University of Houston Libraries is pleased to welcome Allison Young as the new library manager in Special Collections.

Special Collections Reading Room

Please describe your role. How does your work align with the student success and research impact focus of the University?

My role as Library Manager is directly involved with student success. I oversee our student employee pool in daily operations and patron service. I also assign students to archival projects that align with their academic and personal interests, which fosters a more rewarding work experience. Our students thus gain invaluable insight into archival research and processing.

I am also responsible for fielding research requests, making me a direct line of communication between potential patrons and our services. I thus not only assist former and future patrons in finding relevant materials, but I also schedule their appointments and put them in contact with curators of relevant collections. I further assist researchers at our reference desk when they visit our Reading Room.

Please share a bit about your background and professional interests. How do these inspire and shape your approach in Special Collections?

I received my BA in Art History with a minor in Anthropology and my MA in Art History from the University of Houston. My academic interests are reflections of my personal passions for the arts and humanities. The investigation of human history and creativity has always led me to libraries and museums. As such, I was extremely excited when I landed a student worker position at Special Collections. As a student worker, I was exposed daily to intimate materials reflecting parts of local, national, and international history. Excited and motivated by new skills in archival research, I translated my experience into my thesis work by visiting Special Collections and other institutions as a patron. These skills I continue to sharpen have colored the determination I bring to my new position at Special Collections daily. 

What are one or two things you’d like scholars and students to know about engaging with primary source materials?

Researching primary source materials can be like an archeological dig in the archives, you never know what you will uncover. What can be found can move your research forward or stop it dead in its tracks. It can also humanize your perceptions on a person, people, and/or history. From personal experience, I have found glimpses into people’s lives–anywhere from centuries to a few years ago–that have made me laugh, made my heart ache, made me empathize. Primary sources are intellectual and emotional tools that, I believe, should not be underestimated.