Next in our series of interviews with Digital Library Program staff. Today, Mina Rakhra, Cataloging and Metadata Librarian, answers questions about her work.
What does a Cataloging and Metadata Librarian do?
A Cataloging and Metadata Librarian’s primary responsibility is to create and manage descriptive metadata for the Library collection in order to facilitate discovery of and access to those scholarly materials. In addition to creating metadata, I’m also involved in the selection, creation, and implementation of appropriate metadata standards for the Library’s digital projects.
How did you get here? That is, what was your path to becoming a Cataloging and Metadata Librarian Dartmouth?
I’ve worked for the Library since 2000, starting in Acquisitions Services and then moving to Cataloging & Metadata Services in 2001. At that time, I was also pursuing a master’s degree in library and information science at UIUC. Shortly before I graduated, I was fortunate enough to be offered a professional position in the Cataloging & Metadata Services department and I’ve been here ever since.
What’s a notable (interesting, challenging, unusual) project that you’ve worked on recently?
The most interesting and challenging project that I’ve worked on recently has to be the Occom Circle project. This was a multi-year project to create a scholarly digital edition of the works of Samson Occom. This was the first (and largest) digital project that I’ve worked on — it was an amazing experience to work collaboratively with such a large project group and to be so closely involved in the transcription, markup, and online delivery of over 500 handwritten eighteenth-century manuscripts.
What do you wish that most people knew about metadata?
Creating good metadata is a skill that anyone can learn — you don’t have to be a cataloger or a metadata librarian!
Who are you when you’re not being a Cataloging and Metadata Librarian?
When I’m not being a Cataloging & Metadata Librarian, I’m at home enjoying the peace and quiet of a small Vermont village.
What’s your favorite DLP project and why? (question from Jenny)
What I’ve really enjoyed about the text markup projects is the opportunity to read and interact with primary materials. Both the Occom and the John McCoy Family papers projects involved handwritten letters from earlier centuries and it was fascinating to read them — there were times when a phrase would catch my eye and I would forget about the markup (temporarily!) and be completely immersed in the letter and the world that it described.
What question would you like another member of the Digital Library Program staff to answer?
Are there innovative or transformative digital projects that other institutions have done that make you think “why don’t we try something like that here at Dartmouth?”