Recent Interns

 Howard A. Hamme

Dryden, NY
Syracuse University Intern, Summer 2007
Internship: Special Collections
Supervisor: Karen Drickamer, Director of Special Collections

Comments: "This was a great learning opportunity and a fantastic introduction to the archiving world. At each step, I was actively participating in the process: from picking up boxes at Miller Hall straight through to creating the finding aid. Though processing fraternity papers, I had the opportunity to learn a great deal about Gettysburg College and some its distinguished alumni. History has always been an interest of mine and these projects were a great way to indulge that side of myself. My thanks go to Karen, Christine and Catherine for their help and guidance over the summer." 

Meggan Smith

Boiling Springs, PA
University of Pittsburgh Intern, summer 2006
Internship: Collection Development
Supervisor: John Barnett, Director of Collection Development

Major internship projects: Evaluating materials for selection based on reviews and approval slips; creating lists of titles for selections from Choice Reviews Online and making recommendations for the purchase of materials in Latino Studies; researching and drafting a policy statement for the library's media collection, specifically its video and DVD collection; and creating an electronic resource cost spreadsheet for the library's databases.

Comments: "My internship in Collection Development was a wonderful opportunity to learn about a department in the library that I have never worked in before. I learned many things from my supervisor, including how to juggle many tasks at once. Amid the constant hustle and bustle, I discovered that I absolutely love the variety of work involved in collection development!"

Erin Glover

Chambersburg, PA
University of Pittsburgh Intern, summer 2006
Internship: Music
Supervisor: Tim Sestrick, Music Librarian

Major internship projects: Library exhibit History of Music at Gettysburg College (research and design); Podcast and website related to physical exhibit (preliminary design); 125-source annotated bibliography Music Reference Resources in Musselman Library; 45 minute presentation of bibliography to librarian staff; Reference desk training (five days).

Comments: "I am very grateful for the opportunity to complete my internship at Musselman library. The professional, caring staff at this library made my experience a unique opportunity to ask questions and participate in many different departments. Through the projects I worked on for Tim Sestrick, I learned about the academic library environment and the different jobs that are performed here. I was also able to spend time using and learning about the extensive and impressive library collection. This library is a wonderful combination of great people and great resources."

Barb Schuit

Chambersburg, PA
University of Pittsburgh Intern, fall 2006
Internship: Special Collections
Supervisor: Karen Drickamer, Director of Special Collections

Major internship projects: I concentrated in three areas. First, I was introduced to how the Finding Aids are developed for each collection. More than just the method of processing, I learned about the relative merits of each collection and how decisions are made as to their acquisition. Secondly, I was shown how to preserve scrapbooks. I learned some of the basics of taking the old scrapbooks apart, scanning the pages, removing the photos and other items from the original pages and re-mounting them on archival-quality pages. There were many interesting photographs and memorabilia from the early 1920's, as well as choir tour photos from the mid-1970s. Finally, I assisted with an online digital collection project by doing metadata research. This primarily involved identifying people in group photos in the college yearbooks from the late 1800's - 1930's.

Comments: "I have worked in public libraries for the last six years. Prior to this time, I had no knowledge whatsoever of archives and special collections, except to think of them as "old stuff." My experience in the Archives and Special Collections has been very valuable. It has taught me some basic skills and has given me a glimpse of what that branch of librarianship is all about. But mostly it has given me a huge amount of respect for the complex skills needed to be an archivist, as well as the kinds of equipment, tools, supplies, and funding needed to properly protect and preserve these valuable archival materials. In addition to the purely skill-related activities, it has been fun to see some of the very cool "stuff" that is housed in the Archives - papers of the famous author Jerry Spinelli, photos and hand-written cards and letters of the Eisenhower Family, and correspondence of Civil War soldiers, to name a few."