Join Oxford College Library for a discussion of challenges and changes to research in institutional archives on Tuesday, November 15, 2022 at 6:30-7:30pm in the Oxford Chapel. John Bence, Assistant Director & University Archivist, and Gabrielle Dudley, Head of Research Services at the Stuart A. Rose Manuscript, Archives, and Rare Book Library will discuss current efforts to increase and enhance access to Emory archival materials. Amid an increasing and sustained focus on institutional history, especially around efforts to understand Emory University’s role in slavery, dispossession, and their legacies on the Oxford and Atlanta campuses, members of the Emory community can still find the process of identifying and evaluating materials related to this area of research daunting.
These topics are among those explored in Oxford College Library’s current exhibition, “The Work is Never Finished: Building an Inclusive Archives”. The exhibit draws from Emory’s Rose and Oxford College Libraries’ complementary special collections of institutional history. These collections are available to the public for purposes of both academic research and personal interest. Exhibitions drawn from the Emory University Archives at Oxford College Library and the Rose Library invite viewers to consider, recommend, or contribute material that better represents the breadth of student experiences yet to be documented in existing collections.
Gabrielle Dudley, Head of Research Services, Stuart A. Rose Manuscript, Archives, and Rare Book Library
John Bence, Assistant Director & University Archivist in the Stuart A. Rose Manuscript, Archives, and Rare Book Library
John Bence in the Assistant Director & University Archivist in the Stuart A. Rose Manuscript, Archives, and Rare Book Library at Emory University. John oversees the administration of Emory’s university archives, records management, and oral history programs. John is tasked with collecting, preserving, and making available official records of Emory as a well as related collections concerning Emory history. John holds an MA in Archives & Public History from New York University and a BA in History from Kenyon College.
Gabrielle M. Dudley (she/her) is the Head of Research Services at the Stuart A. Rose Manuscript, Archives, and Rare Book Library at Emory University. In this role, she leads a team focused on increasing access to and awareness of Rose Libraries collections through its reference, outreach, and instruction activities. Gabrielle regularly consults with faculty, students, and visiting scholars on their research interests and has published articles and book chapters on public services in special collections libraries. She earned her M.A. in Public History and MLIS from the University of South Carolina. She also holds a B.A. in History from the University of Montevallo.
Oxford College Library’s current exhibition, The Work Is Never Finished: Building an Inclusive Archives, is open to the public through December 13th.
The evening’s conversation will build from these goals to consider ways to transform present struggles through intentional and sustainable change. Panelists will highlight topics central to ongoing research both Oxford College students and faculty are engaged in, as well as work in progress to chart a future for the university that more accurately reflects the perspectives of individuals and groups whose experiences and stories have been minimized, tokenized, or erased from dominant narratives.
The event will conclude with a reception and refreshments in the library’s gallery, where the exhibit is on view through the end of the semester. This event is presented by the Oxford College Lyceum Committee and Oxford College Library, and is an Oxford Studies event.
Learn more about The Work Is Never Finished: Building an Inclusive Archives, on view through December 2022.
Resources for researching Oxford’s history are available from Oxford College Library’s Archives & Special Collections.
Explore From the Archives: Black Student Activism, curated by John Bence.
For more information about Emory University Archives, please visit the Stuart A. Rose Manuscript, Archives, and Rare Book Library.