Fellow: Jelain Chubb

Jelain Chubb, Texas state archivist and director of the Archives and Information Services Division at the Texas State Library and Archives Commission, will be inducted as a Fellow of the Society of American Archivists (SAA) during a ceremony at the SAA Annual Meeting in Cleveland, August 16–22. The distinction of Fellow is the highest honor bestowed on individuals by SAA and is awarded for outstanding contributions to the archives profession.

Chubb earned her bachelor’s degree in history from the College of Charleston and dual master’s degrees in library and information science and applied history with a specialization in archival administration from the University of South Carolina at Columbia.

Chubb began her professional experience as a search room assistant at the South Carolina Department of Archives and History, conducting reference interviews and assisting researchers using state and local government records. She later became the assistant curator of archival collections for the University of South Carolina’s University Archives and moved on to increasingly responsible professional positions as local records archivist for the Kansas State Historical Society, administrative archivist for the Local Records Program at the Missouri State Archives, and as state archivist for Ohio and Texas. Chubb has demonstrated especially strong advocacy skills throughout her career and has succeeded in securing additional funding for the state archives in Ohio and Texas during challenging economic periods. Since assuming the position of Texas state archivist in June 2010, her positive and focused approach to advancing the archival integrity of the Texas state government resulted in the state legislature increasing appropriations for records preservation and access by more than $1 million.

Chubb is a member of SAA, the National Association of Government Archives and Records Administrators, the Council of State Archivists, Academy of Certified Archivists, and the Institute of Certified Records Managers, as well as regional and local archival organizations. Her leadership positions include serving as chair of multiple annual meeting program and local arrangement committees and as a member of the NAGARA board of directors.  

“To a level far above the average, [Chubb] is unflagging in pursuit, support, and encouragement of the archival enterprise,” a supporter wrote. “In her deft management of the daily archival function, her ingenuity in building constituencies of supporters, and her attention to ensuring the spread and enrichment of the archival knowledge base, she truly is an archivist’s archivist.”

Chubb is one of three new Fellows named in 2015. There are currently 184 Fellows of the Society of American Archivists.