Mary Samouelian

Mary Samouelian currently works for Duke University Archives where she is responsible for processing the materials of the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation Historical Archives, an 800 plus linear foot collection donated to Duke University in 2009. This is a diverse collection containing a wide variety of formats including historical papers, oral histories, photographs, architectural records, books, record albums and realia such as ceramic camels! Mary says that it's been exciting to work on this collection, not only because it is the first time primary materials related to Doris Duke have been open to researchers, but also because Mary gets the chance to learn about such a fascinating woman. This past January, Mary had the opportunity to co-curate her first exhibit (about Doris Duke) in the Perkins library. The exhibit was featured in the Durham Herald Sun and during a Duke basketball game. "This may sound schmaltzy, but I really do love my job!" she says.

"I credit professor Cal Lee for getting me on the right path to my career," said Mary. "His "Introduction to Archives" class convinced me that I wanted to and could be an archivist, and his support as my Master's advisor guided me in writing an award-winning paper and paved the way to presenting on it at a Society of American Archivists session in 2009. Additionally, I regularly draw upon what I learned in "Arrangement & Description, Reference, and Metadata" - several of the books I used in class are regularly referenced at work!