Committee.
Tanya Yule is a project archivist at the Hoover Institution Library & Archives at Stanford University, and formally a Public Broadcasting Preservation Fellow with the American Archives of Public Broadcasting (2018). Tanya holds an MLIS, and a Digital Assets Management Certificate from San Jose State University (2018), and a BFA in Photography from the San Francisco Art Institute (2007). At the Hoover Institution Tanya has been charged with developing and implementing procedures to stabilize and barcode collections being sent off-site, including processing of over 4000 linear feet of audio materials. In her spare time Tanya has taken workshops with the Image Permanence Institute for Photo Identification and Digital Print ID; it is a priority for her work as an archivist to continue to engage and advocate for the on-going preservation of visual materials.
STATEMENT: I am excited to run as a Member-At-Large for the Preservation Section Steering Committee; as a fairly recent member to the archives community as a whole I am looking forward to learning and growing in this area. My unique and special skill has been formed in moving large amounts of processed and unprocessed collection material off-site, and developing resources to help train and facilitate all levels of assistance to identify issues with stability, mold, or types of media that should be documented. As a former program director at a non-profit music school, I wore a lot of hats, I would be honored to wear whatever hat was needed for this committee.
Since the section's bylaws were changed to standing rules per the member affinity group transition approved by Council in August 2016, the Preservation Section's standing rules have been in need of an update. The section steering committee reviewed the standing rules over the last year and has approved an updated version.
This update reflects the current operations of the section's steering committee as it has evolved over the last five years. These changes mostly address the section's online presence, update outdated modes of communication prescribed in the old standing rules, and clarify some confusing passages. The updates also address the larger role the Preservation Section plays in raising funds for the National Disaster Recovery Fund for Archives (NDRFA). To this end, an NDRFA Committee and committee chair position has been added to the standing rules to facilitate the section's annual silent auction.
The updated standing rules will be added to the June 2019 ballot as a referendum. Link to the final text to be voted on (PDF).