CAS Reflection
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Jennifer Wiley reflects on her educational and career path that led her to pursue a Certificate of Advanced Study in Cultural Heritage Preservation at Syracuse University. She describes taking various courses in the program, including archives management and museum studies, that provided both classroom knowledge and hands-on experience through internships. Wiley feels the CAS program has given her valuable skills and exposure to different cultural heritage institutions that will help her develop a successful career in a field she is passionate about.
CAS Reflection
- 1. Jennifer Wiley CAS Cultural Heritage Preservation Reflection Paper From the time I was in the eighth grade I planned on going into architectural preservation. I entered the University of Virginia in the fall of 2005 having already declared my major as architectural history. Everything was right on track until I hit the biggest roadblock of my life in the fall semester of my second year: design studio. A requirement for my planned degree, I quickly discovered that I just didn’t have the skin for such a field. However, I had never even considered a different path and struggled through the spring semester that year to find an alternative route. Over the course of my third year I decided on Classics with a focus in Latin, having taken it from seventh grade through twelfth. Though not as interested in the actual language, I had always been fascinated by the history of Ancient Rome. But again I was facing a roadblock. What on earth was I going to do with a BA in Latin? I certainly had no interest in teaching or in pursuing a PhD for it. Somehow the answer fell into my lap. In a search for a job over the summer between my third and fourth years at UVA, I applied for a job as a student digitization assistant in the Small Special Collections Library on campus. Although I had no previous experience in any sort of library position, I quickly fell in love with working with the range of rare materials, especially the manuscript collections. When I graduated in 2009, I was no longer eligible to work in the library, but my supervisor recommended me for a summer internship at a nearby historical society building a database for and properly storing their museum collection. By the end of that summer, I was sure I had finally found the right field for me. Although my various paths seem at first to be drastically different, at the core they are all centered on a passion not just for history, but for preserving it and making it accessible to a wide
- 2. audience. When I began hearing back from schools for pursuing my graduate degree in library science, Syracuse made the decision for me. Dr. Lavender contacted me after having looked over my application to inform me of a program he thought would be of interest to me based on my past experiences. The moment I began to read the description of the certificate of advanced study in cultural heritage preservation, I knew I would be going to Syracuse. I really liked the way it combined library science, museums, and anthropology and the way it avoided pigeonholing candidates by leaving the title applicable to any version of the field. With the CAS, I would be eligible for work in archives, museums, special collections libraries, and any number of nontraditional institutions. I have found all of the classes I have taken with Dr. Lavender to be extremely valuable. My favorite was IST 628 Organization and Management of Archives Collections, a course Dr. Lavender strongly recommended I take. Not only did I find the content extremely interesting, but the final project of building an archival collection and preparing the documentation for it was arguably the most valuable project I completed over the course of my entire graduate degree. I feel that learning how to properly process the collection, describe the collection, develop forms for the collection, and finally write an EAD finding aid for the collection will all be of tremendous value to me in my future career. Outside of the library science department, I found MUS 500 Museums and Contemporary Practice to be eye opening. Over the course of the class, I saw first hand how individuals with a background in library and information science could find various ways to develop a career in a museum environment. By looking at a large range of institutions, I became aware of many alternative routes I could look into following to find the best option for my own career. While
- 3. Dr. Lavender’s courses gave me valuable hands-on experience, this course offered me a valuable take on just how far outside of the norm my career could take me. I’ve also gained equally valuable experience outside the classroom through the required internship hours for the CAS as well as through volunteering for institutions that I learned of through my courses. Due to the size of the collection I was tasked with processing for my internship for IST 971 at the Special Collections Research Center on campus, I chose to stay with the same position for the full 300 credit hours required. Using the classroom knowledge I gained from IST 628, I surveyed, processed, documented, and boxed the bulk of the “Ben Shaktman Papers” collection over the summer and fall semesters of 2011. While there I got great exposure to what kind of successes arise and the kind of problems that must be faced while processing a collection in the real world. The biggest struggle we had was time. While I was hoping to be able to finish the entire collection and create the EAD finding aid, I eventually had to face the reality that it was just not feasible in the time I was allotted. Because of this, I had to prioritize parts of the collection above others and readjust the amount of time dedicated to each part. I was still, however, able to process a large portion of the collection to either the box or folder level (depending on the series) and helped make some important decisions on what would be kept or returned to the donor. In the end, my experiences at SCRC ended up being a factor in my getting a position as an archivist intern for a senator in Washington, DC starting a few days after graduation. There I will be helping to process 25 years worth of documentation in preparation for being sent to an offsite repository. Within the various courses taken toward the CAS, I also was exposed to many different institutions in and around Syracuse. Not only did this offer me example after example of the different kinds of cultural heritage institutions that could eventually be a career choice for me,
- 4. but it also lead to two very valuable volunteering positions. Between February and May of 2011, I volunteered for the Onondaga Historical Association doing research for their revitalized “Heart of New York” exhibit. Combining outside research with onsite research using the museum’s collections, I gathered information on the various ethnic enclaves around the city of Syracuse, the many annual festivals celebrating the ethnic histories of the people of Syracuse, the histories of several ethnic churches, and information about the LGBT community in Syracuse. I then wrote text to be used for the exhibits and handouts, gathered items from the museum’s collection to be used in the exhibit, and even traveled around the city taking pictures of relevant subjects for the exhibit. This experience in the work that goes into creating and installing an exhibit will be of great value to me should I end up working in a museum or museum library, but also for the exhibits done in special collections libraries and archives. I am also currently volunteering at the Erie Canal Museum, creating and updating catalog records for items in their manuscript collection. Additionally, I am providing condition statements and re-housing items in need as I go. This has again offered me exposure to yet another aspect to the field that I have had limited real life experience with before that will undoubtedly be necessary for my career down the line. Finally, I need to add that the networking opportunities provided through my internship and volunteer work have been invaluable to me, having used many of those I’ve worked with as references in my job hunt. The CAS in Cultural Heritage Preservation sealed the deal for my coming to Syracuse University for my MLIS and it has not let me down. I have no doubt that the knowledge I have gained both in my coursework and out of the classroom experiences will not only be beneficial to my future career, but necessary. I feel that this experience has complimented not only my MLIS, but my undergraduate studies and personal interests and helped me hone in on a career that will
- 5. not only open multiple doors for me, but will give me a sense of accomplishment working in a field I truly enjoy.