ELLEN D. SWAIN
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR OF LIBRARY ADMINISTRATION
ARCHIVIST FOR STUDENT LIFE AND CULTURE
______
Archives Research Center
1707 S. Orchard
Urbana, IL 61801
Phone: 217/333-7841
Fax: 217/244-4300
Email:
PERSONAL HISTORY AND PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND
1995 University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
MS, Library and Information Science
1993 Indiana University, Bloomington
MA, American History
1990 Earlham College, Richmond, Indiana
BA Honors, Sociology/Anthropology; History minor
PROFESSIONAL ARCHIVAL EXPERIENCE
1999-Present Archivist for Student Life and Culture and Associate Professor (2005-present) and Assistant Professor (1999-2005) of Library Administration, University of
Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
1996-1999 Assistant Archivist (1998-1999) and Project Archivist (1996-1998),
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Archives, Elk Grove Village, Illinois
1994-1996 Graduate Assistant, University of Illinois Archives, Urbana-Champaign
1991, 1992 Library Assistant, Indiana Historical Society Library, Indianapolis
HONORS
Fellow, Society of American Archivists, inducted 2013
Best Books of Indiana Finalist Award (nonfiction), Indiana State Library, 2011 (for Growing Up
with Bakers Corner)
National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC) Archival Fellowship,
2003-2004
Chancellor’s Recognition of Faculty Excellence (endowed professor recognition), 2001-2013
Thornbrough Award, 2001 (for best article to appear in the Indiana Magazine of History in 2001)
PUBLICATIONS AND CREATIVE WORKS
*Denotes refereed work
+Denotes invited work
CHAPTERS IN BOOKS
*+1. “Rhoda Coffin, Quaker Advocate and Reformer” in forthcoming book on 200 Hoosiers
who shaped Indiana (for state’s bicentennial), Indiana Historical Society, c2015
*2. “Making It Personal: Engaging Students with Their University” in Past or Portal:
Enhancing Undergraduate Learning through Special Collections and Archives,
American Library Association: ACRL, 2012
*+3. “Remembering Alma Mater: Oral History and Documentation of Student
Culture,”Archival Issues v. 26, no. 2, 2002 and “Afterward: Reflections on Oral History
in Academia in the Digital Age.” Reprinted with new epilogue for College and
University Archives: Selected Readings. 2008
*+4. “Oral History and the Archives: Its Documentary Role in the 21st Century,”
American Archivist v. 66, no. 1, Spring/Summer 2003. Reprinted as Chapter 26 in
Perks, Robert and Thomson, Alistair, eds., Oral History Reader 2nd ed. (London, NY:
Routledge, 2006).
EDITED MONOGRAPHS
1. Joint editorship with Carol Longenecker. Growing Up with Bakers Corner: Mary
Elizabeth Wilson, a Hamilton County, Indiana Life. (Hawthorne Publishing, 2010)
Finalist, Best Books of Indiana (nonfiction), 2011
*2. Joint editorship with Chris Prom. College and University Archives: Selected Readings (SAA, 2008)
ARTICLES IN JOURNALS
*1. Joint authorship with Merinda K. Hensley and Ben Murphy. “Analyzing Archival
Intelligence: A Collaboration between Library Instruction and Archives,”
Communications in Information Literacy, v.8, no.1, Spring 2014 Forthcoming
*2. Joint authorship with Chris Prom. “Identifying and capturing student organization web
sites,” Proceedings of the International Council on Archives (ICA) Section on
University and Research Institution Archives (ICA/SUV), East Lansing, Michigan,
September 6-9, 2005—Reprinted in special issue of international refereed archival
journal, COMMA, 2008
*3. Joint authorship with Chris Prom, “From College Democrats to the Falling Illini: Identifying, Appraising, and Harvesting Student Organization Web Sites,” American Archivist v. 70, no. 2, Fall/Winter 2007
*4. “The College Student as Archives’ Consultant?: A New Look at Outreach Programming on Campus,” Archival Issues v. 29, no. 2, 2005
*5. Joint authorship with Tamar Chute, “Navigating Ambiguous Waters: Providing Access to Student Records in the University Archives,” American Archivist v. 67, no. 2, Fall/Winter 2004.
*6. “Connecting Students of the Past, Present, and Future: An Activist Approach to Collection and Use of Student Documents in the University Archives,” Journal of Archival Organization v. 2, no. 1/2, 2004.
*7. “Oral History and the Archives: Its Documentary Role in the 21st Century,”
American Archivist v. 66, no. 1, Spring/Summer 2003.
*8. “Remembering Alma Mater: Oral History and Documentation of Student Culture,”Archival Issues v. 26, no. 2, 2002.
*9. “From Benevolence to Reform: The Expanding Career of Mrs. Rhoda M. Coffin,” Indiana Magazine of History v. XCVII, no. 3, September 2001. Winner of the Thornbrough Award 2001.
BIOGRAPHICAL ESSAYS IN REFERENCE WORKS
+1. “Eileen D. Cook (1928-2000)” in Dictionary of American Library Biography, 2nd
Supplement, Ed. Donald G. Davis. Westport, CT: Libraries Unlimited 2003: 52-55.
+2. “Vernon Dale Tate (1909-1989)” in Dictionary of American Library Biography, 2nd
Supplement, Ed. Donald G. Davis. Westport, CT: Libraries Unlimited 2003: 209-211.
BULLETINS, REPORTS, AND CONFERENCE PROCEEDINGS
1. “Ethnography of the University Initiative: An Undergraduate Student Archives,” Proceedings of the International Council on Archives-Section on University and Research Institution Archives (ICA/SUV), Dundee, Scotland, August 13-18, 2007.
+2. Joint authorship with Chris Prom. “Identifying and capturing student organization
web sites,” Proceedings of the International Council on Archives- Section on
University and Research Institution Archives (ICA/SUV), East Lansing, Michigan,
September 6-9, 2005.
+3. “The Knubel Archives of Cooperative Lutheranism: A Working Partnership Between
Historians and Archivists,” Lutheran Historical Conference: Essays and Reports of the
19th Biennial Meeting, Staten Island, New York, XVIII, 1998.
BOOK REVIEWS
+1. Review. Pugh, Mary Jo. Providing Reference Services for Archives and Manuscripts,
Journal of Archival Organization 4: 3-4, 2007.
2. Review Essay: Archibald, Robert. A Place to Remember: Using History to Build
Community; Ellis, William. The Kentucky River; Utley, Dan and Seeley, James,
Guided with a Steady Hand: The Cultural Landscape of a Rural Texas Park, Oral History Review, v. 29, no. 1, Winter/Spring 2002.
+3. Review: Bacon, Margaret Hope. Abby Hopper Gibbons: Prison Reformer and Social Activist, Quaker History, v. 90, Fall 2001.
LECTURES AND CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS
PROFESSIONAL
“Fraternity and Sorority Collections at the University of Illinois Archives,” National Archives Conference for Fraternities and Sororities, Urbana, IL (hosted by the UI Archives’ Student Life and Culture Archival Program), July 22, 2012, 20 minutes.
“Building a Participatory Archives,” BOBCATSSS, Amsterdam, January 24, 2012, 90 minutes with Melissa Salrin and Joanne Kaczmarek.
“Oral History as Research Tool & Community Builder for the University Archives: An Analysis of its Changing Outreach and Inreach Role in the Digital Age,” International Council on Archives-Section on University and Research Institution Archives (ICA/SUV), Edmonton, Canada, July 14, 2011, 20 minutes.
“Fraternities and Sororities at the University: A National Documentary Approach,” Midwest Archives Conference, Minneapolis, Minnesota, April 30, 2011, 20 minutes.
“Memoir Writing and the Library,” Indiana Library Federation Annual Conference, Indianapolis, Indiana, November 17, 2010, 20 minutes with Nancy Baxter.
“Ethnography of the University Initiative: An Undergraduate Student Archives,” International Council on Archives-Section on University and Research Institution Archives (ICA/SUV), Dundee, Scotland, August 13, 2007, 20 minutes.
“Students Documenting Their Culture and Community,” Midwest Archives Conference, Columbus, Ohio, May 3-5, 2007, 20 minutes.
“Documenting Student Life Through Web Capture,” International Council on Archives-Section on University and Research Institution Archives (ICA/SUV) Meeting, East Lansing, Michigan, September 9, 2005, 20 minutes with Chris Prom.
“Documenting Student Life Through Web Capture,” Society of American Archivists Annual Meeting, Boston, Massachusetts, August 7, 2004, 20 minutes with Chris Prom.
“Documenting Student Life Through Web Capture,” NHPRC Archival Research Fellowship Symposium, Boston, Massachusetts, June 11, 2004, 40 minutes with Chris Prom.
“Navigating Ambiguous Waters: Providing Access to Student Records in the University Archives,” Midwest Archives Conference, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, April 29, 2004, 20 minutes with Tamar Chute.
“Connecting Students of Present, Past and Future: An Activist Approach to Collection and Use of Student Documents in the University Archives,” Midwest Archives Conference, Detroit,
Michigan, October 24, 2003, 20 minutes.
“Volunteers in the Academic Archives: Implications and New Opportunities,” Society of American Archivists Annual Meeting, Los Angeles, California, August 23, 2003, 20 minutes.
“Using Volunteers in the Archives: Some New Perspectives,” Midwest Archives Conference, Kansas City, Missouri, April 24, 2003, 20 minutes.
Chair, Session entitled, “We Are Not Alone: Exploring Other Professions that Document History,” Midwest Archives Conference, Grand Rapids, South Dakota, October 11, 2002.
“Oral History in the University Archives: Documenting Student Experience in the Great Depression at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign,” Midwest Archives Conference Fall Meeting, Indianapolis, Indiana, October 19, 2001, 20 minutes.
“Oral History in the University Archives: Documenting Student Experience in the Great Depression at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign,” Oral History Association Annual Conference, St. Louis, Missouri, October 18, 2001, 20 minutes.
Chair, session entitled “Town and Gown: Local History and Academic Repositories,” Society of American Archivists, Washington, D.C., August 31, 2001.
UNIVERSITY, ALUMNI, AND COMMUNITY
165+ lectures to English, rhetoric, anthropology, history, and education graduate and undergraduate courses, 2001-2012; 20+ workshop training sessions for freshman rhetoric teaching assistants and Ethnography of the University Initiative faculty, 2001-2012.
“The History of Sigma Alpha Iota,” Sigma Alpha Iota Champaign- Urbana & Decatur Alumnae Chapters, Archives Research Center, October 20, 2013.
“Illinois History and Traditions,” I-Stars Program (student tour guides), UI campus, September 6, 2012
“Illinois History and Traditions,” RISE Program (first generation students), UI campus, August 22, 2012
“Growing Up with Bakers Corner: The Importance of Local History and Memoir” (sabbatical research):
Sheridan Public Library, Sheridan, Indiana, June 14, 2010
Hamilton County East Public Library, Noblesville, Indiana, September 16, 2010
Hamilton County North Public Library, Cicero, Indiana, October 12, 2010
Hamilton County Historical Society, Clarksville, Indiana, October 17, 2010
Carmel-Clay Historical Society, Carmel, Indiana, April 10, 2011
“Student Life and Culture Archival Program at the University of Illinois Archives,” presentation to LIS 307 Archives class taught by Anke Voss, December 7, 2009 and December 6, 2011.
“Student Life and Culture Archival Program at the University of Illinois Archives,” presentation to LIS 581 (LEEP) Archives class taught by Chris D’Arpa, October 18, 2010.
“Sigma Alpha Iota at the University of Illinois Archives,” presentation to Sigma Alpha Iota Central Illinois Alumnae Group, May 30, 2009.
“Depositing Records with the Archives,” presentation to University of Illinois Engineers without Borders, March 12, 2009.
“Student Life and Culture at the University of Illinois” presentation to the University of Illinois Panhellenic Council, February 27, 2009.
“Student Life and Culture at the University of Illinois” presentation to the Exchange Club, Urbana, Illinois, January 21, 2009.
“UI Student Life During WWII: The WWII Oral History Project” presentation to the Early American Museum Veterans Day Address, November 9, 2008.
“Resources in the University and Student Life and Culture Archives” presentation to the
Ethnography of the University Faculty Training Workshop, May 2004-2008, August 2009-2012.
“From Corn Girls to Computers: Remembering Student Life at the University of Illinois,”
presentation to the:
Cleveland Illini Club, Cleveland, Ohio, February 9, 2003.
Columbus Illini Club, Columbus, Ohio, February 8, 2003.
“Documenting Student Culture at the Student Life and Culture Archives,” presentation to the UI Center for Advanced Study- Ethnography of the University Working Group, Urbana, Illinois, January 24, 2003.
“Genealogical Resources at the University of Illinois Archives,” presentation to the Champaign County Genealogical Society, Urbana, Illinois, November 12, 2002.
“The Student Life and Culture Archives at the University of Illinois,” presentation to the:
University of Wisconsin Alumni Club, Urbana, Illinois, February 25, 2002.
“Documenting Student Life at Illinois: The Student Life and Culture Archival Program at the University of Illinois Archives,” presentation to the:
Champaign County Genealogical Society, Urbana, Illinois, November 13, 2001.
Champaign County Historical Society, Urbana, Illinois, September 24, 2001.
“Sigma Alpha Iota and the Student Life and Culture Archival Program,” presentation to the Sigma Alpha Iota Champaign-Urbana, Decatur, and Charleston alumni chapters, Urbana, Illinois, May 12, 2001.
“From Corn Girls to Computers: Remembering Student Life at the University of Illinois,”
presentation to the:
Macomb Illini Club, Bushnell, Illinois, April 26, 2001.
South West Florida Illini Club, Ft. Myers, Florida, March 17, 2001.
“Documenting Student Life at Illinois: The Student Life and Culture Archival Program at the University of Illinois Archives,” presentation to the American Association of University Women, Champaign-Urbana chapter, February 17, 2001.
“UI Student Life during the Great Depression: An Oral History Project,” presentation to the Champaign-Urbana Men’s Group, Stevick Center, Champaign, Illinois, February 8, 2001.
“From Corn Girls to Computers: Remembering Student Life at the University of Illinois,”
presentation to the Denver Illini Club, Denver, Colorado, November 5, 2000.
“Documenting Student Life at Illinois: The Student Life and Culture Archival Program at the University of Illinois Archives,” presentation to the:
University of Illinois Alumni Council, August 21, 2000.
Urbana Rotary, Urbana, Illinois, March 28, 2000.
Champaign Kiwanis, Champaign, Illinois, February 22, 2000.
University of Illinois Friends of the Library, Urbana, Illinois, January 20, 2000.
SERVICE
PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS
SOCIETY OF AMERICAN ARCHIVISTS (SAA) – Member 2000-present
SAA Fellow, inducted 2013
Education Committee, 2010-2013
Program Committee, Student Subcommittee, 2012-2013
Program Committee, 2002 Annual Meeting, 2001-2002
President’s Appointment Committee (intern), 2000-2001
Reference, Access, and Outreach Section
Chair, 2003-2004 (Elected)
Vice-Chair 2002-2003 (Elected)
Newsletter- Reference Column Editor, 2000-2003
College/University Archives Section
Vice Chair, 2005-2007 (Elected)
Steering Committee, 2000-2003
Nominating Committee, 2003
Co-Chair, College/University Archives Reader Subcommittee, 2000-2004
Women’s Collections Roundtable,
Co-chair, 2002-2006
Committee on Guide to Women’s Collections, 2003-2006
Chapter Advisor, University of Illinois Student Chapter, 2006-present
MIDWEST ARCHIVES CONFERENCE (MAC) – Member, 1996-present
Education Committee co-Chair (Special Initiative), 2013-2015
MAC President, 2011-2013 (Elected)
MAC Education Task Force Chair, 2009-2010
MAC Council, 2004-2007 (Elected)
Technology Task Force, 2005-2006
Program Committee- Co-chair, Fall Meeting, 2005
Program Committee-Member: Spring Meeting, 2000; Fall Meeting 2002
Calendar Committee-Chair, 1999
Local Arrangements Committee-Member, Chicago, Illinois, 1997-1999
COMMITTEE ON INSTITUTIONAL COOPERATION -UNIVERSITY ARCHIVIST GROUP
Member, 1999-present
ORAL HISTORY ASSOCIATION (OHA) – Member, 2000-2003
Manuscript reviewer/reader for Oral History Review
RESEARCH GRANTS