I ended the day on Wednesday with the SNAP roundtable. There were two panels, one related to the DAS program and the second about being a project archivist. My big takeaway from the DAS panel was that by taking classes you can better articulate to your IT folks what your needs are. I wonder though if we’re moving to a place in libraries, where archivists will be the technologists. I’m certainly not prepared for that day, but I wonder if the DAS program can help transition our newer grads and professionals into a more comfortable place with technology, so we’re not just communicating our needs more effectively, but we’re also sharing in the workload.
I found the panel on project archivists eye opening. I’ve never had a project position and was surprised that those who have, find it difficult to apply those processing skills when looking to transition to other broader and permanent jobs. I wonder if SAA can develop programming related to helping new professionals make these transitions. I love that there’s a career center at the conference and think expanding that model during the year would be beneficial to new archivists who may find it difficult to ask for help developing their resumes and cover letters.
The session ended with networking and we, as the audience, got to talk with leaders from other roundtables and get to know more about what the different sections do. It was great to participate in SNAP this year I enjoyed the balance between more formal panels and then a non threatening networking part.