Allison Galloup

I have a BA degree in history from Berry College and I earned the MLIS degree from the University of South Carolina – Columbia.

At UNG I work with Special Collections and Digital Commons. Our Special Collections currently consist of university archives (for UNG as well as NGCSU and GSC), rare and special books, and some personal manuscript collections. Digital Commons is an open access source for university publications, faculty publications, and some student publications which includes CURCA’s Papers and Publications. We’ve digitized some of our Special Collections and they are available through Digital Commons, too.

No two days are the same in the archives world. I learn or discover something new every day. You never know what you’ll find when you open a box of archived treasures. I feel like I’m merging the past (special collections) with the future (digital commons) for UNG.

My service includes working with local historical societies which enables me to understand our regional histories and the importance of archiving it with primary documents.  My research supports my service commitments because I’m continuously learning more about the digital commons processes and technologies by participating in webinars and reading articles.

My entire job at UNG is a ‘highlight’ and working with the historical societies is wonderful!  For example, we just received a small collection of family letters and drawings from the Oconee Historical Society. I plan to participate in their “History on the Lawn” event in September which will include local oral history sessions.

I hope that students become better researchers and learn how to use archives of primary sources.  I want to make archives more accessible and less intimidating. I currently don’t spend a lot of time in the classroom but I hope that will change as our collections grow and I’m able to present workshops to students - as well as for faculty and staff.