Katie Seitz is a new APALA member. She is currently getting her MSLS at Simmons College GSLIS with a concentration in archives and expects to graduate in August 2015. Through the Simmons chapter of the Progressive Librarian Guild, Katie curates a lecture series for the Simmons Anti-Racism Working Group. This project features various LIS professionals invited to Simmons College to speak about race and racism in the field. Additionally, she is an intern at the Massachusetts State House Special Collections department, Roxbury Community College Archives and has an upcoming archives assistantship with Tufts University’s Digital Collections and Archives.
Katie is working hard towards her goal of being a public librarian and archivist:
I enjoy the service and community aspects of library work and the chance to publicize history that comes with archives work. I have welcomed the opportunity to grow in different ways at my various internships, whether that’s learning how to put together a MARC record or writing a blog post about a Civil War-era collection of papers. Some days I still can’t believe that I will soon get to do this work professionally.
She identifies as a multiracial Korean American. She writes,
My mother is Korean and my father is white of Ashkenazi Jewish heritage. Though I was raised in a predominantly white town, my mother sent me and my sister to Korean school every Saturday and we got to spend time with Korean American family and friends. I am so grateful for her hard work in helping us maintain a connection to Korean language and culture.
Having joined APALA just a few months ago, Katie looks forward to becoming more active with APALA in the future:
I was so glad to connect with other A/PI people in the LIS world. This profession is not diverse, and we must advocate for our own concerns because no one else is going to do it for us…. I have only been a member for a few months, but I have been so impressed already by the way that APALA works to promote A/PI visibility, supports and celebrates its members, and is responsive to member voices. I have a deep commitment to promoting social justice and I am excited to be part of a group that has an active, conscious membership and engagement with social issues. Of course, I’m also looking forward to meeting people at conferences and in the Boston area!
Welcome to APALA, Katie!
Edited by Alyssa Jocson and Raymond Wang