Breaking Down Borders
July 12, 2016
National society honors Delaware archivists for diversity program
The University of Delaware Library has recognized current and former library employees George Apodaca and Natalie Baur for their leadership in co-founding an international forum for exchange of archival expertise.
The forum is a webinar series offered through the Latin American and Cultural Heritage Archives Roundtable, Desmantelando Fronteras/Breaking Down Borders, which is the 2016 recipient of the Diversity Award given by the Society of American Archivists (SAA).
The award will be presented at a ceremony during the joint annual meeting of SAA and the Council of State Archivists in Atlanta, July 31 through Aug. 6. It recognizes an individual, group or institution for outstanding contributions in advancing diversity within the archives profession, SAA or the archival record.
Desmantelando Fronteras/Breaking Down Borders was co-founded by Apodaca, affiliate assistant librarian and Pauline A. Young resident at the University of Delaware Library; Baur, most recently the archivist for the Cuban Heritage Collection at the University of Miami; and Margarita Vargas-Betancourt, curator of Latin American and Caribbean Special Collections at the George A. Smathers Libraries, University of Florida.
The webinar series provides a collaborative space for archivists of the Latin American and Caribbean diaspora to share their projects and experiences, facilitating an open exchange of ideas among professionals throughout the Americas.
The series, in collaboration with the Digital Library of the Caribbean and the Association of Caribbean University, Research and Institutional Libraries, has provided an exemplary model of cooperative outreach. Topics include digital and documentation projects in Colombia, Curaçao, Ecuador, Florida, Guyana, Honduras and Puerto Rico, and webinars feature both English and Spanish speakers.
According to one colleague who nominated Desmantelando Fronteras/Breaking Down Borders for the diversity award, “This one-of-a-kind project has expanded beyond geographical, language, and theoretical barriers and provides an example of how SAA and American archivists can connect with international professionals.” The award is a great honor for Apodaca, Baur and other members of SAA's Latin American and Cultural Heritage Roundtable for the work they have been doing to foster international conversations and collaborations to promote the values of archives and the work of archivists.
Apodaca began work in the Morris Library in September 2014 as a Pauline Young resident on an access and description project in the Manuscripts and Archives Department. He received his master of library science degree from the University of Arizona in 2013, having formed part of a select cohort of Knowledge River Institute scholars whose aim has been to serve the information needs of Latino and Indigenous peoples, foster an understanding of information issues from the perspective of these communities and advocate for culturally sensitive information services in both libraries and archives.
Baur is a former graduate assistant in Special Collections (2009-10) who received her master of arts degree in history from the University of Delaware followed by her master of library science degree from the University of Maryland. She is completing a year as a Fullbright-Garcia Robles scholar at the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (National Autonomous University of Mexico) for the 2015-16 academic year, researching transnational opportunities for sustainable digital preservation programs in the Americas. She was formerly the archivist for the Cuban Heritage Collection at the University of Miami Libraries.
The Diversity Award was established in 2011. Previous recipients include the Shorefront Legacy Center (Evanston, Illinois), the Samuel Proctor Oral History Program at the University of Florida, Recovering the U.S. Hispanic Literary Heritage Program at the University of Houston and Jennifer O'Neal of the University of Oregon Libraries.
Founded in 1936, the Society of American Archivists is North America’s oldest and largest national archival professional association. SAA’s mission is to serve the educational and informational needs of more than 6,200 individual and institutional members and to provide leadership to ensure the identification, preservation and use of records of historical value. For more information, visit the SAA website and the Desmantelando Fronteras/Breaking Down Borders website.
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