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When then first-year MLIS student Sam Stroud joined the MEAP team in early 2024, MEAP was in the midst of a metadata transition. The new metadata template and handbook had just been published(opens in a new tab). A multi-collection metadata clean-up project was underway, and MEAP was developing new workflows to accommodate new fields and data formats in the UCLA Digital Library platform. Things were in flux, but that meant there was potential to learn and grow—and that’s precisely what they did.
Over the past 18 months, Sam has cleaned metadata for 25 different MEAP digitization projects. These projects included audio-visual materials from Brazil and Uruguay, black-and-white slides from India, printed literature from Indonesia, and photographs from South Africa—a diverse array of collections, media types, and languages representing the breadth of MEAP’s grantees. And as they’ve worked on these different projects and different batches of digital content, they’ve developed technical skills in metadata management and refinement and experienced navigating the ethical and intellectual questions(opens in a new tab) that surround metadata creation and description.
Reflecting on that work, Sam observed, “Prior to my work with MEAP, I would have considered my archival strengths to be reference, processing, and outreach. After working with MEAP and learning how to use new tools like OpenRefine my perception of my strengths has expanded to include technical skills that I previously would not have felt confident in.”
After working with MEAP and learning how to use new tools like OpenRefine, my perception of my strengths has expanded to include technical skills that I previously would not have felt confident in.
Those skills now also include training and supporting new hires. Since Sam joined the team, MEAP has welcomed two cohorts of new student assistants who have learned and benefitted from Sam’s expertise, especially in navigating and using OpenRefine. One of those students is Sophia Boettcher, who joined MEAP in September 2024.
Reflecting on her experiences, Sophia also credits MEAP with providing important direct experience working with and understanding metadata. As she noted, “MEAP has changed my approach to metadata, collections, and digital collections by…informing both my approach to cleaning metadata and doing quality checks, as well as my approach to creating descriptive metadata.”
Sam and Sophia graduated with their MLIS degrees in June and are continuing to work with MEAP over the summer. Looking ahead to their next professional roles, it’s clear that their time with MEAP has been influential. “MEAP has helped me obtain and develop multiple skills for working within the metadata world,” Sophia asserted. “My time with MEAP has taught me to use OpenRefine and how to perform metadata quality work within Google sheets, as well as familiarized me with metadata standards like Dublin Core and various controlled vocabularies. Most notably, this position has led me to discover my interest in seeking out a career path in metadata work and digital library spaces," she concluded.
Most notably, this position has led me to discover my interest in seeking out a career path in metadata work and digital library spaces.
Thank you Sam and Sophia for your ongoing contributions to MEAP and commitment to working with multilingual and inclusive metadata.