Archivist to Archivist: Employing an Ethics of Care Model with Interns and Student Workers

Authors

Alexandra M. Bisio, University of OregonFollow
Steve Duckworth, Oregon Health and Science UniversityFollow
Helena Egbert, Kansas State UniversityFollow
Emily Haskins, University of OregonFollow
Gayle O'Hara, Washington State UniversityFollow

Abstract

In their 2016 article, “From Human Rights to Feminist Ethics: Radical Empathy in the Archives,” Michelle Caswell and Marika Cifor posit four “affective responsibilities” for archives and archivists: “the relationship[s] between archivist and record creator, between archivist and record subject, between archivist and user, and between archivist and larger communities.” This paper posits an additional responsibility, between archivist and archivist. There is, as Caswell and Cifor put it, a “web of mutual responsibility” within the professional archives community that has become a central focal point in many discussions and, at the same time, continues to be ignored in maintenance of the status quo. Archivists place a great deal of focus on temporary and term positions, low pay in archival jobs, and unpaid internships, but little focus has been placed on the “ethics of care” that should be at the core of managerial relationships. In this paper, archival managers and current and former temporary workers and interns look at the state of how archival internships are managed. Here, the authors propose instilling the ideals of radical empathy into all aspects of these relationships.

Author Biography

Alexandra Bisio (she/hers) is the Lead Processing Archivist at the University of Oregon. She graduated with an MSLIS from Simmons College. Steve Duckworth (he/him) is the University Archivist for Oregon Health & Science University and a part-time lecturer at Rutgers University and Emporia State University. He graduated with an MLIS from Drexel University. Helena Egbert (she/hers) is the Lead Processing Archivist at Kansas State University. She graduated with an MLS from Emporia State University. Emily Haskins (she/hers) is a processing assistant at the University of Oregon. She is currently pursuing her MLIS at San Jose State. Gayle O'Hara (she/hers) is the Manuscripts Librarian at Washington State University. She graduated with an MLIS from San Jose State.

Recommended Citation

Bisio, Alexandra M.; Duckworth, Steve; Egbert, Helena; Haskins, Emily; and O'Hara, Gayle (2021) "Archivist to Archivist: Employing an Ethics of Care Model with Interns and Student Workers," Journal of Western Archives: Vol. 12: Iss. 1, Article 2.
Available at: https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/westernarchives/vol12/iss1/2