{"id":6735,"date":"2017-08-02T10:37:50","date_gmt":"2017-08-02T14:37:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/vault217.gmu.edu\/?p=6735"},"modified":"2017-10-02T11:59:07","modified_gmt":"2017-10-02T15:59:07","slug":"reflections-from-our-interns-william-keeler","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vault217.gmu.edu\/?p=6735","title":{"rendered":"Reflections from Our Interns: William Keeler"},"content":{"rendered":"

This post was written by William (Bill) Keeler, history undergrad and SCRC research services intern since May 2017.<\/em><\/p>\n

I am a history undergrad here at Mason with a focus in American History. I worked for many years in customer service before going to college and hope to be able to obtain my degree and work with the public in an instructional capacity. I reached out to Special Collections after my second visit here\u00a0inquiring as to whether or not they had any internship opportunities. After meeting with Rebecca Bramlett, the Research Services Coordinator and Liz Beckman, the Manuscripts and Archives Librarian, and learning what SCRC had to offer, I was excited at the prospect of interning this summer semester after hearing the vast scope of projects that would be available to me.<\/p>\n

Interning at Special Collections Research Center\u00a0has been incredibly rewarding. My projects ranged from surveying parts of the collections for an upcoming exhibit to identifying compelling source materials for workshops that will be held this fall semester, calling it work is difficult. I was approached by Dr. George Oberle about working with him on the primary workshop aspect of his Hist-300 course and learned more about emerging pedagogical methods in the realm of teaching with primary sources. Being able to collaborate from an undergraduate point-of-view was definitely helpful in adding to his coursework. Understanding the work that goes into designing and conducting a workshop geared towards helping undergraduates not only think about primary sources from a multitude of angles but also effectively incorporating said sources into their projects and essays was definitely an eye-opening experience.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

A class instruction using Artists’ Books.<\/p><\/div>\n

One surprising facet that I was not privy to beforehand was\u00a0the sheer amount of work one has to put into designing workshops and whether or not said work will come to fruition. From surveying holdings\u00a0in SCRC to studying exactly what instructors want their students to take away from their time here, proved to be difficult but extremely enjoyable. Constantly working with Rebecca on how best to organize the information we would be presenting, helped me gain a better understanding of the instructional aspect of primary source workshops. While at first I assumed that it would be possible to make one outline for all topics, I quickly learned that each topic and source required a specific approach in order to properly understand each source in the period in which they were published. Furthermore, being able to switch gears between the mindset of educator and student proved difficult at times throughout the process, but being able to peer through both lenses when looking at workshop outlines proved invaluable as well as thoroughly enjoyable.<\/p>\n

Follow SCRC on Social Media and\u00a0look out for future posts on our\u00a0Facebook<\/a>,\u00a0Instagram<\/a>, and\u00a0Twitter<\/a>\u00a0accounts. To search the collections\u00a0held at Special Collections Research Center, go to our\u00a0website<\/a>\u00a0and browse the finding aids by subject or title. You may also e-mail\u00a0us at\u00a0speccoll@gmu.edu<\/a>\u00a0or call 703-993-2220 if you would like to\u00a0schedule an appointment, request materials, or if you have questions. Appointments are not necessary to request and view collections.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This post was written by William (Bill) Keeler, history undergrad and SCRC research services intern since May 2017. I am a history undergrad here at Mason with a focus in American History. I worked for many years in customer service before going to college and hope to be able to obtain my degree and work […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6742,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[272,516],"tags":[267,501,278,214],"class_list":["post-6735","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-gmu-fairfax-campus","category-internships","tag-gmu-undergraduates","tag-interns","tag-undergrad","tag-undergraduate-students"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vault217.gmu.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/ClassInstructionBill.jpeg?fit=5248%2C2952&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p8Ep5i-1KD","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":6554,"url":"https:\/\/vault217.gmu.edu\/?p=6554","url_meta":{"origin":6735,"position":0},"title":"New Interns in SCRC!","author":"admin","date":"June 2, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"The Special Collections Research Center has had many student wage employees over the years.\u00a0 Undergraduate and graduate student assistants are invaluable to our archival processing and digitization projects, research services, and oral history program. \u00a0Students\u00a0have also been part of our records management team.\u00a0 It is safe to say that SCRC\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "miscellaneous"","block_context":{"text":"miscellaneous","link":"https:\/\/vault217.gmu.edu\/?cat=93"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vault217.gmu.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/ZacBlogPhoto.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":6737,"url":"https:\/\/vault217.gmu.edu\/?p=6737","url_meta":{"origin":6735,"position":1},"title":"Reflections from Our Interns: Zachary Greenfield","author":"admin","date":"August 2, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"This post was written by Zachary Greenfield, undergrad in history at George Mason University. He has been a summer processing intern at our Special Collections Research Center since May 2017. My internship with Special Collections Research Center (SCRC) has been incredibly enjoyable! I have gotten to handle a broad range\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "GMU Fairfax Campus"","block_context":{"text":"GMU Fairfax Campus","link":"https:\/\/vault217.gmu.edu\/?cat=272"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vault217.gmu.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/IMG_40571.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vault217.gmu.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/IMG_40571.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vault217.gmu.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/IMG_40571.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":7108,"url":"https:\/\/vault217.gmu.edu\/?p=7108","url_meta":{"origin":6735,"position":2},"title":"Intern With SCRC in Spring 2018!","author":"Amanda Menjivar","date":"December 4, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Special Collections Research Center is offering three internships for the Spring 2018 semester in Digitization, Exhibits, and Transcription for GMU and non-GMU students alike. If you'd like practical experience in special collections, archives, and\/or digitization, one of these internships may be ideal for you or someone you know. Details on\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Digital Collections"","block_context":{"text":"Digital Collections","link":"https:\/\/vault217.gmu.edu\/?cat=557"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vault217.gmu.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/IMG_0868-e1512399764673.jpg?fit=900%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vault217.gmu.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/IMG_0868-e1512399764673.jpg?fit=900%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vault217.gmu.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/IMG_0868-e1512399764673.jpg?fit=900%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vault217.gmu.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/IMG_0868-e1512399764673.jpg?fit=900%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":7613,"url":"https:\/\/vault217.gmu.edu\/?p=7613","url_meta":{"origin":6735,"position":3},"title":"Fall Internships!","author":"Amanda Menjivar","date":"June 1, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"We are happy to announce that SCRC is officially offering two unpaid, for-credit internships for the Fall semester. We are seeking graduate students enrolled in an MLS\/MLIS or Public History programs with an interest in archives, special collections, digitization, or all of the above! You can find more information on\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Digital Collections"","block_context":{"text":"Digital Collections","link":"https:\/\/vault217.gmu.edu\/?cat=557"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vault217.gmu.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/IMG_2615-1.jpg?fit=1140%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vault217.gmu.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/IMG_2615-1.jpg?fit=1140%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vault217.gmu.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/IMG_2615-1.jpg?fit=1140%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vault217.gmu.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/IMG_2615-1.jpg?fit=1140%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vault217.gmu.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/IMG_2615-1.jpg?fit=1140%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3195,"url":"https:\/\/vault217.gmu.edu\/?p=3195","url_meta":{"origin":6735,"position":4},"title":"Researcher Profiles: Erica Deschak","author":"admin","date":"January 9, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"This is the second in a new series on researchers who use our collections. Meet Erica Deschak! Here are her thoughts on the research process and the special collections of George Mason University Libraries. Please tell us a little about yourself: My name is Erica Deschak. I turned 21 last\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/vault217.gmu.edu\/?cat=3"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/vault217.gmu.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/01\/IMG_1911-240x160.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":7468,"url":"https:\/\/vault217.gmu.edu\/?p=7468","url_meta":{"origin":6735,"position":5},"title":"SCRC is Thankful for Student Assistants","author":"admin","date":"November 20, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"The Special Collections Research Center's full time staff forms the core of our workforce, but we would not be able to efficiently arrange and describe collections and make them available to our users without the dedicated service of our student wage workers and interns. 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