Seeing as it is January 15, I don’t think that I am too late to share a recap of my first semester at Simmons. I taught two classes: LIS438 “Introduction to Archival Methods and Services”, and LIS448 “Digital Stewardship.” Both courses were very interesting and I felt more comfortable as the semester progressed. Despite some technical difficulties with using software we all made it through successfully- truly the joys of academic computing know no bounds…but that’s a topic or another post. My students were great and I was pleased to see many of them engaging the material deeply and producing solid work on their assignments.
In addition to teaching, I spent some time visiting new places around Boston and connecting with new colleagues in the area. I went to the JFK Library for the first time as well as the Massachusetts State Archives, Massachusetts Historical Society, and the Simmons University Archives just across the quad from my office. Thanks to everyone at these institutions for welcoming me and showing me around!
Back in September, I hosted a Teach-In on Climate Change and Archives at Simmons. This was the start of a conversation in our field that demands our full attention and I am grateful to the work of Itza Carbajal and the ProjectARCC folks for putting together such a great set of resources to facilitate these conversations. The teach-in was a success with local archivists joining SLIS students and faculty in our discussions about the future of archives on a warming planet and the role of memory work in the 21st century. Our event in Boston was just one in a global network and was featured in Archival Outlook.
That concludes a non-exhaustive list of what I got into during fall term. It’s exciting to feel more connected to a new regional archival community and I can’t wait to see what this season will bring. I’ll leave you with a longform article recommendation that a friend shared with me, A scandal in Oxford: the curious case of the stolen gospel. It combines so many of my favorite things: Classics, archives, ethically grey antiquities markets, and Oxford. Enjoy!