We have a great slate of candidates for the 2014 election! One candidate is running for co-chair and we have nine candidates for steering committee. Watch for the online election link from SAA to make your final selections.

Co-Chair (running unopposed)

Leslie Van Veen McRoberts

Thank you for considering me for the position of Co-Chair for the Women Archivists Roundtable; I am looking forward to expanding my experience within the SAA and am elated at the opportunity to contribute. Currently, I am the Archivist at the Edward H. Nabb Research Center for Delmarva History and Culture at Salisbury University. I received my MLIS and Archival Administration Graduate Certificate from Wayne State University and also hold an MS in Historic Preservation with a Historic Administration concentration. My research interests include architectural preservation specifically the archival documentation thereof, early automotive labor history, and archival material access through theory and practice. While my interests may be specific to the archival field, I also have previous experience as a Model T driver for the Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village, thus explaining my love of labor and automotive history.

Steering Committee (Please vote for one candidate.)

Stephanie Bennett

I am an early-career archivist who has been working full-time for two years; I have a BA from Wake Forest University (go Deacs!) and a MSLIS from Simmons College. I currently work at Iowa State University; previously, I held a term position at Boston College. I'm very excited about the prospect of working with WAR! The Roundtable's use of social media recently has been a great way to interact with the group. I enjoy the community-building that has gone on via the Twitter book clubs; the blog entries are a great way to "meet" women leaders around the profession in a longer format. I promise to bring my enthusiasm and curiosity to the great work the Roundtable is already doing.

Cara Bertram

I am a Visiting Archival Operations and Reference Specialist at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign where I manage the American Library Association Archives and provide reference services for the University Archives.  I received my MA in History with a certificate in Archives and Records Management from Western Washington University.

I am excited about the current activities that WAR has been engaging in and would like to become more involved.  I see WAR as a valuable resource for archivists to talk about the issues and concerns faced by women within our profession, such as advancement, leadership opportunities, and recognition within the field.  I want to help continue these talks and in endeavors to spread these discussions to SAA as a whole.

Meghan Courtney

My name is Meghan Courtney, and I am writing to express my interest in participating in the Women Archivist Roundtable as a member of the steering committee.

I have recently started a job as the AFSCME Archivist at the Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs at Wayne State University. In this role, I work closely with the union to maintain institutional records, both physical and digital. In the past 35 years, the union has shifted to represent a much larger proportion of women, and I am interested in further exploring that change through the collection of oral histories.

I recently joined Wayne State's Commission on the Status of Women. As the new academic year approaches, we are preparing to partner with various student groups to create a stronger sense of community around women's issues on campus.

Before moving to Detroit, I worked with the Black Metropolis Research Consortium to process collections related to African-American history in the Chicago area. I learned a great deal from Lisa Calahan, the lead archivist on the project. Her style of leadership inspires me to contribute to our predominantly female field in a way that supports the free exchange of ideas.

While I am relatively new to the field as a professional, I am excited to share my ideas with a group of similarly enthusiastic women working to challenge each other and our profession. I hope I can be of service to the roundtable, and I look forward to seeing both of you at the SAA annual meeting.

Laura Farley

Laura Farley earned her BA in history with a minor in english and a certificate in museum studies from the University of Iowa and her MLIS from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She works at the Wisconsin Historical Society as the project manager of the map and atlas digitization project, and at the Wisconsin Veterans Museum as a reference archivist. Previously Laura has interned at the Herbert Hoover Presentation Library and Museum and the Chicago History Museum. She has been active in student and volunteer projects revolving around archival advocacy and outreach innovation. She has so much enthusiasm for the archives field and has had a particular interest in women's collections and getting more women taking on leadership roles. Laura is an excellent team player and has so many great ideas that she would really inspire members

Carrie Hintz

Carrie Hintz is the Head of Archives Processing at the Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Columbia University where she manages the accessioning, processing, and technical services operations for the unit and oversees a staff of 7 archivists.  She received her MSI from the University of Michigan's School of Information in 2008.

I believe very strongly in the Women Archivist Roundtable and its mission to "monitor the status of women in the archival profession" and to "promote the participation of women in all phases of SAA's activities and the profession as a whole."  With the A*Census indicating that women make up 65% of the archival profession, WAR has a clear role to play in advocating for fair labor practices and for opportunities for leadership within SAA and the profession.  

Ellen LeClere

Ellen is a PhD Candidate and research fellow with the School of Library and Information Studies at the University of Wisconsin - Madison. She has also worked for the past two years as a graduate assistant with the archives at the Wisconsin Center for Film and Theater Research. Ellen possesses leadership qualities and enthusiasm for archival science that would be of great benefit to the WAR Committee. In addition, Ellen is a genuinely fun and personable professional.

Danielle Spalenka

Danielle is the Curator of Manuscripts for the Northern Illinois University Regional History Center and University Archives. She is responsible for collections management for the center’s regional history collections. She promotes the use of collections via social media, providing archival bibliographic instruction, and providing reference services. She is also a team member for the Digital POWRR Project, an IMLS-funded grant at NIU that investigates digital preservation resources for institutions with limited resources. Danielle also serves on the Board of the Directors for the DeKalb Area Agricultural Heritage Association where she acts as the Social Media Manager. Before joining NIU in July 2013, Danielle worked as an Archivist at the Wisconsin Veterans Museum and the Wisconsin Historical Society. Danielle holds a MA-LIS with a specialization in Archival Administration from the University of Wisconsin-Madison (2011).

Danielle is passionate about the archival professional and is an excellent team member.She will use the drive she's demonstrated in her career to act as a leader and innovator for the WAR roundtable.

Ashley L. Taylor

Ashley L. Taylor is the Arlen Specter Project Archivist at the University of Pittsburgh’s Archives Service Center. She has been with Pitt since 2009, first as a graduate student, and shortly thereafter as a professional archivist. In addition to her processing duties, she also manages her repository’s social media presence, supervises student workers, and is helping develop an electronic records policy for the Archives. She is currently pursuing a DAS certificate through SAA, and is an active member of both SAA and MARAC. Ashley has a strong interest in issues of access, advocacy, and the future of archives, including the ways in which women affect and are affected by professional trends. She had the pleasure of speaking on a panel of fellow women archivists at the Spring 2014 MARAC in Rochester, where they examined whether or not the recently popular “Lean In” phenomenon had any relevancy to our profession. She hopes that by serving as a steering committee member for the Women Archivists Roundtable, she can provide a voice for young female archivists looking to make their mark on the archival field.

Caitlin Wells

I am currently the archivist for the Rio Grande Historical Collections at New Mexico State University in Las Cruces, New Mexico, and I am interested in serving on the steering committee for the Women Archivists Roundtable because I am passionate about the roles and concerns of women within the archival profession. I’ve always been interested in the role gender plays in the archival profession and concentrated much of my work in library school on the challenges facing female archivists within a workforce that is becoming increasingly younger and more female, including issues such as pay discrimination, workplace climate, and balancing job commitments with family demands. I hope to use a position on the WAR steering committee to contribute to the work of the roundtable and continue to advocate for women within the archival field.