Archives and Special Collections

Archives, Historical Records, Special Collections

More Co-op Reflections

Following the first set of Co-op reflections, yesterday, today we present our fellow Library Co-ops, Colin Parmalee, Archives Co-Op, Anthony Gentles, DMDS Co-op, and Kyle Maguire, Library Technology Services Co-op, sharing their Co-op experience over the past semester at the Snell Library as well — Karly Colin: I worked as the co-op student for the archives. I did a variety of work for the archives, mostly working on projects that last anywhere from a few hours to over a week. One of the major projects I worked on involved picking up a new donated collection, which involved going off-site and boxing and labeling the collection. I also worked on sifting through and describing new donations for press releases and for further archiving work. Most of my work involved current collections, going through unlabeled donations and adding descriptions. I learned a significant amount from this work, chiefly the prep work necessary for archiving materials as well as the process by which collections and processed and housed for the archives. The most unexpected part (which, coincidentally, was also the best part) about working on the various projects was finding tidbits of history among these collections. Going through photo collections I would find recognizable historical figures or letters penned by famous people, which was fascinating. This is also what I’ll remember most, such as stumbling upon pictures of the Patriots from the 1970’s, or Reggie Lewis, or a letter from John F. Kennedy to an alum. Fascinating nuggets of history in the archives. In terms of advice to future co-ops, I would say that this is a great co-op for someone who hopes to work in a library or in a historical/archival position in the future. There’s a lot of great experience here and it’ll really help you going forward.   Anthony: I began working as a co-op for the Digital Media Design Studio (or DMDS for short) during the first week of January 2012. There were several areas of the job that I were unsure about when I first began working (such as checking out equipment, certain answers for questions patrons had, rules and regulations for the recording room, etc.). However, the answers to these uncertainties all became very familiar after watching my supervisors handle the circumstances for a while. Once the basics were learned, the job became fairly easy. Nearly all of the students who used the DMDS had similar questions and concerns as other students who came in. There were rarely moments when I asked Jonathan or Thomas for assistance because I did not know the answers myself. It was definitely a great feeling helping these students with their projects. It were as if I was teaching them skills they would have never learned while in the courses related to their specific majors. Outside of answering questions whenever they would arise, I was also in charge of occasionally teaching workshops. These workshops were basic introductions to the editing software that we offered at the DMDS. Though many students are still unaware that the Library offers workshops for these programs, the students who did come into the DMDS were excited to be introduced to such programs. When workshops were not scheduled, often students would come to me for one-on-one help with these programs (generally for Final Cut Pro). I was also involved with various media production projects for the Library and DMDS. My first major project involved creating an introduction video for the DMDS. This became a huge learning process for me, as well as the other members of the DMDS (in regards to having a smooth production schedule/process). This video took an unnecessarily longer timespan finish, due to much back-and-forth viewings of the video. After the project was finally complete, the DMDS and other members of the library came together to form a new system for future production projects. This new system was used in another media project I participated in (for the Library and Charlotte campus). The process for this video ran much smoother and efficiently in comparison to the first, proving our new system to be a success. I also created several posters and snippets for the Library/DMDS, which can be seen among the hallways and corridors of the library. All in all, I would recommend this co-op position to any student who is interested or involved in media work. There is much that can be learned from your peers that work in the DMDS, as well as through your own personal training. The job will provide ample time to enhance your skills in a program you are familiar with, as well as educate you in new areas that may be less familiar.   Kyle: I wasn’t sure what to expect when I first arrived at the library for my co-op. Never having worked in a library, I honestly wasn’t expecting much. I was pleasantly surprised. As I became more involved I began to realize what goes into organizing and maintaining a library, something that I would never have stopped to consider before coming here. I’m sure there will soon be a day where my friends laugh at me as I ramble on about the intricacy of library systems. The project I’ve been involved with (the Digital Repository Service) is incredibly interesting and fun to work on. I cannot imagine a learning environment more suited to my needs. I was able to work very independently on the project and make design decisions on the fly, guided by the basic requirements for the system given to me by Patrick. This freedom, while initially daunting, required me to teach myself as I discovered new challenges and it really pushed me to expand and improve upon my skill-set. I’ve greatly expanded upon my knowledge of PHP and JavaScript and I’ve picked up a lot of new knowledge about Linux systems and web servers, an area I had previously steered clear of. Not only did I gain these technical skills but I also improved upon my ability to organize and plan systems. The freedom given to me, along with the scale of the project, really let me practice this, as there were no strict specifications for what we were creating. The fact that I was only here temporarily also contributed to these gains, as I needed to document my work very clearly and create the pieces of the system modularly for future uses and implementations. To any co-ops that come after me, I’d recommend that you be a fast learner and be able to make decisions independently and intelligently. Because the LTS department is relatively small, you need to be able to fend for yourself to an extent. If you’re up for it, though, it’s an incredible benefit of the position to be able to guide your own learning experience. I also want to thank everyone here for being so warm and welcoming. Much thanks to Patrick for trusting me to work on his project and for being such a great boss, thanks to the LTS team for being so incredibly easy to work with, and thanks to everyone else I’ve met here for being so kind. It’s really a great work environment and a great community.  

NU Athletics: If you can play, you can play.

In partnership with the organization You Can Play, Northeastern University Athletics has recently recorded a PSA supporting equality in sports. Northeastern student- athletes, coaches, administrators,and fans came together to express their support for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender athletes, promoting their message that sexual orientation has no bearing in sport: if you can play, you can play. In their partnership with You Can Play, NU Athletics is been committed to creating an open, inclusive and supporting culture at Northeastern for LGBT athletes and students.

The cast of Triangle Theater Company’s “A Night Out with the Boys,” 1983. Archives Photo.

Supporting the LGBT community at Northeastern more broadly,the Library’s Archives and Special Collections Department highlights LGBT groups as part of the social justice collection strategy. Community members can view collections from organizations such as: Archives collections include materials such as documents, newspaper clippings, letters, photographs, and articles allow the Northeastern community to learn and gain an understanding of the history of the LGBT community and support for it in Massachusetts. These collections and others and be viewed in the library’s Archives and Special Collections Department located at 92 Snell Library.  

Preserving HOPE

Poder Latino AIDS/HIV training session, ca. 1995 The Library’s Archives and Special Collections Department is happy to announce our newest social justice collection, the historical records of HOPE, the Hispanic Office of Planning and Evaluation, Inc.. HOPE was a community-based organization established in 1971 to offer services and programs to benefit Massachusetts’ Hispanic/Latino residents. A wonderful addition to the Archives, the HOPE collection furthers our mission to collect and preserve the records of the Boston-area social justice organizations that serve under-represented communities. HOPE was a leader in creating innovative programs and services. In the mid-1970s, HOPE Talent Search was established to assist low-income youths in Boston and surrounding communities to stay in school, complete high school, and seek advanced or post-secondary education. During the 1990s, HOPE established Poder Latino (Latin Youth Power), a program to train Latino youth as peer educators about health promotion and disease prevention with particular emphasis on sexually transmitted diseases like AIDS/HIV. Another innovative program, PLENA (Padres Latinos Educando Nuestros Adolescentes/Latino Parents Educating Our Youth), trained volunteers to educate their own parents and family members on health issues. In 1995, HOPE established the Pedro Zamora Center, a peer center offering support services to Latinos and family members living with AIDS/HIV. HOPE promoted civic engagement and leadership development through its HOPE “Proyecto PLAN” Community Leadership Development and HOPE YouthPLAN and CommUNITYPLAN programs.  It also operated a computer-learning center and offered training classes to the community. HOPE worked closely with schools, cities, state-run organizations, and local non-profits until its closing in 2011. To learn more about HOPE’s contents or if you’re interested in our other social justice collections, please visit the Archives website.

Library helps tell the amazing history of Northeastern’s Co-op program

Here at Northeastern, it seems like everyone is familiar with the school’s signature cooperative education program. Most have heard the facts about the program’s success with job placement after graduation and for many students, the co-op program was the reason why they chose to come here. Although most people know about how the program can help with their own professional education, few know the interesting history of the legendary program. The Fall 2011 issue of the Cooperative Education and Internship Association’s Experience magazine features the fascinating history of Northeastern’s cooperative education program with the help of Northeastern University Libraries Archives and Special Collections Department, which provided the photos, document images, book excerpts, and stories included in the magazine. The featured article in the magazine, “Reflections of a Perplexed Practitioner” by Michelle Clare, highlights university co-op programs during the Great Depression. The spread features documents and photos from Northeastern Libraries’ own Archives and Special Collections Department, and contains excerpts from “Second to None: Seventy-five Years of Leadership in the Cooperative Education Movement” by Joseph Barbeau, a professor emeritus of Northeastern. The piece consists of remarkable information on the history of Northeastern’s cooperative education program in the period of the Great Depression, including co-op placement statistics from 1929-1932. The photos from the Northeastern’s Archives and Special Collections Department are unique snapshots documenting the life of a Northeastern co-op student during the Depression-era, showing co-ops from the 1930s working at companies such as the American Trust Company and General Radio. The article includes a quote from William C. White, Northeastern’s Executive Vice President until 1968, who said that during this time the co-op program proved its “capacity to endure the rigors of the worst industrial depression we have ever known.” So, although the current economic recession may seem like a challenge to the co-op program, fear not. In Northeastern’s cooperative education’s 100 year-plus history, the program has gotten through times of hardship before, namely the worst economic crisis of all time: the Great Depression. If the co-op program was able to weather that storm, then without a doubt the innovative program will survive this national recession and will hopefully be around for the next century too. Read the publication and learn more about the Cooperative Education & Internship Association (CEIA) here: CEIA website.

Take a glimpse into Northeastern’s history

Perhaps you have noticed the Library’s redesigned display board on the first floor in the stairwell? It now features historical photos of Northeastern University from the University’s Archives and Special Collections. Included with each image is a brief description about the photo and the date each was taken. These images range from the First World Series game to the first few engineering classes held on campus. Check out the board and catch a glimpse of a time when our Husky Pride began. To see the full digital collection of Northeastern University historical photographs, visit http://www.lib.neu.edu/nuphotos or stop in Archives, located in 92 Snell Library.

Cy Young, a Boston Americans pitcher, intensely throws a pitch during the the first ever World Series. The Boston Americans won 5-3 against the Pittsburgh Pirates.