Every time Princeton University Library (PUL) hosts a fellow through GradFUTURES’ University Administrative Fellowship (UAF), the program serves two needs. Most obviously, for the fellow, the opportunity to work and learn at the Library serves to help identify new or define existing career paths they may want to pursue after graduation.

But for PUL, it’s also a chance for staff and leadership to receive feedback on the Library’s opportunities for growth as well as potential areas for development. 

For Charmaine Branch, a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Art & Archaeology, pursuing a graduate certificate in African American Studies, her work is committed to social equity and community care, both of which she believes can be supported by libraries. 

Focusing on modern and contemporary art of the African Diaspora, Branch’s dissertation addresses Black women artists’ contributions to Black intellectual histories of collecting and archiving in the United States. 

She is also the Programming Coordinator for the digital humanities research project “Art Hx: Visual and Medical Legacies of British Colonialism,” as well as the author of the wall text and exhibition labels for the Vassar College and Boise Art Museum installations of the traveling exhibition “Silver Linings: Celebrating the Spelman Art Collection.”

“As an advocate for information accessibility, I aim to understand and address the structural challenges that must be overcome to make materials housed in institutions like Princeton University available to as many people as possible,” said Branch. 

Branch worked with Anu Vedantham in PUL’s Data, Research, and Teaching Services, and began her fellowship by interviewing previous fellows, some of whom continued to work in libraries around the country. From there, she met with staff from around PUL before beginning to flesh out the projects she’d tackle throughout the term. 

One undertaking to spring from those conversations was “Teaching with Difficult Visual Materials in Princeton University Collections,” an independent research project investigating the intentionality behind using challenging materials in the classroom. 

“Through my experiences as a facilitator, I have come to realize that you have to be very intentional in how you set up a discussion so that people feel prepared to engage with visual material in a respectful manner while sharing their observations with their peers,” Branch explained. 

During the project, Branch spoke with staff at the McGraw Center for Teaching and Learning, as well as several librarians about their experiences using difficult visual materials, like prints with violent imagery or illustrations with offensive language. She also compiled resources related to inclusive teaching at Princeton University and other universities around the country.

“I was particularly struck by how thoughtfully she approaches her work and with such care,” said Reference and Outreach Specialist Emma Sarconi. “She asked me incredibly insightful questions that made me really have to think about the root of my praxis.

“Attending her workshop reflected the same values – she understands the power of working with primary source objects, both to inspire curiosity and critical thinking and to evoke enormous, sometimes painful, emotions,” Sarconi added.

“I plan to organize a workshop for fellow graduate students in the Department of Art & Archaeology where we will create a toolkit with relevant resources for emerging educators to use in their pedagogical practices,” Branch said.

PUL’s work with Indigenous Studies was also on Branch’s radar during her fellowship. In addition to contributing content to the Indigenous Studies LibGuide, she added material to the Indigenous Studies Digital Princeton University Library (DPUL) Collection.

Perhaps most visibly, Branch created a LibGuide for the African American Studies Graduate-Faculty Seminar, which compiles five years of seminar resources into one guide.   

“As a graduate student in the Department of African American Studies (AAS), I am very excited about this LibGuide as a research tool for people interested in learning more about the AAS community,” Branch said. 

Branch’s work, as well as that of her preceding fellows, has been critically considered by Library staff. Following Lisa Kraege’s fellowship, the PUL website chat feature was reworked to use less jargon.

One fellow, Faiza Masood, supported the improvement of wayfinding signs in Firestone Library. Another, Evan Ditter, worked with DPUL and staff members at Mudd Library on the description of Library-held items. 

The collaborative process between Branch and Library staff not only allowed for tangible results like the new LibGuide or adding materials to DPUL, but also for Branch to steel her commitment to engaging the communities she supports through stewardship. 

“This fellowship has been instrumental in charting a path forward that allows me to continue this work,” Branch said. “I am grateful to my supervisor Anu Vedantham for her support throughout the fellowship as well as everyone who took the time to discuss their work and perspectives on librarianship with me. The knowledge and skills I acquired during this time will be invaluable as I apply them to future projects and professional endeavors.”