The Emory Libraries Access and Resource Division (ARS) of the Robert W. Woodruff Library supports three 10-week summer internships specifically for members of underrepresented communities to gain work experience in the areas of Access, Resource, and Preservation Services. In the ever-changing landscape of librarianship, there is an urgent obligation to attract individuals from underrepresented communities with varying perspectives and to provide meaningful, collaborative pathways into the library profession.
This program offers paid internship opportunities to those who are interested in library professions or are already in graduate programs and introduces career pathways in support of library diversity. Assessment tools are developed to achieve intern learning goals and measure program impact, as well as instill a post-internship communication strategy to support and assess continued intern growth within the profession.
According to the AFL-CIO, the library profession is overwhelmingly white and female with more than 80% identified as aging rapidly and 31% over 55 years of age. A recent Ithaca study estimates between 500-1100 additional BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and people of color) students would need to graduate from MLIS programs every year for the next ten years if the profession is to become just 25% BIPOC.
Troi Howell (she/her), 2024 conservation intern for Preservation Services
Troi Howell (she/her) is our 2024 conservation intern for Preservation Services and a recent graduate from Pennsylvania State University with a degree in English and a minor in African-American Studies. She is a Study/Research Fulbright Finalist to Ghana and will pursue her project this fall, which explores Ghanaian public memory and memorialization of enslavement.
Throughout her time at Penn State, Troi participated in various independent and collaborative undergraduate research projects, served on the executive boards of various clubs and organizations, was a Schreyer Scholar, and the 2024 English Major Student Marshal for the Penn State College of the Liberal Arts. Troi was also the 2023-24 Bednar Intern in Conservation through the Penn State University Libraries. There, she garnered an in-depth understanding of conservation under the supervision of Bill Minter, senior book conservator. Troi looks forward to pursuing her interest in conservation at Emory Libraries this summer.
Jude Romines (he/they), 2024 Resource Services intern
Jude Romines (he/they) is our 2024 Resource Services intern and a library worker based in Tennessee with an interest in archives and Southern queer history. Currently, Jude is completing a library sciences degree at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville where he works as an assistant in the Betsey B. Creekmore Special Collections and Archives. Prior to this, Jude started his career in public libraries, holding roles ranging from circulation to youth services. Since moving into archives, Jude has volunteered and interned for various preservation efforts, including Georgia State University’s Transgender Oral History Project, Invisible Histories, and Densho: The Japanese American Legacy Project.
Having recently completed a practicum focused on archiving trans oral histories, Jude was interested in applying to the Resource Services Department’s LGBTQ+ description internship to gain practical skills in critical cataloging. Over the summer, he is hoping to learn more about how libraries can meet the needs of catalog users and enhance the discoverability of queer resources. Additionally, Jude is excited to gain experience working with Homosaurus, a linked data vocabulary of LGBTQ+ terms used by projects such as the Digital Transgender Archive to more accurately describe queer content.
Logan Hill (she/her), 2024 Access Services intern
Logan Hill (she/her) is our 2024 Access Services intern and a recent graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill School of Information and Library Science (SILS) with a master’s degree in library science. There, Logan completed a yearlong internship with Wake Tech Community College and achieved the SILS IDEA Advocate Certificate, which recognizes students who actively participate in making SILS and the field of information and library science more equitable and inclusive. Logan also volunteered at her local public library and with the UNC-CH Community Workshop Series, a program devoted to promoting and providing information/digital literacy classes for all. This fall, Logan will pursue a job in academic librarianship.
Libraries have always played an important role in Logan’s life, making her a lifelong advocate of the importance of the services that libraries provide. Throughout her education, volunteerism, and internship experiences, Logan has learned first-hand how important library access services are, especially to students and the rise of college expenses. While interning at Emory Libraries, Logan looks forward to expanding her knowledge and passion for access services and assisting in the implementation of the new textbook reserve program at Emory Libraries, slated for launch in Fall 2024.
To learn more about the Emory Libraries ARS internship opportunities, please use this QR code or visit our Emory Libraries internships libguide for all the information. 
—Kim Norman, director, Emory Libraries Preservation and Digitization Services