A Very Necessary Update From the "Working Girl"

Hellooooooo helloooo helllooo. Is anyone out there?!? I haven't made a post since August, today is November 13th. Here is what I've been up to!

Allow me to reintroduce myself, I am Shanee' Yvette Murrain, Project Coordinator of The Religion in North Carolina Digital Collection at the Duke Divinity School Library... or you can just call me "Hov".

I was brought on as the project coordinator September 1, 2012. The Religion in North Carolina Digital Collection is a collaborative project of Duke University, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and Wake Forest University that seeks to bring together, preserve, and provide digital access to the primary materials of religious bodies in North Carolina. This three year grant is made possible through funding from the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by the State Library of North Carolina, a division of the Department of Cultural Resources.

 The project highlights and provides new insights into the religious diversity of North Carolina. As one of the most religious states in the country, North Carolina religion has become increasingly a subject of interest to many people. While particularly home to many Baptists, Methodists, and Catholics, North Carolina has long been home to Quakers and Moravians, Lutherans and Episcopalians, Pentecostals and Congregationalists. Beyond Christianity, Judaism has deep roots in North Carolina while Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, and other religious groups are newer to the state. Whenever possible, we have tried to include materials from every tradition although some traditions do not have as much written documentation (Pentecostals) or are so new to North Carolina, their histories have yet to be written (Hindus).


Here's a brief overlook of what I do at the Divinity School Library (based on the official job vacancy announcement which directly reflects my current job responsibilities:

The Project Coordinator coordinates a program for digitization of library materials for the Religion in North Carolina Digital Collection project in the Divinity School Library. This position is funded for 11 months from August 2012 through June 2013 with the possibility of continued funding through December 31, 2014.

Working with the Project Manager and other project partners, the Project Coordinator:

• Plans, implements, and coordinates digitization procedures and workflows for the LSTA grant-funded project, NC Religion Digital Collection; participates in the physical retrieval, storage, and preparation of library materials for digitization as required to assist overall project goals and timelines
• Establishes a communication system to coordinate the various logistical aspects of the project between Duke Divinity School library staff and project personnel from UNC, Wake Forest University, and other contributing libraries; responds to inquiries about the project according to established policies and procedures
• Directs the shipment and tracking of materials from contributing libraries to the Divinity Library and prepares items and metadata for digitization by Internet Archive staff;
• Develops a memorandum of understanding with contributing libraries regarding shipping or delivery, packing protocols, metadata delivery, and expected loan times;
• Manages and updates the master inventory and picklist for materials  to be digitized; sets standards for metadata,  MARC records and overall project quality control; he/she shares relevant lists with project partners and contributing libraries for retrieval
• Hires and trains student workers who are responsible for retrieval, review, and storage of materials to be digitized by the Divinity School Library’s Internet Archive Scribe
• Reviews the Internet Archive Collection page and populates the page with relevant digitized materials
• Contributes to the project’s ongoing copyright permissions approval plan and appropriately tracks related correspondence
• Assists in drafting reports required by grant agency and submits written progress reports to oversight committee or immediate supervisor as requested.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Here is the official "Spotlight" on the Divinity School Library webpage announcing my installation http://blogs.library.duke.edu/divinity/2012/08/28/project-coordinator-selected-to-lead-religion-in-north-carolina-digital-collection-initiative/

Here is the project blog: religion.blogspot.com

Here is the link to the Religion in North Carolina Digital Collection on Internet Archive http://archive.org/details/ncreligion

I'll be back later with the complete story of how I secured this position and what a day in the office is like. This is my dream job and I LOVE IT! Stay tuned!