Graduate Students to Hold Panel Discussion on Proxy Research Tomorrow

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From left to right: Ryan Smith, Michael Anthony and Amanda McGee

Three graduate students will serve as panelists in a discussion of their experiences with the current trend of utilizing proxy researchers from 11 a.m. to noon, Wednesday, Oct. 6, via Zoom. Panelists include graduate students Michael Anthony, Amanda McGee and Ryan Smith. This panel discussion is part of the Graduate Student Speaker Series, a collaborative initiative between the University Libraries Special Collections Division and the Graduate School and International Education. Registration is required. 

The COVID-19 pandemic has prevented academics worldwide from traveling to conduct their research as they normally would have been able to do. This is especially true for research in archives, which offer access to rare and unique materials and do not have the capacity to digitize all of their collections. As a result, some have utilized proxy researchers — local individuals who could conduct the research in person — when they, themselves, were unable to travel. The panelists each worked as proxy researchers in the University Libraries Special Collections Division during the pandemic and will reflect on their experiences conducting research on behalf of others. 

"Special Collections has had graduate students serve as proxy researchers for many years, oftentimes reaching out to the History Department when we were contacted by researchers who were unable to travel to campus to conduct their research," said Kara Flynn, research and educational services archivist. "That said, we also regularly hosted visiting researchers prior to the pandemic, both from across the U.S. and from various countries around the world. Throughout the pandemic, while travel has been restricted and amidst ongoing public health and safety concerns, all of our distance researchers (those not from campus and the immediate area) who had a substantial amount of research to conduct had to rely on proxy researchers, many of whom were graduate students. During the last year and a half, the majority of researchers who have visited us in Special Collections have been proxy researchers. As we are beginning to welcome out-of-state researchers in the reading room again this semester, we wanted to take a moment not only to reflect on how this pandemic impacted the work of archival researchers around the world, but also to recognize the important work that many of our U of A graduate students have done as proxy researchers during this time."

Special Collections supports the research, teaching and learning mission of the U of A by collecting, preserving and providing access to unique and rare materials. The division is currently open by appointment only from 1-4 p.m. Monday through Friday. 

The Graduate Student Speaker Series affords graduate students the opportunity to present research or creative work they have done using materials from Special Collections and get feedback as they continue their professional development. All graduate students who have used Special Collections materials are encouraged to apply, and students from all disciplines are welcome. Those interested in learning more or applying to be part of the series can do so on the program's webpage.