Special Collections and Archives blog

As the semester comes to a close and excitement gathers around this week’s commencement ceremonies, Special Collections & Archives would like to congratulate our three Student Assistants who will be graduating as part of NAU’s Class of 2025!

Max Schrader | Anthropology, Museum Studies

Max joined the SCA Student Assistant team in the fall of 2023. Over the past two years, he has worked with SCA staff to process the David Muench Photography records, our biggest photographic acquisition to date.

Max has worked closely with Sam Meier, Archivist for Discovery, Melissa Lawton, Archivist for Collections Management, and Erin Carter, Libraries Assistant Manager for Archival Processing, to physically process materials in this collection. In his time with SCA, he has rehoused countless 4×5 transparences, sifted through business records, inventoried a wide variety of material formats, and ultimately provided invaluable support.

As the David Muench Photography records have taken shape, Max has expanded his archival skills into the new age. Most recently he has worked with Kelly Phillips, Archivist for Digital Programs, and Jess Vogelsang, Library Coordinator, to digitize photographic selections from the collection. Utilizing the DT Atom imaging system, Max has created high-resolution digital surrogates of some of Muench’s lesser-known work.

These photos will soon be findable in the Colorado Plateau Digital Collections.

Caroline Milar | Sociology, Museum Studies

Caroline started in SCA in the fall of 2024 and has been working with Sam Meier and Erin Carter to process collections out of SCA’s backlog. This year, she was able to physically process and create finding aids for over 16 collections that were previously unavailable to researchers!

Through working on these collections, Caroline has learned about how collections are appraised and processed. She has also learned how to write Describing Archives: A Content Standard (DACS) compliant finding aids in ArchivesSpace and Encoded Archival Description (EAD). These skills are foundational to the arrangement and description realm of archival work, and the collections Caroline has made discoverable are a testament to her ability to move from physical processing to archival description with ease.

Two standout collections from Caroline’s work that demonstrate the diversity of the materials she has worked with this year are the Stephen Hirst papers and the Steve Dudley papers. The former centers on Hirst’s work with the Havasupai Tribe and includes many material formats like photographs, VHS tapes, and maps; the latter contains photographs and training materials related to Dudley’s decades in fire management in Coconino National Forest. Caroline’s work this year has been of great help to our ongoing efforts to increase the accessibility and discoverability of our collections.

Jordan Bohn | Anthropology

Jordan joined SCA in the fall of 2024 and has worked closely with Melissa Lawton to assess and inventory materials in SCA’s vault storage space. The vault is used to store more high-risk material formats like photographic negatives, film reels, and audio cassettes.

As space is always at a premium in the world of special collections and archives, Jordan’s inventory of the vault is helping us map out ways to maximize the space we have. She also completed an inventory of collections in our regular storage, and both of these endeavors will help inform how we approach both space and materials management.

In addition to her collections management projects, Jordan took on some arrangement and description tasks. She processed the Lou Kokonis photographs, a collection that features National Parks and landmarks from all over the west, and the Dick Arentz Four Corners Country photographs, taken while compiling images for his 1986 publication.

Jordan will be pursuing a Master of Arts in Library & Information Science at the University of Arizona this fall.

Congratulations Max, Caroline, and Jordan! Thank you for all the hard work you have put into your time in SCA. We look forward to seeing where the future takes you all!

Elizabeth M. and P. T. Reilly Exhibit Internship

Position type: Internship

Location requirements: Onsite, Flagstaff, Arizona, United States

Job description: Job Vacancy Number: 9612268#

Position Overview

Northern Arizona University’s Cline Library invites applications for the 2025 Elizabeth M. and P. T. Reilly Internship. The intern will work closely with Special Collections and Archives (SCA) staff to develop a photographic exhibition showcasing images from the David Muench Photography records. The Reilly internship is an opportunity for the intern to research, curate, and design both a virtual online exhibit and a physical display which will launch in October 2025.  

The David Muench Photography records, acquired by SCA in 2022, document Muench’s 70-year career in landscape photography. Muench is best known for his work in the American West, including his numerous collaborations with the National Park Service and his contributions to Arizona Highways. The David Muench Photography records encompass thousands of physical and digital images created by Muench as well as associated business records and other materials.

SCA envisions the exhibit as representing highlights from David Muench’s photographic career, including selections from his most iconic images. The intern will select 16 to 18 images from the collection highlighting the distinctive aspects of Muench’s work. They will assume primary responsibility for researching and writing content for the physical display and virtual exhibit, bearing in mind that past online exhibits are preserved for long-term online enjoyment. The intern will collaborate with SCA staff to design and prepare for the installation of the physical display in SCA’s gallery space on the second floor of Cline Library. The intern may also assist in the design of satellite exhibits in other locations.

SCA is one of the most comprehensive repositories of Colorado Plateau history and culture. SCA’s 600+ unique archival collections contain millions of photographs, correspondence, journals, maps, films, and oral histories that document the human and natural history of the Colorado Plateau from a variety of perspectives from the 19th century to the present. The Reilly internship supports NAU’s 100% Career Ready strategic initiative and recognizes the importance of the eight NACE career readiness competencies. By collaborating closely with SCA staff to conceptualize and execute the exhibition, the 2025 Reilly intern will establish collegial relationships with information professionals and gain insight into the GLAM (galleries, libraries, archives, and museums) field.

Learning Objectives

• Research using archival (primary source) and published materials
• Selection and curation of photographic images
• Collaborative, team-based exhibit planning and preparation
• Schematic exhibit design for the physical exhibit, text design, installation preparation
• Website design, website creation, and digital exhibit design

Duties and Responsibilities

• With the support of site supervisors and other SCA staff, the Reilly intern will conduct research utilizing the David Muench Photography records and the David Muench Research Library, leading to a highly selective representation of images for inclusion in a physical display. The images will include selections from original framed items from the collection.
• To complement the physical display, the Reilly intern will develop a companion virtual exhibit using WordPress. The virtual exhibit will offer a narrative overview of Muench’s photographic career and provide additional context for selected images, helping the intern gain valuable digital storytelling skills. The intern may draw on other archival collections or published resources to develop the virtual exhibit.
• The intern will create and write exhibit text for the virtual and physical exhibits. They will assist in the design and layout of text for the physical exhibit, primarily the exhibit title and object identification labels or brief captions.
• The intern will collaborate with SCA staff members to determine appropriate display locations and conditions for original framed material from the collection. The intern will learn about light exposure, light control, and other damage and risk factors related to exhibition.
• The intern will assist with preparatory work for the installation of the physical exhibit. These tasks include determining the desired layout of selected images and working with SCA staff to support the fabrication and printing of exhibit text and images.
• The intern will gain insights into budgeting for exhibitions through conversations with SCA staff regarding fabrication costs.
• The intern may assist in the design of satellite exhibits in other locations, such as Scholar’s Corner in Cline Library.
• The intern may assist SCA staff with the identification and ingestion of born digital material for the exhibit into the Colorado Plateau Digital Collections (a CONTENTdm instance). Through collaborations with SCA staff regarding digital material in the collection, the intern will gain insights into digital asset management in a library or archival setting.
• The intern will gain skills in clear, organized, written and verbal communication to report their work progress and processes to SCA staff and to coordinate work tasks.
• In conducting research for the exhibit, the intern will employ critical thinking strategies to gather and analyze information from diverse sources, including archival collections, published materials, and other resources held by SCA and Cline Library.
• The intern will be expected to demonstrate dependability, prioritize and complete assigned work tasks, and show attention to detail in all work products.

Internship Length

The Reilly internship will run for 10 consecutive weeks between May and August 2025, with specific dates based upon the successful candidate’s availability. The successful candidate will work with the site supervisors to establish a start and end date for the internship upon acceptance of the position. The workweek schedule offers some flexibility, but in general the intern will be expected to work 40 hours per week: 32 hours onsite during SCA’s summer hours of Monday-Thursday 8 AM – 5 PM, and 8 hours of offsite remote work on Friday. 

Compensation and Housing

• The pay rate for the Reilly internship is $17.25 per hour (non-benefits eligible), 40 hours/week, not to exceed $7,000 in total.
• This is an onsite internship. The successful candidate must be willing to relocate to Flagstaff for 10 weeks and underwrite their own food, lodging, and transportation.
• On-campus housing is subject to availability. For more information, please consult https://nau.edu/campus-living/summer-housing/. Renting a room in the community is also a possibility.

Position Qualifications

Education Requirements

The preferred candidate will be a highly motivated and organized undergraduate or graduate student in photography, communication studies, art history, museum studies, or a related field working toward a career in a gallery, library, archives, or museum setting. Students are required to be currently enrolled in an accredited program with an anticipated completion date of August 2025 or later. 

Minimum Qualifications

• Current undergraduate or graduate student with a program completion date of August 2025 or later.
• Minimum GPA of 2.0.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with or demonstrated interest in learning web design and virtual exhibit tools such as WordPress, Wix, Weebly, Omeka, etc.
• Coursework in photography, visual communication, communication studies, art history, fine arts, or museum studies.
• Excellent research and written communication skills; ability to synthesize and present key information succinctly.
• Experience with or interest in curatorial work and/or exhibit development in a gallery, library, archives, or museum (GLAM) context.
• Strong project management skills, including goal setting, time management, verbal and written communication with team members, and critical thinking, as evidenced through previous educational, extracurricular, or work experience.
• Federal Work-Study eligible students are encouraged to apply.

Application Instructions

Application Deadline

Application deadline: February 27, 2025 by 11:59 pm MST.

Application Guidelines

To apply, please submit the following documents:

• Letter of application addressing your qualifications for and interest in the position, including links to any previous relevant projects you have created/designed, with an emphasis on how the position will support or advance your studies and/or career path.
• A writing sample of approximately 100-200 words, providing an example of exhibit text for an image featured on the David Muench Photography website (davidmuenchphotography.com). You may utilize various resources to prepare your text, including the website itself, Wikipedia, interviews with David Muench, etc. Please include a bullet list of sources utilized to prepare your text at the end of your writing sample. Include your writing sample in the same document as your letter of application.
• Resume or vita which details relevant coursework, work experience, and includes names and contact information for three references.
• Copy of current transcript (can be unofficial).

Current NAU students should apply via Handshake: https://nau.joinhandshake.com/jobs/9612268

All other applicants should submit application materials to Library.StudentJobs@nau.edu. 

Contact Information

Contact Sam Meier with any questions regarding the position or requirements for application materials: Samantha.Meier@nau.edu or 928-523-5811.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Northern Arizona University is a committed Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Institution.  Women, minorities, veterans, and individuals with disabilities are encouraged to apply. NAU is responsive to the needs of dual-career couples.  EEO Law Poster  NAU is an Employer of National Service.  AmeriCorps, Peace Corps, and other National Service alumni are encouraged to apply.

This summer, Cline Library Special Collections and Archives (SCA) welcomed back former student assistant Adya Alcalde for a special project supporting SCA’s planned 2026 exhibit to mark the 100 year anniversary of Route 66. Alcalde previously helped process the Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona records with archivists Sam Meier and Sean Evans.

Thanks to generous funding from the Association, SCA was able to hire Adya to complete scanning of the Association’s newsletters in addition to digitizing scrapbooks, photographs, correspondence, Fun Run posters, and more. SCA caught up with Alcalde at the end of her digitization project to hear what treasures she found this summer.

SCA: Which item you selected for digitization is your personal favorite?

AA: It was my particular pleasure to digitize John E. Curran’s letter to Jerry Richard, which described his memories of the Mother Road as he passed over it in 1937. Curran’s letter spoke not only to the economic hardship endemic to the Great Depression—describing a bygone era with stark clarity—but also described the sense of perseverance I have come to understand as endemic to Route 66 and its communities themselves. 

“It might have been Americas Main Street or the Mother Road but to me it will always be the HIGHWAY WITH A HEART.”

–John E. Curran, undated letter to Jerry Richards

By showcasing the variety of jobs available in the late 1930s, the transience of life upon the road, and perhaps most notably, the supreme and dependable kindness of strangers, the letter encapsulated everything I had hoped to record about Route 66 and the Association in my selections. 

SCA: What material was the most difficult to capture digitally, and why?

AA: Part of my summer role was to digitize the 14 scrapbooks in the Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona’s records on the DT Atom, a new piece of digitization equipment the department was still installing during my last semester as a student assistant. Learning how to operate the camera, which required a recalibration of shutter speed, exposure, and white balance each time I began a new session, proved challenging at first, but ultimately immensely rewarding. The images I captured were so sharp they could be enlarged to show the dusty or ink-stained fingerprints of Vince Salmon and Linda Hawn (who compiled the scrapbooks) recorded on the sticky side of the tape they used to attach articles to the paper, the halftone dots which made up the images in newspapers, and the uneven distribution of ballpoint pen ink.

As I worked on the scrapbooks, I also quickly discovered their bulkiness had much to do with Vince Salmon’s penchant for maintaining and enclosing full copies of magazines, newsletters, correspondence, and other materials (trail mix bags, packets of flower seeds) within them. Any piece of material which could not be photographed laying flat (which made up a significant portion of the scrapbooks) proved difficult to capture. My work to record them included unfolding complex arrangements of slowly disintegrating newspaper (with Salmon’s handwritten notes of “fold down” or “unfold side” or “rest of article on back” in various places over them), folding napkins backward from where they’d been stapled so I could photograph the handwritten notes on the side facing the scrapbook paper, and being eternally grateful for the DT Atom’s foot pedal, which functioned as a de facto shutter button when both my hands were occupied holding back pages of the Miss Route 66 Pageant brochures. 

SCA: Looking ahead, how do you think these digitized materials could help tell the story of the Mother Road as we approach its centennial in 2026?

AA: Though the materials I’ve worked to digitize this summer display a wide array of activities, they all serve to represent the diversity of stories tied to Route 66. The materials in this collection document roadside attractions (Meteor City’s longest map of Route 66) and establishments (Seligman, Arizona’s “Havasu” Harvey House) which have long disappeared from the map: brought down by wind, rain, economic downturns, lack of business, or (on occasion) railroad executives disinterested in maintaining hundred year old assets. The ephemerality of these establishments and the people who ran them is stemmed by their preservation here, where razed buildings, departed executive vice presidents, and past eras live on in reproductions of photographs, personal testimonies, and fraying newsprint. 

The letters thanking Association members for returning lost wallets, the happy birthday messages typed in Association newsletters, and all the terrific photos of Jerry Richard playing with leftover props from the Universal Soldier set in Cool Springs effectively elevate Route 66 from patched slabs of asphalt to its stature as the force that engendered (global!) cultural change for nearly 100 years.

These materials provide means to consult with the history of the road. They also highlight the vitality of the people that established, traveled upon, daydreamed about, and preserved it.

I believe these materials serve as a testament to the enthusiasm, fondness, and dedication Route 66 has asked of me as a nascent historian of the road. It’s my hope they do the same for the many others able to enjoy them now. 

Adya’s selections from the Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona records are now available online via the Colorado Plateau Digital Collections. Please contact Special Collections and Archives with any questions.

With commencement just around the corner, Special Collections & Archives is thrilled to spotlight Student Assistant Zadie Henthorn, NAU Class of 2024. Zadie will be receiving a Bachelor of Arts in History with a minor in Museum Studies this summer and attending the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign in the fall to pursue a Master’s in Library and Information Sciences.

Zadie began their career as an SCA Student Assistant in the fall of 2023. They have worked collaboratively with Archivist and Collections Manager Melissa Lawton to create an inventory of collection materials in SCA’s vault, which are predominantly photographic and audiovisual, and rehouse collections in need of a little TLC. Zadie has lent their hand to collections such as the Camp Navajo Environmental Restoration Reports and the Richard (Dick) Sprang Collection.

SCA staff caught up with Zadie to ask about their work in Special Collections & Archives and how it will inform their life and career post-graduation.

SCA: You’ve worked on a number of projects in SCA, assisting with intake of materials and reprocessing the Camp Navajo Environmental Restoration Reports as well as inventorying photographic and moving image material in the SCA vault. Which of the tasks or projects you have worked on has been most interesting to you, and why?

ZH: The most interesting project I’ve worked on has definitely been inventorying the vault. Especially the second range of material that holds old or oversized books, large photographs, and miscellaneous boxes of material (one even entirely uncatalogued!) I think it just shows the sheer amount of stuff that’s unprocessed, and the different ways things have been processed over the years. It’s a good look into the past of the collection we have, and also a good reminder on why we have specific archival practices.

SCA:  What materials that you’ve seen in the vault have stood out to you or are your favorites, and why?

ZH: I love the Dick Sprang collection, but that’s just because I love Batman and I think seeing the history of it is so cool. I also find older photographs – say, around the early 1900s – super fascinating to look at. Additionally, there is a surprising amount of men in Drag throughout the collections, and I don’t know why they’re there, but I love it.

SCA: How does your work here in SCA connect to your studies at NAU? ZH: As a history major getting a minor in museum studies, this job has furthered my interest in working within the general field of museums, archives, and special collections. I feel like I’ve learned so much about how archival spaces work, practices for processing and preservation, shelving, and just in general the different jobs people do in spaces like this. I’ve gotten a deeper understanding and appreciation for archive jobs and how much I enjoy the work done in them.

SCA: How has working in SCA informed what you’re thinking of in terms of your career or working life after NAU?

ZH: After graduating NAU, I am pursuing a Master’s in Library and Information Sciences at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign. This job in general has given me the opportunity to work within the field that I plan to pursue as a career, and taught me so much basic information about libraries and archival spaces that I feel more confident in pursuing both a Master’s degree and work in this field. I’m excited to learn more as I go forward with grad school and my career.

SCA:  Is there anything else you’d like to share about your experience working in SCA?

ZH: I genuinely think that this is the best job I’ve ever had. Everyone who works in SCA is so kind, knowledgeable and funny. I love the work I do, but the people really make the job. I am going to miss everyone so much!

The staff of Special Collections & Archives thank Zadie for their excellent work as an SCA Student Assistant and congratulate them on their upcoming graduation as a member of the class of 2024! We wish Zadie continued success in their life beyond NAU, and we cannot wait for them to share all they have learned as they continue their education at the University of Illinois.

With commencement just around the corner, Special Collections & Archives is thrilled to spotlight Student Assistant Adya Alcalde, NAU Class of 2024. Adya will be receiving a Bachelor of Science in Biology and a Bachelor of Arts in English with an emphasis in Creative Writing this summer.

Adya begin her career as an SCA Student Assistant in fall 2023. She worked collaboratively with Archivist for Discovery Sam Meier and Archivist Sean Evans to process, arrange, describe, and digitize archival materials materials connected to Route 66, including the Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona records, the Angel Delgadillo papers, and the Ella Blackwell papers. Adya was awarded the Cline Library Student Employee of the Month Award in November 2023 due to her outstanding work in the department. In March 2024, she had the opportunity to travel with Archivist for Collections Management Melissa Lawton and Sean to Seligman, Arizona, and participate in a collections pick up for the Angel Delgadillo papers.

SCA staff caught up with Adya to ask about her work in Special Collections and Archives and how it will inform her life and career post-graduation.

SCA: You’ve worked on a number of archival collections related to Route 66. Which has been your favorite collection, and why?

AA: I only came in contact with the Angel Delgadillo papers briefly. A majority of my work up until that point had centered around the Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona’s records—a nonprofit organization Angel established in 1987 to preserve and restore the stretch of Route 66 through Arizona (and, by extension, the businesses along the road.) By the time I was tasked with processing and re-inventorying his personal materials, I could recognize the slant of his handwriting with resolute certainty, though I could not yet (reliably) pick him out in photos.

Arranging Angel’s papers into intellectual groups—sorting piles of correspondence into date ranges, or by relationship—allowed me to give breadth to the meager understanding I’d made of Angel through only his participation with the Association. Through his letters, accolades, and the meticulous legers he kept of his barbering business, Angel became distinguished even beyond the archetypes of founder, chairman, and volunteer that I had come to know him as. I recognized him as a student of privation, and began to understand the depth of gratitude he held for his older siblings Antonia, Juan, Mary, and Joe, who ate less during the Great Depression so he and the other young Delgadillos could have more.

When his hometown of Seligman was bypassed by Interstate 40 in 1978, Angel returned to this lesson of subsistence his family had imparted upon him, took inventory of his life and work, and in light of the lean years ahead, began to formulate a plan for rebuilding his business and birthplace. I learned of the machinations of his planning, and saw evidence of his frustrations. I read the letters he wrote to highway authorities and historical preservation offices, and noted the absence of any words in response.

Angel Delgadillo’s papers effectively oriented me in the expansive and potentially overwhelming space taken up by Route 66 in both our archive and cultural mythos.

With the evidence of Angel’s life in front of me, I could consult his writings, grant proposals, and interviews as guideposts: situating myself in the history of the road. As I read his pleas for sponsorship, donations, and volunteerism, I began effortlessly to conceive of the highway as a harbinger of change, for better or worse, and to understand the dedication Angel felt toward it as a child born on the Mother Road. When he succeeded in forming the Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona in 1987, and the first segment of 66 between Kingman and Seligman was declared historic within a year of their establishment, I cheered for him across decades in 2023.

SCA: What have been the most interesting materials you’ve worked with thus far? Why?

AA: Some of the greatest joys from my time spent in these collections are derived from materials I’ve picked up, set down again in bewilderment, and—after a brief moment of wondering what it is precisely I’ve stumbled upon, and if I’m the only one seeing it—have warranted barreling into the office of archivist and Route 66 historian R. Sean Evans with a list of questions.

Sean, I’ve asked, newspaper in hand, did you ask me to process this collection because you knew I’d find out this trading post owner was known to talk to her mannequins? (Answer: “No,” followed by laughter.) Were you aware she claimed the building her collection was stored in—made of telephone poles—was built by Mormon pioneers in 1873? (Answer:
“Yes,” with more laughter.)

Or, holding a copy of the February 1992 edition of the Route 66 newsletter: Did Pamela Anderson actually get arrested during her Playboy photoshoot at the 1992 Fun Run? (Answer: “No, but there was a strong call for it. Carl and Connie Bohn settled for an apology.”) Can we digitize the photo of her and Jerry Richard (Executive Vice President of the Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona) together at his Route 66 Distillery in Kingman? (Answer: “If
you want to, kiddo!”)

SCA: How did your work in SCA connect to your studies at NAU?

AA: Working on materials centered on the Colorado Plateau has inculcated both my writing and ecological studies at NAU with a sense of place they had previously been bereft of. By mere virtue of my desk being located in the closed stacks, my workspace housed between map cases and vertical file cabinets, I’ve come into contact with expedition logs, diaries, and maps of previously uncharted land that I’d otherwise never have encountered. I’ve written about the Bureau of Indian Affairs-run Leupp Boarding School (turned into the Leupp Isolation Center in 1941 to incarcerate people of Japanese descent) for a nonfiction workshop class, braided the history of grazing sheep and cattle on the Baca Grant range land into narratives about industrialization alongside railroads in the American southwest, and suggested geologist friends make appointments to view rolled ribbon maps of rivers long since dissipated.

SCA: How has working in SCA informed your career plans? How might the library shape your life after NAU?

AA: Inventorying documents and oversized materials, creating arrangements where none ostensibly existed before, and assigning call numbers to photographs are all tasks that require strict diligence and close attention. The great invested effort archiving requires, however, is returned immediately.

Upon contact with primary source materials, the bank of knowledge from which anyone may draw expands in terms of linear feet.

It is precisely this awareness of the archive, its ability to impart such abundant information unto researchers, and the skills I’ve gained in navigating it, that I intend to carry with me in my future endeavors. I have certainly learned not to content myself with secondary source material. Fine and well as these books and anthologies may be, there is something far too enriching about doing the work of becoming familiar with a topic yourself to resist doing so.

My compulsion to ensure accuracy in my work to the fullest extent possible (particularly when drafting descriptive notes for full collections like the Ella Blackwell papers) has been fed during my time in SCA in the form of cross-referencing primary and secondary-source material, and by consulting a multiplicity of sources to best describe a given event or individual fairly and objectively. This same curiosity and scrupulousness will no doubt
reappear in my future work—whatever it is that may be.

The staff of Special Collections & Archives thank Adya for her excellent work as an SCA Student Assistant and congratulate her on her upcoming graduation as a member of the class of 2024! We wish Adya continued success (and many future research rabbit holes) in her life beyond NAU, and we encourage her to come back and share what she has learned with us all.

Elizabeth M. and P. T. Reilly Exhibit Internship

Position type: Internship

Location requirements: Onsite, Flagstaff, Arizona, United States

Job description: Job Vacancy Number: 8716179#

Position Overview

Northern Arizona University’s Cline Library invites applications for the 2024 Elizabeth M. and P. T. Reilly Internship. The intern will work closely with Special Collections and Archives (SCA) staff to develop an exhibit that explores the relationship between forests, forestry, and the city of Flagstaff, Arizona. The Reilly internship is an opportunity for the intern to research, design, and create both a physical display and a virtual online exhibit, to open and launch in October 2024. 

Flagstaff lies adjacent to the largest stretch of ponderosa pine forest in the United States. The forests and associated resources have shaped the economy, geography, and work environment of the city and Northern Arizona University for more than 100 years. SCA envisions the exhibit as an examination of the relationships between urban development, the environment, and the impacts of the timber industries on diverse communities in and around Flagstaff.

SCA is one of the most comprehensive repositories of Colorado Plateau history and culture. SCA’s 600+ unique archival collections contain millions of photographs, correspondence, journals, maps, films, and oral histories that document the human and natural history of the Colorado Plateau from a variety of perspectives from the 19th century to the present.

Learning Objectives

• Research and synthesis using primary and published sources
• Exhibit storyline development, content selection, and interpretive writing
• Website design, website creation, and digital storytelling
• Collaborative, team-based curation and exhibit planning
• Public speaking experience, namely a presentation to library staff upon internship completion

Duties and Responsibilities

• The Reilly intern, with the support of site supervisors and other SCA staff, will conduct research utilizing primary and secondary sources to identify the exhibit themes and topics and to focus the exhibit narrative.
• The intern will then select images from SCA holdings and create accompanying interpretive text narratives. Image selections will primarily be made from collections material readily available online in the Colorado Plateau Digital Collections. Depending on the images selected, the intern may have an opportunity to research and improve descriptive metadata for those featured in the exhibit.
• The Reilly intern will assume primary responsibility for the virtual exhibit, which will be developed using WordPress, bearing in mind that past online exhibits are preserved for long-term online enjoyment. The virtual exhibit will be developed by the intern in tandem with the physical exhibit, utilizing content across both.
• The intern will also provide significant support for the development of the physical exhibit, from its interpretive panels and labels to its layout, design, and fabrication.
• They will be expected to prepare a short work plan for how the physical exhibit will be arranged. A more comprehensive workplan detailing physical exhibit layout will be created collaboratively with SCA staff by the end of the internship in preparation for exhibit installation.
• This internship supports NAU’s 100% Career Ready strategic initiative and recognizes the importance of the eight NACE career readiness competencies. By collaborating closely with SCA staff to conceptualize and execute the virtual exhibit, the 2024 Reilly intern will establish collegial relationships with information professionals.
• The intern will gain skills in clear, organized, written and verbal communication to report findings to SCA staff and successfully manage the development of the virtual exhibit. In conducting research for the exhibit, the intern will employ critical thinking strategies to gather and analyze information from diverse sources, including archival collections, published materials, and other resources held by SCA and Cline Library.

Internship Length

The Reilly internship will run for 10 consecutive weeks between May and August 2024 and will depend on the successful candidate’s availability. The successful candidate will work with the site supervisors to establish a start and end date for the internship upon acceptance of the position. The workweek schedule offers some flexibility, but in general the intern will be expected to work 40 hours per week –32 hours onsite during SCA’s summer hours of Monday-Thursday 8-5 and 8 hours of offsite remote work on Friday. 

Compensation and Housing

The pay rate for the Reilly internship is $17.50 per hour (non-benefits eligible). This is an onsite internship and the successful candidate must be willing to relocate to Flagstaff for 10 weeks and underwrite their own food, lodging, and transportation. On-campus housing is subject to availability – for more information, please consult https://nau.edu/campus-living/summer-housing/. Renting a room in the community is also a possibility.

Position Qualifications

Education Requirements

The preferred candidate will be a highly motivated and organized undergraduate or graduate student in information science, museum studies, applied indigenous studies, history, or a related field working toward a career in a library, museum, or archives setting. Graduate students need to be currently enrolled in an accredited program with an anticipated completion date of August 2024 or later. 

Minimum Qualifications

• Current undergraduate or graduate student with a program completion date of August 2024 or later.
• Minimum GPA of 2.0

Preferred Qualifications

• Demonstrated interest in learning about or experience with web design or virtual exhibit tools such as WordPress, Wix, Weebly, Omeka, etc.
• Interest or coursework in environmental sciences, information science, history, forestry, geography, or related fields.
• Knowledge of or interest in the human and natural history of the Colorado Plateau, forestry, wildland-urban interface, or Arizona and Southwest history.
• Experience with or interest in conducting research using primary source materials and archival collections, curatorial work, and/or exhibit development.
• Excellent written and verbal communication and active listening skills.

Application Instructions

Application Deadline

Applications are due by 12 PM MST on March 18, 2024.

Application Guidelines

To apply, please submit the following documents:
• Letter of application addressing your qualifications for and interest in the position, including links to any previous relevant projects you have created/designed, with an emphasis on how the position will support or advance your studies and/or career path.
• A writing sample of approximately 100-200 words, providing an example of a text label/panel for an image related to forestry as outlined above, identified and selected from the Colorado Plateau Digital Collections and based upon available metadata. Include your writing sample in the same document as your letter of application.
• Resume or vita which details relevant coursework, work experience, and includes names and contact information for three references.
• Copy of current transcript (can be unofficial).

Current NAU students should apply via Handshake: https://nau.joinhandshake.com/emp/jobs/8716179.

All other applicants should submit application materials directly to Melissa Lawton at Melissa.Lawton@nau.edu.

Contact Information

For more information, contact Melissa Lawton with any questions regarding the position or requirements for application materials at Melissa.Lawton@nau.edu or (928) 523-6766.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Northern Arizona University is a committed Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Institution.  Women, minorities, veterans, and individuals with disabilities are encouraged to apply. NAU is responsive to the needs of dual-career couples.  EEO Law Poster  NAU is an Employer of National Service.  AmeriCorps, Peace Corps, and other National Service alumni are encouraged to apply.

In 2022, Cline Library Special Collections and Archives (SCA) on the campus of Northern Arizona University received the David Muench Photography Records. Since then, SCA staff have been hard at work developing and implementing plans to process, arrange, describe, and preserve this massive collection, believed to be the largest ever acquired by NAU.

The first step of the plans developed by Archivist for Discovery Sam(antha) Meier and Archivist for Collections Management Melissa Lawton was to manage approximately 315 linear feet of 4″ x 5″ color photographic transparencies. These materials arrived at SCA in their original filing cabinets, shown below.

According to Lawton and Meier’s plans, all the Muench materials stored in filing cabinets would be moved into archival-quality boxes and folders (or “rehoused”, in archivist-speak) so they can be handled safely by SCA staff and eventually made accessible to researchers.

In August 2023, SCA hired two student assistants to help with this task: Reina Jasper and Max Schrader. Both are NAU class of 2025. Reina is a Women and Gender Studies major with a minor in Anthropology, while Max is double-majoring in Anthropology and Comparative Cultural Studies with a minor in Museum Studies.

To date, Max and Reina have re-housed approximately 110 linear feet of material into archival-quality folders and boxes that will protect the material over the long term, helping archivists preserve the collection into the future. While the re-housed Muench transparencies are not yet ready for access and use in the Miriam Lemont Reading Room, getting them out of the filing cabinets and into appropriate containers is a huge and significant first step!

SCA staff caught up with Max and Reina ahead of the winter break to ask them how their work on the David Muench Photography Records is going and what they’ve learned during their first semester in SCA.

SCA: What have been your favorite aspects of working on the David Muench Photography Records so far?

Max: One of my favorite aspects of working on the David Muench Photography Records has been rehousing the transparencies and slides from David Muench’s collection. The Muench family did a great job of providing context associated with each image, and that makes our jobs during processing much easier! Rather than completing extensive research on and reorganization of these materials, we’re able to maintain the original systems of the photographer and [the photographs] associated context. I also love encountering new formats within these records, such as the commercial posters and calendars that we’ve found intermingled with professional prints of Muench’s work.

Reina: My favorite part of working on the Muench Photography Records has been seeing such a diverse array of landscape photography. It’s given me the opportunity to see areas of North America that I’d never have sought out on my own. I’ve also really enjoyed seeing so many different photographic mediums, many of which I didn’t know existed prior to handling this collection. 

SCA: How does your work in SCA, and on this collection in particular, connect to your studies at NAU?

Reina: My work here in SCA and on this collection have supported my desire for a holistic education in both the social sciences and the arts. The collection is so vast and gives me the opportunity to learn so much about the preservation of various mediums, and see much more of the world than I would have otherwise. It’s made me more passionate about my personal interest in photography, and I’m planning to spend more time on that interest going forward.

Max: [The student assistant position in] SCA is the third position I’ve held on campus connected to collections, but it’s the first in which I’ve processed and handled archival materials. Most of my studies so far have focused on the theory behind archaeological fieldwork and exhibit design, so it’s been lovely to shift to a more hands-on approach in understanding collections at SCA.

SCA: How has working in SCA, and on this collection in particular, informed what you’re thinking of in terms of your career or working life after NAU?

Max: It took less than a month of working at SCA for me to redirect my career goals toward working in an archival institution. The work never grows old, and the people here would make it worth it even if it did. Most of my work experience so far has been connected to collections management, though my work on the David Muench Photography Records sparked an interest in me to pursue a role focused more on processing collections. Being able to physically handle the materials I’m working with is a privilege I had no idea I needed, and it has been immeasurably rewarding throughout the last few months. I am incredibly grateful to be working on this project, and I’m excited to see what comes next!

Reina: Working in SCA and on the Muench collection has helped me solidify that working in libraries and archives is what I want to do with my career. I’m planning to go to graduate school for a Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS) and work in archives in the future. I’m hoping to continue work on photographic collections and to build a photographic portfolio of my own. 

Commencement is almost upon us! Special Collections & Archives is thrilled to spotlight Student Assistant Zaidi Babcock, who will be graduating from Northern Arizona University next week.

Zaidi will receive her Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology. She minored in Italian, though the COVID-19 pandemic foiled her plans to study abroad in Italy. Zaidi has served as an SCA Student Assistant since fall 2021, helping staff with projects including re-processing the Northern Arizona University photographs and inventorying and re-housing materials in the Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona records and the Angel Delgadillo papers.

SCA staff caught up with Zaidi before commencement to ask about her career in Cline Library and her plans for life after NAU!

SCA: What is your best memory from your time working in Cline Library?

ZB: My best memory working in Cline Library certainly has to be finding a faculty photo of my Great-Great-Grandpa Cliff Harkins in the unprocessed NAU Archives photos collection!

SCA: What surprised you most about working in a library or archives setting?

ZB: I was honestly surprised at how much fun I have had here! Looking over old documents for nearly two years has been significantly more fun than one would expect.

SCA: What is a fun historical fact you learned from your work projects in Special Collections & Archives?

ZB: In the last few months I have been working with our Route 66 Collection / the Angel Delgadillo Collection. It was super interesting to learn that Angel Delgadillo worked so tenaciously to create the Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona!

SCA: What skills did you learn here that you can take to another job?

ZB: I became really comfortable with communication and inputting information, which I think will travel well to another job!

SCA: What are your [tentative] plans after graduation?

ZB: I fell in love with Flagstaff, as I am sure many do, so I plan to stay in Flagstaff and either work for a Cultural Resource Management company or do lab work!

Special Collections & Archives thanks Zaidi Babcock for her excellent work as an SCA Student Assistant over the past two years and congratulates her on her upcoming commencement as a member of the class of 2023! We wish Zaidi continued success in her post-college life in Flagstaff, and encourage her to come back and visit!

Cline Library has unveiled a new exhibit, “THE GRAND CANYON; A Boatman’s Perspective.” The exhibit, curated by photographer Michael Collier, features 47 photographs that portray and reflect upon the experiences of river running of the 1970s and 1980s. 

The images were drawn from Michael Collier’s photographic collections.  We meet Collier and his river running comrades, paddle alongside them, and begin to feel how the experience was different then – new, raw, and full of unproven successes and failures.  The show’s QR codes connect viewers to Collier’s narrative, telling the stories behind the images. The narration provides insight into an experience that once defined what it meant to be a ‘Boatman’. 

What was Grand Canyon river running like in earlier days?  According to Collier:   

Sediment was plentiful, and the beaches were bigger.  Wild floods held vegetation in check until Glen Canyon Dam was completed in the early 1960s. Trips were cheaper, and wages were lower.  Passengers came from a broad cross-section of society.  There were few Park Service regulations.  The people of Grand Canyon – and the Canyon itself – were different in those days.

Collier first paddled through the upper Grand Canyon in 1970.  In the late 1970s and early 1980s, he rowed commercially for the precursor of Arizona Raft Adventures, which provided support for the exhibit. He received degrees in geology while studying a fold in the Muav limestone that could only be reached by raft.  He rowed and motored on science, administrative and private trips within the Canyon.  Always, he photographed. 

The exhibit, which is free and open to the public, is located on the east side of the Jean Collins Reading Room on the first floor of Cline Library and is available whenever the library is open.  Cline Library is located at the intersection of Knoles Drive and McCreary Road on the campus of Northern Arizona University (NAU). For information on public parking options, visit nau.edu/parking. 

The exhibit is part of the library’s commitment to providing educational and cultural opportunities for NAU students and the surrounding community.  For more information on Cline Library, visit nau.edu/library. 

The exhibit will be installed on the first floor of the library in the public exhibit space through December 15, 2023.  For more information, contact Kevin Ketchner via email kevin.ketchner@nau.edu.