Kenneth Spencer Research Library

This is the sixth installment in what will be a recurring series of posts introducing readers to the staff of the Kenneth Spencer Research Library. Deborah Dandridge is the Field Archivist/Curator for the African American Experience Collections in our Kansas Collection.

Deborah Dandridge reading over her presentation notes
at the Black Archives of Mid-America conference held in
Kansas City, MO this past October.

Where are you from?

I was born in Topeka, Kansas, where I attended school K through 12. I began kindergarten at Washington School, one of the city’s four elementary schools designated for African American students and teachers. After the 1954 Brown v. Topeka Board of Education U.S. Supreme Court decision, I completed my grade school education at Washington because my parents determined that Washington’s excellent faculty and supportive environment afforded me the best opportunity for a quality education, although I lived only a half block from a previous whites-only school.

What does your job at Spencer entail?

I reach out to communities across the state for donations of their historical materials (i.e. written and photographic) that document the experiences of African American families, churches, organizations, and businesses and I serve as curator of these materials (i.e. the African American Experience Collections).

How did you come to work at Spencer Research Library?

I began my work in KSRL as field archivist for a 1986-1989 National Historical Publications and Records Commission grant awarded to the Kansas Collection, in cooperation with KU’s African and African American Studies department.

What is the strangest item you’ve come across in Spencer’s collections?

All of the items reflect important experiences in the lives of the donors. They represent special moments or routine activities of the past that inform us about the present.

What part of your job do you like the most?

Visiting with potential donors of materials and participating in community public programs across the Kansas region.

What are your favorite pastimes?

Although it’s difficult, I’m enjoying my new journey into the world of physical training as a client of an expert in the field.

What piece of advice would you offer a researcher walking into Spencer Research Library for the first time?

Be prepared to embark upon a fascinating, never seen before, exploration of the rich, diverse record of human past.

Deborah Dandridge
Field Archivist/Curator
African American Experience Collections
Kansas Collection

This is the fifth installment in what will be a recurring series of posts introducing readers to the staff of the Kenneth Spencer Research Library. Joining us in October 2015, Marcella Huggard is Spencer’s newest team member; she’s the Manuscript Processing Coordinator.

Marcella Huggard working with materials in the beginning stages of being processed
in what is lovingly referred to as Smaug’s Cave.

Where are you from?

I grew up in Valparaiso, Indiana, which is what I like to call a suburb of a suburb of Chicago. Since then I’ve lived in Illinois, Colorado, and Kansas. My mom is from Topeka so I came to Kansas a lot as a kid for family reunions.

What does your job at Spencer entail?

I’m in charge of coordinating the processing of the unpublished manuscript materials at Spencer. This includes personal papers, diaries, correspondence, business records, organizational records, and a wide variety of other materials that can be found in the personal papers of KU alumni and faculty, the Kansas Collection devoted to regional history mostly dating from 1854-onward, and the Special Collections.

Processing entails arranging and describing these collections of materials in order to make them more easily available to our researchers and to let our patrons know what we actually have. Often we receive collections in a fair amount of disarray, and we have to make order out of chaos—and describe that order—so that our patrons know what we have even before they come in our doors.

How did you come to work in special collections and archives?

I was in my junior year of college and trying to figure out what I wanted to do after college—I knew I didn’t want to teach, but I also wanted to use my history degree. My college’s career center helped me find an internship at a nearby historic house museum, and the following fall I got to do an internship at my college’s archives, among other duties transcribing the 1820s love letters of Eli Farnham, one of the college’s founders, and his future wife. After that kind of introduction to working with historical materials, I was hooked. I worked on my Masters at Colorado State University-Fort Collins, where I was able to concentrate both on museum studies and archives administration in order to broaden my career opportunities.

What is the strangest item you’ve come across in Spencer’s collections?

I haven’t yet gotten to dive too deeply into the collections here—I started working at Spencer in late October—but I did come across an accession document for an inkwell I have yet to track down. I was also just introduced to a mask worn by Moses Gunn in Titus Andronicus.

What part of your job do you like best?

I really enjoy solving problems, and processing archival materials is a series of problem-solving!

What are your favorite pastimes outside of work?

My husband and I love to ballroom dance (not that we’re any good, mind you). I also sing with the Lawrence Civic Choir and a small group of women called Heartland Harmony operating out of Topeka, and I really enjoy trying out new crockpot recipes.

What piece of advice would you offer a researcher walking into Spencer Research Library for the first time?

The advice I offer to any researcher wherever I work that I think applies here at Spencer too is try to touch base with a Public Services staff member before you come—at least start looking at the catalog and finding aids so you have a good idea of what might be available for you to review. Letting our staff know you’re coming before you get here is always a great idea because they can give you lots of great information about what to expect when you arrive and can help you fill out your research requests, streamlining the process when you come to the library so you can dive right in!

Marcella Huggard
Archives and Manuscripts Processing Coordinator

This is the fourth installment in what will be a recurring series of posts introducing readers to the staff of the Kenneth Spencer Research Library. Joining the Conservation Services unit in Summer 2015, Angela Andres is the new Assistant Conservator for Special Collections.

Angela hard at work in the conservation lab.
Click image to enlarge.

Where are you from?

My hometown is Belvidere, Illinois (the north central part of the state, near Rockford), but I came to Lawrence from New York City, where I’d lived for ten years. In between I lived in California, Philadelphia, and Madison, Wisconsin.

What does your job at Spencer entail?

I treat and preserve materials in Spencer’s collections to ensure their availability to both present and future library patrons.

How did you come to work as a conservator?

As a graduate student in library school, I had a work-study job in my school’s conservation lab. I had a background in studio art and book arts, and I realized that conservation was a field where my hand skills and my interest in library service could be combined.

What do you like most about being a conservator?

I greatly enjoy solving the unique problems presented by each treatment and project. Academic library collections are so diverse that every day is different and there is always something new to learn in the process of treating such varied materials.

What advice would you give to someone interested in becoming a conservator?

There are many types of conservators and different paths to a conservation career, but I’d suggest starting at the website of the American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works (AIC), the national professional organization. There’s a section called “Become a Conservator” that is a great starting point.

What piece of advice would you offer a researcher walking into Spencer Research Library for the first time?

Just ask! The staff at Spencer are so friendly and will be happy to help you discover Spencer’s collections.

Angela M. Andres
Assistant Conservator for Special Collections

This is the third installment in what will be a recurring series of posts introducing readers to the staff of the Kenneth Spencer Research Library. In this post we posit questions to Beth Whittaker, Assistant Dean for Distinctive Collections and Director of Spencer Research Library.

Beth M. Whittaker

Where are you from?

I grew up in Overland Park, Kansas, attended KU, and have lived several different places before returning to Lawrence.

What does your job at Spencer entail?

My position description says I “provide leadership, vision, and direction for the distinctive collections programs, services, and resources of the Libraries, enhancing and promoting the unique research, teaching, and learning opportunities these collections offer.”

Essentially I am here to help my colleagues get what they need to make our collections available for students, scholars, and the public. I set priorities and help get exciting initiatives off the ground.

How did you come to work in special collections and archives?

I actually began working in special collections as a student assistant here at the Spencer over twenty years ago. I came in one day to examine a manuscript for my master’s thesis, and I saw a job announcement. Within a year, I decided that special collections libraries were where I wanted to be. I’ve been fortunate enough to work in several different libraries before returning to where it all began, the Kenneth Spencer Research Library!

What part of your job do you like best?

I get to tell the story of the Spencer Library every day, in some way or another. I love talking to people; no one who knows me would argue with that!

What are your favorite pastimes outside of work?

I love being outdoors, and am an enthusiastic do-it-yourselfer around the house. I spend most of my time outside of work with my family. I’m also very excited when I can get somewhere on my new scooter.

What piece of advice would you offer a researcher walking into Spencer Research Library for the first time?

Probably what I’m sure most of my colleagues have said in previous posts: we are here to help. I remember what it’s like the first time you walk into a research library like this. These are YOUR collections as much as they are ours.

Beth M. Whittaker
Assistant Dean for Distinctive Collections
Director of Spencer Research Library

This is the second installment in what will be a recurring series of posts introducing readers to the staff of the Kenneth Spencer Research Library. Joining us in October 2014, Mindy Babarskis is Spencer’s newest team member; she’s a Public Services Library Assistant and the Supply Coordinator for the library.

Library Assistant Mindy Babarskis where you’ll find her most often: Spencer’s reception desk.

Where are you from?

I’m from Berkley, Michigan, but I was living in Tallahassee, Florida, before I moved to Lawrence.

What does your job at Spencer entail?

I oversee the reception desk at Spencer. This means I am the first point of contact for patrons and visitors. I make sure they feel welcome and help them register to enter the Reading Room. Besides reception, I’m also responsible for ordering office supplies for the library and maintaining the staff schedule for reference desk duty. Also, I’m currently being trained on providing reference assistance to researchers in the Reading Room.

How did you come to work in special collections and archives?

I have my Master of Library and Information Science degree, and I’ve previously worked in public and academic libraries. I also have a bachelor’s in history, so this library and its collections fascinated me. Therefore, I applied for this position and they decided to hire me!

What is the strangest item you’ve come across in Spencer’s collections?

There are a lot of interesting items in Spencer, but one of the strangest to me is an open letter written to President Ronald Reagan from our Wilcox Collection. In this letter the author is berating Reagan for being too old and falling asleep during Cabinet meetings. I just found that to be an odd reason to be angry at Reagan.

What part of your job do you like best?

I love interacting with visitors and discovering where they’re from and what brought them to Spencer Library. Some people have fascinating stories! Two of my favorite patrons were a couple of researchers from Mexico City who were using our Griffith collection and specifically studying our documents from Guatemala. They were here for two weeks during the winter and got to experience snow for the first time! It was wonderful to see how invaluable our collections are to people around the world.

What are your favorite pastimes outside of work?

I’m a voracious reader. Lately, I’ve been heading back to my roots and catching up on science fiction and fantasy classics. I also love to bake and garden, although unfortunately I’m without a garden right now.

What piece of advice would you offer a researcher walking into Spencer Research Library for the first time?

Don’t be afraid to ask for help and make sure you give yourself enough time for research. I think most people underestimate the research process and how time-intensive it is. Luckily, there is always a reference librarian at the desk to help you navigate the process, so don’t be afraid to ask for assistance.

Mindy Babarskis
Library Assistant and Supply Coordinator