As the university archivist, John Bence is responsible for the historical record of Emory University, dating from 1834 to present time. The position runs the gamut between the preservation of extremely old records to the collection of modern digital media. Key components of this work include collecting university records and materials related to Emory history, overseeing the processing of the collections, and creating online finding aids so that these records can be easily located.
In this role, John does reference work where he partners with MARBL’s research services team as well as tasks such as helping people find relatives who attended Emory, assisting faculty in locating governance documents, or working with student groups to find their materials in the archives. John also collaborates with the Content Division, which performs the digitization of university photographs and publications, the reformatting of out-dated audiovisual media, and the preservation of damaged or fragile items.
John came to Emory three years ago as a research library fellow then moved into an interim role as the university archivist in 2013. The interim designation was removed in May, 2014. Before coming to Emory, John had a graduate assistantship in the university archives of New York University. He also interned as an archivist for the New York Philharmonic, the Bronx Zoo, and the Wildlife Conservation Society.
A native of Vermont, John has a Bachelor’s degree in history from Kenyon College in Ohio and a Master’s degree in archives and public history from NYU.
For fun, John loves playing Team Trivia at the Corner Pub in Decatur.
You can reach John at john [dot] bence [at] emory [dot] edu.