Valuing Library and Archives Labor: Assessing Internship and Fellowship Implications for the Library and Archives Community

It is widely accepted that internships are important in libraries and archives professional training and correlate positively with future job prospects. Yet, the potential costs, particularly of unpaid internships, for diversity and inclusion, and to community engagement capacities and professional values are understudied. In this Early Career Development project, Dr. Marika Cifor at the University of Washington, will conduct a three-year investigation into the implications of internships for recruiting, training, developing, and retaining a diverse workforce prepared to engender social well being through U.S. library and archival institutions. Using data collected through quantitative and qualitative methods, the project will result in benchmarks for labor practices that will benefit American archives, libraries, and museums, as well as the individuals and local communities who work in and with them.