Hello
The seeds were planted very young. One of my blurriest, earliest memories is sitting in the bowl of my grandfather’s crossed legs on the floor of the North Palm Beach Public Library reading a book about panda bears. My grandparents placing my first library card in my open hand. I would get my first job at that same library as a page. I retrieved books from the return bin, organized and shelved them, changed the newspapers sticks, and replaced outdated magazines. A kind reference librarian took me aside on slow days and taught me how to fix bindings and recover books, erase pencil marks and flip dog ears back to right. In high school, writing turned my head. I studied English and Journalism for my undergraduate degree, learning to write long and short. I worked as a copywriter for an advertising agency. Then I had children and became a freelance writer so I could be home with them. When my youngest child began elementary school, I sought something a bit more stable than freelance writing work. I found a part-time position at Palm Beach Atlantic University’s Warren Library as a library assistant in technical services. The dean of the library, Steve Baker, pulled me from my regular duties to work on a project in the archives and special collections department, which was at that time without any staff. This is where my archives and special collections love story begins. I first worked as “Lone Arranger” at Palm Beach Atlantic University. Then I took the same position at The King’s Academy, a K-12 private school. Both schools had similar origin stories in the area, and each were preparing to celebrate their 50th anniversaries. I collected, preserved, and made accessible artifacts, and collaborated with the administrators, alumni offices, marketing and development offices, as well as faculty and staff to create and promote a narrative of the history of these schools. During these years I also volunteered at my children’s school libraries and at the Historical Society of Palm Beach County. About two weeks before The King’s Academy’s 50th anniversary gala, the world shut down due to the Covid-19 pandemic. I continued to work from home but after a few months my position was in the first round of cutbacks. Suddenly, I had a lot of time to think about next steps. Staying in the same field felt a little precarious. But I loved it. I decided to apply to graduate school.
Narrative
While making my way as a Lone Arranger, I knew that while I gained a wealth of practical knowledge, what I still didn’t know was a lot. I found my classes in the MLIS program challenging and fascinating. Understanding that my concentration was in archives and special collections, I built my schedule to compliment this goal. I began with Foundations of Library and Information Science and Basic Information Services. The following semester I would take Organization of Knowledge I. This class offered so much practical application. Learning about social cataloging, taxonomies, controlled vocabularies, and creating metadata application profiles, I felt like I was joining the adult table at a holiday feast. That same semester I took Archives and Records Management. We had a brush with a hurricane that semester, so it was the perfect time to learn about disaster preparation! I also worked on a favorite project which involved researching access and use of archives. This is the semester I learned about Elvis Presley’s Graceland as well as the multitude of other institutions that carry his memory. Digital Curation was something that I had not had a lot of experience with so, while intimidating, I was excited to add to my tool belt. One of the most interesting research papers I wrote for the MLIS program was for this class titled, “The Adoption of Digital Curation and Preservation Practices in the Film Industry.” Learning about the cost differences between preserving physical media like film and preserving digital media was eye opening and challenged my perspective. Genealogical Librarianship took me down a path I never considered for a career. Learning the methods involved in genealogical study and then applying them to my own family to create a Kinship Determination Project was overwhelming, all-consuming, and fantastic. Like so many other classes, this process had me questioning everything I thought I knew. While tools like Ancestry.com are powerful, they can be misused and full of flawed information and it reiterated the vital importance of source materials. Rare Books and Special Collections is my favorite course that I took in this program. The class discussions were robust, everyone sharing their great passion for collections, and it was infectious! I created the project I am most proud of in this class, my exhibit, Broken and Beautiful: Pennsylvania German Fraktur Folk Art. I was fortunate to visit the Philadelphia Free Library Archives and Special Collections and report on the visit for this class. I was intrigued with their Fraktur displays. Even though I have many generations of family from Philadelphia, it’s not something that was ever on my radar. What a gift!
In my final semester I am taking Cultural Heritage, Community Outreach, and doing Supervised Fieldwork at the Historical Society of Palm Beach County. I can say just from my short time at the Historical Society, the MLIS program rewired my brain. When I began my fieldwork, I recognized the difference in applying my newly acquired knowledge from the MLIS program to my Lone Arranger days of blindly feeling my way through a collection. Making those connections have been so rewarding. I look forward to a future of collecting, processing, preserving, and, most importantly, making accessible history for future generations.