Natalie Milbrodt

Leader and educator in the areas of post-custodial and community archiving, oral history, and library science.
Queens Public Library
https://www.linkedin.com/in/natalie-milbrodt/
I am a practitioner, educator and consultant, specializing in post-custodial and community-driven archiving practice with an emphasis on project design and metadata best practices. As an information professional and content developer, I have over two decades of experience working in small business, academic, cultural heritage and library settings. I currently manage a Metadata Services division within a large public library's Technical Services department. I oversee archival digitization and the creation and management of metadata for the library's physical and digital collections. This includes the preservation of intangible cultural heritage and local history on behalf of the library's community-driven digital archives initiative, the Queens Memory Project. I currently serve on the Oral History Association's Metadata Task Force, responsible for the creation of the OHA Metadata Toolkit, designed to help teams working at all scales and stages of an oral history project's lifecycle to determine what information is important to preserve about their collections. I proudly serve as an advisory board member for New York State Historical Records, Design Dream Lab, The Municipal Art Society of New York's Enduring Culture Initiative, and Wikitongues.

Experience

I hold an Interdisciplinary Humanities bachelor's degree from Michigan State University and a master's degree from Queens College in Library and Information Studies with a concentration in Archives and Cultural Heritage.In 2010, I founded the Queens Memory Project to collect images and stories from residents for the library's digital archives. Before joining the library profession, I worked for film production, design and marketing firms in both creative and management roles. In addition to my role as the head of Metadata Services and the Queens Memory Project at the Queens Public Library, I serve as an adjunct faculty member in the Queens College Library and Information Science graduate school.

Services

Oral history project design, community-driven archival initiatives, oral history best practices

Languages

Regions Available for Work

Other Regions: New York City|| United States

Specialty

Working for over a decade as the founding director of a community-driven, post-custodial archival program based jointly in a public library and university, I have had the opportunity to collaborate with hundreds of individuals and local organizations on projects to preserve local history and explore what it means to remember. I believe in the power of personal narrative to tell larger human stories that connect us to one another. Stories help us learn, remember, and find meaning.My strengths on a team are my creativity, strategic planning skills, and preservation expertise.

Methods

    • Other:
    • Design Thinking, Project Design

    Purpose of Contact

    • I am available to answer questions, or provide mentorship to other oral historians
    • I am available for hire - as an oral historian, consultant, presenter, educator, or related services
    • I am available to collaborate - on research, community projects, artistic endeavors, or other joint undertakings with peers
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