University of Maryland

About Us

About IndigenizeSNAC

Mission Statement

IndigenizeSNAC aims to improve search and access of archival records for Indigenous communities through the web platform Social Networks for Archival Contexts (SNAC). Through qualitative and Indigenous methodologies, we are exploring the potential for Indigenizing aggregation and linked data tools to better connect Indigenous researchers to community records.

Abstract

IndigenizeSNAC is funded by a grant from the Mellon Foundation to support the expansion of SNAC to better serve Indigenous community research needs. The project was originally funded in 2021 by the Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian program.

SNAC is a platform with over 50 institutional partners working to aggregate distributed archival collections. For example, users can search use SNAC to locate aggregated archival records about Ernest Hemingway (427 entries). Rooted in colonial structures and power, archives with collections that may hold materials that Indigenous communities need to revitalize languages, reclaim land, and restore sovereignty are often difficult to locate online and may be difficult or impossible to access in person. For example, using SNAC to locate aggregated records about Jim Thorpe yields only 15 entries.

IndigenizeSNAC supports a volunteer-based task force within the SNAC cooperative called the Indigenous Description Group. Volunteers meet monthly to discuss relevant work and may join subgroups centered on liaising with relevant organization, outreach, and technical aspects of SNAC.

Building on previous Indigenous edit-a-thons and the Editorial Guide for Indigenous Entity Descriptions, we seek to build new models to harness current technological capacities, generate information equality, and empower Indigenous communities with tools to return knowledge to their home communities. This project utilizes collaborative methods to undertake that challenge, and provide a pathway for the wider archival and heritage community to follow suit by exploring the following research questions:

  1. How can aggregated discovery tools increase archival discovery for Native American and Indigenous community researchers (in culturally appropriate ways)?
  2. How can colonial archives and Indigenous communities work together to design and implement new tools while centering communities in the design and implementation process?
  3. What are the specific affordances of SNAC for locating collections dispersed in colonial archives across North America, and what technical infrastructures, cultural protocols, and educational initiatives are needed for this purpose?
  4. How can SNAC or other archival discovery tools facilitate repatriation and stewardship for Indigenous communities?

The Team

This project takes seriously the needs, opinions, and cultural worldviews of Indigenous users seeking to use their own historical knowledge for contemporary community work. Co-designing with our Indigenous Advisory Board, hiring community-based staff, and gaining community feedback throughout increases the diversity of users who can access archives in historically inaccessible institutions. Learn more about our team using the accordion menus below!

Headshot Diana MarshDiana Marsh | Principal Investigator, Assistant Professor, University of Maryland, College of Information

Diana Marsh is an Assistant Professor of Archives and Digital Curation at the University of Maryland’s College of Information Studies (iSchool) and current member of the Society of American Archivists’ new Archival Repatriation Committee. She previously worked at the Smithsonian’s National Anthropological Archives and American Philosophical Society. Her current work focuses on improving discovery of Native and Indigenous collections held in colonial repositories.

Headshot Shebli Nahwilet MeissnerShelbi Nahwilet Meissner (Luiseño and Cupeño; first generation descendant of the La Jolla Band of Luiseño Indians) | Co-PI, Assistant Professor, University of Maryland, Harriet Tubman Department of Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies

Shelbi Nahwilet Meissner is an Indigenous feminist philosopher. Shelbi researches, teaches, and consults on Indigenous research and evaluation methods, cultural and language reclamation, Indigenous epistemologies, Indigenous feminist interventions in critical social work, and land-based feminist coalition-building. Shelbi is fascinated by the intersections of Indigenous knowledge systems, caretaking, power, and trauma. Shelbi is a proud first-generation descendant of the La Jolla Band of Luiseño Indians, and is of both Luiseño (Payómkawichum) and Cupeño (Kupangaxwichem) descent. She is an assistant professor in the Harriet Tubman Department of Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at University of Maryland, College Park and the founding director of the Indigenous Futures Lab, a hub of Indigenous feminist research and evaluation.

Headshot Ia Bull (ᎦᏚᏩᎩ/Gaduwagi)Ia Bull (ᎦᏚᏩᎩ/Gaduwagi) | Graduate Assistant, PhD Student, University of Maryland, College of Information

ᎠᏴ ᎪᎳᏄ ᏓᏆᏙᎠ. ᏌᎶᎵ ᎤᎾᏓᏢ ᏂᎦᏘᏲ ᎠᏆᎨᎵ ᎨᏟᏙᎯᏃ. ᏥᏄᏓᎴ ᏥᏎᎩᏳᏍᏗ ᏥᎦᏚᏩᎩᏃ ᏥᎾᏥᏃ. Ia Bull (ᎦᏚᏩᎩ/Gaduwagi) is a second-year doctoral student at the University of Maryland iSchool PhD in Information. They have an M.L.I.S. & Archives Certificate from the University of Oklahoma and a B.A. in Cherokee Language Revitalization from Northeastern State University. Their work concerns evaluating information disciplines and academia more broadly for Indigenous self-determination through language and cultural revitalization efforts. They are currently the research assistant on the Indigenize SNAC project.

Their past work includes the lead developer of the Natchez Indigital Community Archive project, a collaborator with the Mapping Tahlequah History project, and an archive professional working at such institutions as the Helmrich Center for American Research at the Gilcrease Museum, the Cherokee Heritage Archives, and the American Philosophical Society.

Headshot Rachel BickelRachel Bickel | Project Manager, MLIS, The University of British Columbia

Rachel Bickel, a longtime cultural heritage worker, has spent the last eight years supporting Indigenous information management and reparative description projects throughout the United States and Canada. Aside from her work with IndigenizeSNAC, Rachel teaches art at a community school in DC and can otherwise be found exploring the outdoors with her family.

 

Headshot of Scotty BelandScotty Beland | Training and Outreach Coordinator, Graduate Student, MLIS, University of Maryland, College of Information

Scotty Beland is a recent graduate from UMD's College of Information, earning a Master's in Library and Information Science. Relevant archival work has centered around outreach and instruction which has included working with various Indigenous communities, curation of small and large exhibitions, creation of outreach and archival research skills content, and supervision of undergraduate and graduate internships.

Headshot Abigail HardyAbigail Hardy (Monacan Indian Nation) | Research Assistant, Undergraduate Student, Anthropology, University of Maryland

Abigail is a current anthropology major at UMD with a focus on Indigenous and multicultural experiences. Awarded the #IndigenousUMD Ashley Minner Indigenous Art Award in 2023 and enjoys finding ways to create art based on passions and interests. When not working, I enjoy reading, playing rugby, and spending time with my cats. 

 

Headshot Rebecca RidgeRebecca Ridge (Indigenous Chicana) | Research Assistant, MA, Native American Studies, University of Oklahoma

Rebecca Ridge is an Indigenous Chicana from San Antonio, Texas who currently resides with her two children in Norman Oklahoma where she is pursuing a Master's degree in Library and Information Science from the University of Oklahoma. Rebecca holds a Master's degree in Native American Studies from the University of Oklahoma, and is currently serving as the Project Manager for OU's Indigenous Media Portal. Rebecca is excited to join the Indigenize SNAC team as a Graduate Research Assistant.

Fallon Carey (Cherokee Nation) | National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition
Betts Coup | Harvard University Libraries
Alexander Duryee | Harvard University Libraries
Daniel Pitti | Retired, University of Virginia Libraries
B. Bernetiae Reed | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Tiffany N. Chavis, MSW, MLIS (Lumbee) | University of Maryland, Baltimore
Veronica Pipestem (Otoe-Missouria) | ItsimiVee LLC
August Brave Heart Sanchez | MLIS, University of Arizona
Ugoma Smoke | Linked Data Librarian Consultant

Lydia Curliss (Nipmuc Massachusetts) | Former GA 
Amanda Sorensen | Former GA

Angie Bain (Lower Nicola Indian Band) | Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs
Tiffany N. Chavis, MSW, MLIS (Lumbee) | University of Maryland, Baltimore
Alan Corbiere (m’Chigeeng First Nation) | Assistant Professor, York University, Department of History
Taylor Gibson (Cayuga) | Six Nations Polytechnic 
Eric Hemenway (Anishinave/Odawa) | Director of Repatriation, Archives and Records, Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indian
Keahiahi Long (Hawaiian) | Librarian, University of Hawai’i, Kamakakūokalani Center for Hawaiian Studies
Selena Ortega-Chiolero (Chickaloon) | Museum Specialist, Chickaloon Village Traditional Council
Veronica Pipestem (Otoe-Missouria) | Owner/Consultant, ItsimiVee LLC
Melissa Stoner (Diné/Navajo Nation) | Native American Studies Librarian, University of California, Berkeley
Kimberly Toney (Hassanamisco Band of Nipmuc) | Inaugural Coordinating Curator for Native American and Indigenous Collections, Brown University Library

Christian F. Beleña | Archivist, Tohono O’odham Nation Cultural Center and Museum
Rose Buchanan | National Archives and Records Administration
Lindsey Chapman (Pawnee Nation, Cherokee Nation/UKB Descendant) | Museum of the Pawnee Nation
River Freemont (Turtle Mountain Chippewa and Omaha Descendant) | Digital Archives Specialist, National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition
Evie Giaconia | Processing and Reference Coordinator, University of Maryland Libraries
Mik Hamilton | Simmons University
Sarah Kuaiwa (Hawaiian) | Curator of Hawai’i and Pacific Cultural Resources, Bishop Museum
Worthy Martin | Acting Director, University of Virginia, Institute for Advanced Technology in the Humanities
Jerrid Miller (Cherokee Nation/Cherry Tree, Adair District) | Archivist, Cherokee Nation Language Department
Eden Orelove | Archivist/Historian, National Transportation Library, U.S. Department of Transportation
Jerica Scullawl-Gates (Cherokee Nation) | Child Welfare Specialist, Cherokee Nation

 

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