Tag Archives: Interns

New Archives Intern: Brittany Peretiako

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Today’s post is an introduction from Brittany Peretiako, our newest intern here in the Archives who will be working on helping us digitize materials and clean metadata in preparation for larger-scale digitization projects.

My name is Brittany Peretiako, and I am excited to join you all as an intern. As a brief introduction, I am originally from Santa Barbara, CA. I have three siblings, one brother and two sisters. My brother lives out in Arizona, and my sisters live in Emeryville. I moved to the bay area about three years ago to attend UC Berkeley where I earned my bachelor’s degree studying US history with a focus on human rights issues.

Currently, I live in Concord, CA with my husband Ivan and our one year old son Emery. We have another addition to our family on the way, who will be arriving in November. As a family, we love to spend time outside exploring the bay. One of our favorite activities is hiking, and we are always looking for new trails to take.

I am enrolled in an online archives and records administration graduate program through San Jose State University. Although I am only in my first year, I have learned so much already and cannot wait to see what lies ahead. During my time as an intern here, I will be working on metadata clean-up and digitization. I may also have the opportunity to participate in web archiving. I was drawn to this position because it provides me with an opportunity to apply the skills I am learning in school to real-world tasks. Much of my schoolwork involves simply learning the importance of items such as metadata and digitization, but does not provide the ability to actually do hands-on work.

I look forward to getting to know all of you better over the next three months! 

New Archives Intern: Harold Hardin

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Harold Hardin is joining us in Archives & Special Collections this spring to work on finishing the NEH grant-funded project The San Francisco Bay Area’s Response to the AIDS Epidemic. Harold will be helping QA digital objects among other tasks related to the digitization workflow.

Harold Hardin is a current student in Cuesta Colleges’ Library/Information Technology program and San Francisco City College’s Paralegal Studies program. While pursuing a double major in Sociology/Critical Race Ethnic Studies at UC Santa Cruz Harold developed an academic interest in the often hidden and occluded histories of marginalized communities, particularly histories of oppression and resistance. Through their own experiences of political activism at UC Santa Cruz and beyond (#Blacklivesmatter Oakland/ Stockton, GaySHAME SF) Harold has insisted on moving iteratively between theory and praxis: centering an intersectional feminist analysis of power. 

These analytical lenses and political participation increased Harold’s consciousness regarding the fundamental ways in which access to information (particularly personal/community histories) profoundly shapes participation in our democracy (or lack thereof). Harold is interested in the nuances of political participation and uncovering the innumerable sites of quotidian resistance! Therefore, Harold sees their internship within UCSF’s AIDS History Project as not only a unique privilege to work toward increasing community access to Queer history, but also, and importantly,  an extension of the deeply personal (political) work of (re)understanding their multiple positions within (and outside) of the Archives.

New Internship Posting: Digitization and Metadata Intern

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We’re recruiting for a Digitization and Metadata Intern! If you’re currently or recently enrolled in an LIS (or other) program and are interested in working on some of our super cool digitization, web-archiving, and metadata creation projects we want to hear from you!

The Digitization and Metadata Intern may work any any number of projects, but some of the possibilities we’re most excited about are:

  • Creating and cleaning metadata for our project to digitize the stunning set of drawings, paintings, sketches, and photos in the Ralph Sweet Collection of Medical Illustrations.
  • Helping to coordinate and carry out capture of UCSF websites as part of our ongoing effort to overhaul our extensive UCSF web-archives collection.
  • Assisting with metadata clean up efforts in collaboration with represented community groups, such as with the Black Caucus records.
  • Scanning and digitizing historical documents and images requested by our patrons.

Read more about this internship and apply: here. We’re excited to share this work with someone and give prospective candidates opportunity to learn about medical archives.

Type-written text of an index to a collection of medical illustrations.

Internship Opportunities

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UCSF Library Archives and Special Collections has 2 new internship opportunities.

Archives Intern for AIDS History

The San Francisco Bay Area’s Response to the AIDS Epidemic: Digitizing, Reuniting and Providing Universal Access to Historical AIDS Records.

The Archives Intern for AIDS History will be assigned various tasks to assist in completion of the project including performing Quality Control checks on digitized papers, digital objects and metadata. Candidate should be a student or recent graduate from a library or information science program, preferably with a concentration or interest in archives and special collections. Students of public history, and history of health sciences are also encouraged to apply. This is a part time temporary appointment.
Department: Archives and Special Collections
Rank and Salary: Library Intern – $15/hr
Term: 150 hours Fall 2018 – Spring 2019

Project Description

The Archives and Special Collections department of the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) Library, in collaboration with the San Francisco Public Library (SFPL) and the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender (GLBT) Historical Society, has been awarded a $315,000 implementation grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. The collaborating institutions will digitize about 127,000 pages from 49 archival collections related to the early days of the AIDS epidemic in the San Francisco Bay Area and make them widely accessible to the public online. In the process, collections whose components had been placed in different archives for various reasons will be digitally reunited, facilitating access for researchers outside the Bay Area.
 The 127,000 pages from the three archives range from handwritten correspondence and notebooks to typed reports and agency records to printed magazines. Also included are photographic prints, negatives, transparencies, and posters. The materials will be digitized by the University of California, Merced Library’s Digital Assets Unit, which has established a reputation for digitizing information resources so that they can be made available to the world via the web. All items selected for digitization will be carefully examined to address any privacy concerns. The digital files generated by this project will be disseminated broadly through the California Digital Library, with the objects freely accessible to the public through both Calisphere, operated by the University of California, and the Digital Public Library of America, which will have an AIDS history primary sources set.

Skills and experience desired:

  • Strong candidates will be detail oriented and possess excellent organizational skills
  • Proficiency  with MS Excel and Google spreadsheets
  • Proficiency with document sharing and cloud computing services (Google drive, Box)
  • Experience with digital asset management systems
  • Ability to work independently
  • Ability to lift boxes weighing up to 40 pounds.

Hours and Location:

The timing of the internship is flexible, but should be carried out during the Fall of 2018 and ending early Spring 2019,  based on applicant and institutional commitments.  Up to two 8-hour days per week for 10-12 weeks. Work will be performed onsite at the library, though offsite work is possible.

Stipend:

A stipend of $15/hour is available for the internship. 

To Apply:

Applications for the UCSF Archives & Special Collections Internship, including a cover letter, resume, and names/contact info of two references should be sent to 
David Krah, Project Archivist 
UCSF Archives and Special Collections
University of California, San Francisco
530 Parnassus Avenue
San Francisco, CA 94143-0840
Apply for this position

Digital Processing and Implementation Intern

The Digital Processing and Implementation Intern will assist the UCSF Digital Archivist with various aspects of the Digital Archives program as they are implemented and brought online for the first time. Potential projects include:

  • Testing digital forensics and processing hardware and software being implemented in the digital forensics lab.
  • Compiling inventory of physical archival collections containing digital media, and pulling collections and identifying, counting, and cataloging digital media present.
  • Disk-imaging digital media removed from collections and transferring data to library storage systems.
  • Creating metadata about digital media being processed in digital forensics lab, editing metadata for various digitization or cataloging projects.
  • Operating scanning equipment to digitize archival collections for patron and researcher use.
  • Processing digital collections under the supervision of the Digital Archivist, including finding aid and container list creation and manipulation of access copies of born-digital content to create access-ready versions of collection.
  • Researching computer tools and systems for management and preservation of digital objects, and compiling and reporting on capabilities, requirements, dependencies, etc. of these utilities.
  • Participate in staff meetings, assist with writing blog posts, and help with reference/duplication requests.
Department: Archives and Special Collections
Rank and Salary: Library Intern – $15/hr
Term: 150 – 200 hours Fall 2018 – Spring 2019

Location

UCSF Library and Center for Knowledge Management,
530 Parnassus Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94143-0840

Work Type

Archival Processing, Information Technology, Computer Science

Work To Be Done

On site, with occasional opportunities to work from home or other location

Desired Qualifications

  • Experience with ArchivesSpace, Nuxeo or other archival collections management software
  • Experience with or interest in digital preservation, digital file formats and media, computer science, or history of computing technologies
  • Experience with or interest in digital forensics in archival collections and various digital forensics tools, such as FTK Imager and BitCurator
  • Familiarity with scripting, computer programming in any language, Unix.
  • Excellent analytical and writing skills
  • High level of accuracy and attention to detail
  • Ability to work independently
  • Ability to lift boxes weighing up to 40 pounds

Stipend

A stipend of $15/hour is available for the internship. The internship is intended for those who are currently enrolled in an undergraduate/graduate program.

Hours

Up to two 8-hour days per week for 10-12 weeks. Specific on-site hours are negotiable, but must be completed between 8:00 a.m.  and 5:00 pm Monday through Friday. Start and end dates are flexible.

Application Process

Please submit a letter of interest, a current resume and contact information for two professional references to:

Charles Macquarie
Digital Archivist
UCSF Archives and Special Collections
University of California, San Francisco
530 Parnassus Avenue
San Francisco, CA 94143-0840

Apply for this position

The UCSF Library is committed to a culture of inclusion and respect. We embrace diversity of thought, experience, and people as a source of strength which is critical to our success. We encourage candidates to apply who thrive in an environment which celebrates and serves our diverse communities.

Equal Employment Opportunity
The University of California San Francisco is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, protected veteran or disabled status, or genetic information.

About UCSF
The University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) is a leading university dedicated to promoting health worldwide through advanced biomedical research, graduate-level education in the life sciences and health professions, and excellence in patient care. It is the only campus in the 10-campus UC system dedicated exclusively to the health sciences.

About UCSF Archives and Special Collections
UCSF Archives & Special Collections is a dynamic health sciences research center that contributes to innovative scholarship, actively engages users through educational activities, preserves past knowledge, enables collaborative research experiences to address contemporary challenges, and translates scientific research into patient care.

Intern Report: Learning to Process Collections

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This is a guest post by Lauren Wolters, UCSF Archives Intern.

I have recently completed my internship working in the UCSF Archives and Special Collections. I really enjoyed the challenge of a new experience and learned a tremendous amount in my short time working there.

During my internship I was able to complete several processing and arrangement projects. I created two finding aids, one for the Langley Porter Psychiatric Institute records and another for the files of Bernice Hemphill, longtime head of the Irwin Memorial Blood Bank.

I appreciated the opportunity to learn from an archival mentor and gain practical experience by independently processing each collection and working with tangible materials. It was very satisfying being able to contribute to the preservation of these documents and their history and help make them more accessible for future use. I look forward to being able to pursue future endeavors with an informed understanding of the archival process.

New Archives Intern: Marissa Nadeau

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Today’s post is an introduction from Marissa Nadeau, our newest intern here in the Archives. She will be working on the upcoming exhibit, Open Wide: 500 Years of Dentistry in Art.

Marissa Nadeau is from the town of Brookfield, Connecticut, and has lived along the East Coast her entire life. Transferring from a university down in South Carolina to one in Connecticut, Marissa ended up receiving her Bachelor of Arts from New York University, majoring in Art History with a double minor in Italian and Creative Writing (2016). During her time in NYC, Marissa interned in galleries and non-profits throughout the Chelsea neighborhood, most notably C24 Gallery and The Kitchen; she helped expand their social media platforms and fell in love with curatorial work by getting the chance to work closely with the team’s curator and contemporary artists. Marissa had the opportunity to study in Florence, Italy, for a semester (2015), which allowed her to adopt a global perspective of museums and the art market.

Marissa uprooted her East Coast ties and moved to San Francisco to follow her passion of pursuing curatorial work, and is currently a Masters candidate in the University of San Francisco’s Museum Studies program. She co-curated Modern Myth: South Asian Modern and Contemporary Works on Paper at the school’s Thacher Gallery in 2017, and has been interning with the Bay Area’s FOR-SITE Foundation since January 2018.

Marissa is excited for her newest role as a Curatorial Intern at the UCSF Archives & Special Collections and she looks forward to gaining a better understanding of archival best practices, while putting her theoretical knowledge to the test. She will be assisting with research, design, and installation of the upcoming exhibit, Open Wide: 500 Years of Dentistry in Art, opening this summer in the Library.

New Archives Intern: Lauren Wolters

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Lauren Wolters

Lauren Wolters is a rising junior undergraduate student at Skidmore College. She is double majoring in History and Psychology and is interested in learning the basics of archival theory and practice. Being a history major, Lauren is fascinated by old artifacts and is excited to have the unique opportunity to work with collections that are not always available to the public eye. Currently, she has been assisting by taking inventory of a collection of photographs and organizing a digital list of metadata. Eventually, she will be transitioning to aid on a project relating to the Langley Porter Psychiatric Institute Records. This project is perfectly tailored towards both of her interests as it combines her two majors.

Lauren was born and raised in San Francisco, CA. She plays volleyball at Skidmore College and enjoys photography as a hobby. Lauren is enjoying working in the library with the archivists and looks forward to learning even more about the archives.

Volunteer Report: The Papers of Robert Langley Porter

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This is a guest post by Seth Cotterell, UCSF Archives Volunteer.

As a UCSF Archives volunteer, I get to play an important supporting role in achieving our mission to identify and provide access to rare and unique material and support research and teaching of the health sciences, medical humanities, and the history of UCSF. Toward that end I have been updating old records and creating new ones that will result in making new, detailed finding aids for collections available online to researchers soon. You’ll have to come back for my next guest blog post to hear the details of that project, though. Today I thought I’d share with you a sneak peek at one of those collections.

If you’re familiar with the history of UCSF you’ve probably heard of Robert Langley Porter. Dr. Porter was a pediatrician and later served as dean of the UC School of Medicine from 1927-1940. He may be best known for spearheading the creation of the Langley Porter Institute, today called the Langley Porter Psychiatric Hospital and Clinics, which receives more than 20,000 visits per year. Of course, this is the kind of information you can get from any web search. What I love about archival research, what you don’t find anywhere else, is the added insight. It’s the glimpse into the mind of the creator, the display of personality, and the richness of character captured in archival collections. For example, did you know that Dr. Porter was also a poet, sometimes writing verses on the back of Office of the Dean letterhead? This collection includes a love sonnet, a poem about potatoes, and this one which he apparently wrote in the bath!

Poem by Robert Langley Porter, 1924. Porter papers, MSS 77-11. Carton 1, folder 6.

Research is about so much more than simply gathering and reporting data points. Where else but in an archival collection could you expect to find a historical figure’s musings on the great questions, like what is life and what separates human beings from animals and microscopic organisms, next to guidelines for managing the “behavior abnormalities of children,” alongside the outline for an opera he wrote starring a Pan-like deity symbolizing the antithesis of materialism and destruction of nature? Spoiler alert: all this and more can be found in just the miscellaneous writings folders of this collection. And I, for one, would love to know in what context he used these jokes:

From miscellaneous writings (1), Porter papers, MSS 77-11. Carton 1, folder 14.

One of the most interesting items in the collection for me is a scrapbook that may have been given to Porter on the occasion of his retirement. Included are heartfelt and humorous well wishes from students and colleagues that give us an idea of the impact he had on those around him, not just as a highly respected professional in his field, but as a genuine human being.

Scrapbook, Porter papers, MSS 77-1. Oversize folder 1.

I look forward to continuing to work with our fascinating collections and to improving accessibility by publishing a number of new finding aids in the very near future for your viewing pleasure.

UC 150th Anniversary Highlight: Jay Levy

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This is a guest post by Edith Martinez, UCSF Archives Volunteer.

The University of California is celebrating its 150th anniversary this year. Over the 150 years, the UC campuses have accomplished great things that have changed California and the world for the better. To commemorate the anniversary, a 150 year timeline has been created that features the history and accomplishments of the UC and its students, faculty, and staff.

One of the accomplishments that stood out to me was that of UCSF’s Jay Levy. Jay Levy, virologist and immunologist, became the third independent discoverer of the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), the virus that causes AIDS. Levy received a request for advice about a patient with rare skin cancer lesions which led him to research the virus. His work led to better treatments for the disease and he has dedicated his career to further understanding HIV/AIDS.

Jay Levy

UCSF remains at the center of HIV/AIDS research and patient care. As a volunteer with the UCSF Archives, I am working on the NHPRC-funded grant, Evolution of San Francisco’s Response to a Public Health Crisis: Providing Access to New AIDS History Collections, an expansion of the AIDS History Project. I have learned the important role that UCSF has played in research and treatment and will continue to play in finding the cure for AIDS.