- About Archives
- About SAA
- Careers
- Education
- Publications
- Advocacy
- Membership
The Evolving Practice of Reference and Access
Free virtual event sponsored by SAA Publications Board
In Reference and Access for Archives and Manuscripts, author Cheryl Oestreicher notes that as more people encounter archives for scholarly and avocational research, as part of creative pursuits, or to exercise their rights as citizens to access records, the possibilities for how collections are used will continually evolve. Alongside this, archivists will need to revise how we think about what we collect, who our audiences are, how we serve and engage patrons, and what efforts will make archives more accessible.
In this virtual event, Cheryl is joined by four panelists working in a variety of repository types to build on the ideas in her book. Panelists will explore the challenges and successes of providing reference and access services in recent years, the creative ways they’ve connected with new and existing users, and emerging opportunities and trends in this central area of archival practice. Tune in on May 23 for a lively discussion followed by a time of Q&A.
Watch the recording of the event.
Panelists include:
Reference and Access for Archives and Manuscripts is the 2021-2023 selection for the One Book, One Profession reading initiative sponsored by the SAA Publications Board. Get your community to read it, too! Buy the book here.
PARTICIPANTS:
Cheryl Oestreicher is the head of Special Collections and Archives and professor at Boise State University. She previously worked at Auburn Avenue Research Library on African American Culture and History at Emory University, the University of Chicago, Drew University, and Princeton University. Oestreicher has taught introduction to archives, archives management, reference, and research methods at Georgia State University, Clayton State University, and Boise State University. She has been actively involved in SAA by serving on the Publications Board, Manuscripts Section Steering Committee, 2016 Annual Meeting Program as co-chair, and the SAA-ACRL/RBMS Joint Task Force to Revise Statement on Access. She was the 2015 recipient of the Emerging Leader Award. Reference and Access for Archives and Manuscripts, published by SAA, received the 2021 Waldo Gifford Leland Award and is this year’s One Book, One Profession title.
Elaine DeNiro is the archivist for the Roswell Historical Society/City of Roswell Research Library and Archives. She is responsible for the acquisition, description, and preservation of historically significant materials for the Society and the City of Roswell and providing access to these collections at the Research Library and online. Working part-time for the Society provided her the opportunity to establish the corporate archives for The QUIKRETE Companies as well as the archives for Shepherd Center (a not-for-profit hospital in Atlanta), and Fulton County Board of Education. She also worked as a contract archivist for the Haverty Furniture Companies, Inc. DeNiro has been a certified archivist with the Academy of Certified Archivists since 2004.
Marie Force, CA, is director of the archives of the Delta Flight Museum and has managed the nonprofit museum’s collections and the Delta Air Lines Corporate Archives since 1998. Force’s prior work includes research assistance for Chadwyck-Healey, Inc., in Alexandria, Virginia, primarily at the Library of Congress from 1995 to 1997. She was president of the Society of Georgia Archivists in 2012 and served on the board of the Academy of Certified Archivists from 2019 to 2021. She holds an MA in American Studies with a concentration in material culture from The George Washington University and an MLS from Southern Connecticut State University. She became a Certified Archivist in 2000. She authored the chapter, "Reference Services and Access: Making Collections Relevant to Business Needs" in Managing Business Archives (SAA, 2022).
Daria Labinsky has been a records and information specialist for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service since May 2021. Previously, she worked as an archivist at the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library in Atlanta and the National Archives at St. Louis, and as a preservation technician at the National Personnel Records Center. She has an MLS from Emporia State University and a BS and MSJ from Northwestern University. She served on SAA's Reference, Access, and Outreach Steering Committee from 2020 through 2022.
Selena Ortega-Chiolero is Tarahumara, whose ancestral homelands are in the Barranca de Cobre (Copper Canyon) region of Chihuahua, Mexico. For the past five years, she has served as the museum specialist for Chickaloon Village Traditional Council (CVTC), where she is responsible for the CVTC Tribal Collections and Archives and supports the Tribe’s work in cultural site preservation, cultural tourism, and repatriation. Selena is a 2021-2023 RBS-Mellon Diversity, Inclusion and Cultural Heritage Fellow, the current board president for Museums Alaska, the chair for SAA's Native American Archives Section, and a newly elected SAA Council member. She is also working toward her master's degree in cultural administration with a focus on Tribal museums and cultural centers at the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Stacie Williams is the division chief of Archives and Special Collections at the Chicago Public Library. She has worked in archives or special collections at Harvard University, Lexington Public Library, and the University of Kentucky. She is currently SAA's Publications Editor and chair of the Publications Board (2020–2025). Her published work has appeared in American Archivist, Journal of Critical Library and Information Studies, LitHub, New York Magazine, and The Rumpus.