Background
I graduated from Belmont University on a music scholarship in 2011 with a B.S. in Psychology and minor in music business. Following graduation, I worked for several leading music industry managers, artists, and songwriters as a digital media and marketing assistant. After the passing of my grandmother, my family and I were cleaning out her house, the same house my grandmother built with my grandfather and had lived in since 1945, and we came across thirty or so boxes. Those boxes contained pictures, negatives, recipes, audio recordings, and 8mm films. Some of the pictures dated back to 1886 taken in Knoxville! Within a week, I had a scanner, archive-safe boxes, and a book on how to properly care for family collections. It was then I knew I wanted to work in area where I can preserve information, similar to what I had been doing with my family items.
I have been the Graduate Teaching Assistantship (GTA) in the Hodges Library Studio for the past two years. My interests lie in the areas of archives, technology, preservation, and audiovisual materials. My work at the Hodges Studio Help Desk has influenced my interest in technology, problem-solving, and allowed me to familiarize myself with the latest and greatest software such as the Adobe Creative Cloud 2015. To be able to provide adequate support for the patrons, I am required to be knowledgeable about the software installed on the Studio computers. This experience has taught me a lot about providing technical reference support in an academic library.
Learning Goals and Achievements
My first goal was to develop a professional identity, including a commitment to the core values in the field of library and information science. I used the American Library Association’s Core Competences for Librarianship to help navigate me through the skills I needed to develop and master. I created a mastery checklist to help keep track of my progress. 
To help achieve this goal, I became involved in several associations and professional societies. As shown on my resume, I am currently Vice President of the Special Library Association (SLA), UT chapter, and last year I served as Secretary and Treasurer.
My second goal was to gain knowledge and experience in audiovisual archiving. It was not until I started my studies at UT that I understood how hyper-focused the field of audiovisual archiving was within the field of archives. I was fortunate that an opportunity arose to work with 16mm films in the Modern Political Archives at UT. In the beginning, I thought I would be digitizing their collection. I thought if I could scan negatives, the process for film could not be much different. Boy was I wrong! During my practicum, I learned there was an entire process that had to be completed to prioritize films for digitization. I rehoused, cataloged, and identified the Estes Kefauver film collection. This practicum also introduced me to someone in the library that is an expert in audiovisual archives.
My third goal was to identify which information environment I wanted to specialize. Starting the SIS program, I was interested in special collections. However, quickly learned how many “hyper specialties” existed within the sub-specialty of archives and special collections. Throughout my first semester, I developed a curiosity for film and sound preservation. Through research, interviews with experts in the field, and practicum experience it did not take long for me to realize that the information environment I wanted to specialize in was audiovisual preservation.
My fourth and final goal was to communicate efficiently and collaborate to deliver, market, and advocate information services. Artifact two, my London Travel Blog, demonstrates my achievement of this goal. Having the opportunity to learn both in a different country and directly from the publishers about their services has given me knowledge to communicate, collaborate, and advocate information services. [⌃TOP]