The Los Angeles Archivists Collective (LAAC) is holding a special election to fill a recent vacancy on the Steering Committee.

The successful candidate will serve a full 3-year term. This position will provide an opportunity to lead and contribute to directional oversight for the organization, as well as engage, collaborate, and build relationships with other local archivists and professional organizations.

*Also on the ballot is a proposed change to the bylaws which will reconfigure the current subcommittee structure.

Voting will close on 10/26/18.

Thank you for your participation!

Steering Committee Member Bios

Alyssa Loera

Alyssa Loera is currently a Digital Services & Technology Librarian at Cal Poly Pomona, and has worked in a mixture of libraries and archives since 2007. Her research focus concerns the intersection of technology and archives, which includes the study of accessible technologies, digital library pedagogy/structure, digital preservation, and how physical and digital media are often reflections of our society. She received her MLIS from the University of North Texas, serves on board of the Los Angeles City Historical Society, and is an active member of the Women’s Center for Creative Work.

I have been a part of LAAC since 2015 and since joining, I have seen the members, programs, and values of the group grow into a wildly thoughtful community. I have had the opportunity to participate as a general member, and as a Press & Publications subcommittee member. Being an active part of the Press & Publications subcommittee requires constant communication, adherence to deadlines, and a commitment to the values of the magazine, which align with intersectional and inclusive feminist ideals. Growing within that space has cemented my skills as an organizer.

I see the structure of LAAC as both egalitarian and critical. I see the steering committee as a means to harness the community's thoughts and needs into actionable programming. As a member of the steering committee I hope to support Los Angeles Archivists (and beyond) in building inclusive labor practices, decentering whiteness in our archival processes, disseminating archives education, and in strengthening our connections to the Los Angeles Community.

Ariel Schudson

Ariel Schudson is an LA native and has been a passionate archivist and archives activist for almost 10 years with two UCLA Master of the Arts degrees- one in Cinema and Media Studies and one in Moving Image Archive Studies. An independent scholar, she specializes in 16mm ephemera and the representation of gender/class/marginalized communities in film/TV/moving image media. She is the podcastress of Archivist's Alley, an intersectionally-centered conversational space that examines issues in the archive (good and bad), raises consciousness of our community and focuses on previously-invisible voices and projects silenced by an archive/preservation world centered on White Straight Dudes.

I believe that my role for the LAAC would be twofold: representing the moving image archiving community and continued intersectional activism. I have worked for both during my career and am extremely proactive about them. Having served as the AMIA (Association of Moving Image Archivists) Access Committee chair for 3 years and the AMIA Student Chapter President for 2 years, I have organizational experience and would like to create more inter-organizational bonds, strengthening the LAAC community and community feeling at large. We are nothing if we do not have each other for support. As a second generation Angeleno, I hope to bring that knowledge to the table in addition to offering some of my highly successful social media projects that have been used throughout my archival career (especially within the AMIA organization) for the betterment of the LAAC org and its members.