via Zoom Webinar

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Building Diverse and Inclusive National Collections

Since its inception in 2013, the aggregation of digital collections for public use to ensure the accessibility of our nation’s cultural heritage has been core to the Digital Public Library of America’s (DPLA’s) mission. As we expand this program, we have also expanded our efforts to ensure the inclusion of community-based efforts that represent experiences that have been historically marginalized. As smaller institutions with more diverse collections haven’t always had the resources to make their collections freely accessible at mass, it is incumbent upon DPLA and similar organizations to provide a pathway to participation in national collections that empowers our community partners. Late last year, DPLA  embarked on a project, with funding from Pivotal Ventures, to support a collaborative digital collection focused on the roles and experiences of Black women in the women’s suffrage movement and, more broadly, women’s rights, voting rights and civic activism between the 1850s and 1960s. The project is in progress and will debut in the summer of 2020, in line with the anniversary of the 19th amendment. In this session, DPLA community manager Shaneé Yvette Murrain and director of technology Michael Della Bitta will discuss opportunities, challenges and learnings encountered as we help surface and preserve these stories in an increasingly digital-centric information landscape. 

Michael Della Bitta is the DPLA director of technology. Michael has worked in software development and publications and in the startup, library, and education space for nearly 20 years. Michael most recently worked as a data and analytics developer, architect, and engineering manager at the marketing company ScribbleLive. Prior to that, Michael worked as a developer and architect on the repository and digital gallery teams at the New York Public Library, and built content management, online learning, and semantic metadata applications at Columbia University. Michael holds a B.A. in Philosophy from Bates College. Home base: Providence, Rhode Island.

Shaneé Yvette Murrain is the community manager for DPLA. She identifies and develops services, partnerships, and products to support our national network. Previously, Shaneé was the university archivist and an assistant professor at the University of West Georgia. Shaneé holds a B.A. in Religion and Philosophy from Bethune-Cookman University, a Master of Divinity from Drew Theological School and a Master of Library Science from North Carolina Central University. As former Director of Library Services and Archivist at Payne Theological Seminary, she curated the Payne Theological Seminary and African Methodist Episcopal Church Digital Collection. Shaneé is also the current president of the Society of Georgia Archivists, serves on the Board of Directors of Atla (formerly known as the American Theological Library Association) and is a member of the Society of American Archivists. Home base: Atlanta, Georgia.

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