Wesley Chenault Email & Phone Number

Washington, Dc, Us

Ithaca, New York Area

I managed the Kheel Center, a special unit of the Martin P. Catherwood Library, which included strategic planning, managing a unit budget, developing collections and programs, and building relationships. I led collection development and collaborated with senior leadership, faculty, and a variety of diverse stakeholders. I also supported University and CUL values for diversity, equity, and inclusion by aligning unit goals for collection development, services, and programs, which included approving initiatives for reparative collection descriptions and exhibits for underrepresented communities.• Oversaw the development of six archivists and curators, managed five direct reports, led recruitment efforts, assigned responsibilities, and drove the professional development of team members. • Coordinated with senior library leadership and development officers to cultivate new donors, build existing major gift relationships, and supported CUL fundraising goals through programs and outreach.• Collaborated with the Director of the Catherwood Library and department colleagues on strategic planning, which included defining priorities for services, programs, and collections over two years.• Represented the Kheel Center on cross-functional teams and committees, including the Curatorial Collections Council for rare and distinctive collections.• Drove new software system initiatives for collection and request management, including ArchivesSpace and Aeon, and assigned team leads for implementation.• Prioritized instruction staff development; identified training opportunities via Dartmouth’s Librarians Active Learning Institute and UT Austin’s Hemispheres program with a focus on active-learning pedagogy, lesson planning, and classroom activities.

Richmond, Virginia

I provided leadership and defined direction for the Special Collections and Archives (SCA) department of James Branch Cabell Library (JBCL), which included strategic planning, managing collections, developing programs, and building relationships with diverse stakeholders. I also led the redesign of the new JBCL SCA department as part of a large library expansion. • Oversaw the development of five fulltime staff members, managed 4 direct reports, led recruitment efforts, assigned responsibilities, and drove the professional development of team members.• Managed daily operations, oversaw instruction and outreach services, and co-led the creation of new procedures for registration, reading room guidelines, and collection handling. • Coordinated with the Assistant Head of JBCL SCA and Curator of Books and Art to acquire materials for the collection, updated guidelines, and ensured donation forms were vetted by University Counsel. • Partnered with the University Librarian, Director of Development, Head of the Health Sciences Library SCA and Assistant Head of JBCL SCA to cultivate new donors and support unit fundraising goals.• Collaborated with senior leadership to formalize the transfer of the Anderson Gallery collection, the University’s museum collection of art, to JBCL SCA, which included leading a team to coordinate the physical transfer of the gallery’s institutional records, library, and art collection. • Oversaw an 18-month collection survey of processed collections to set priorities for preservation and digitization initiatives and to enhance intellectual and physical control over collections.• Selected and implemented the online exhibition and publishing platform Omeka to enhance discoverability of collections through the creation of digital exhibitions.• Oversaw the department’s participation in digital initiatives, including the Freedom Now Project and Goochland County Rosenwald Schools Oral History Project.

I provided specialized research services for scholars and graduate students at the Archives Division of the Auburn Avenue Research Library on African American Culture and History. I collaborated with managerial staff in the identification and writing of grants. I also cultivated donor relationships through an African American LGBTQ oral history project. • Managed the “Digitizing Historic African American Education Collections,” a collaborative grant ($150K) project with the Digital Library of Georgia (DLG) funded by the NHPRC.• Managed three grant staff, assigned responsibilities, reviewed work, oversaw hiring and termination processes, conducted performance evaluations, and provided coaching and mentorship. • Developed and oversaw AARL’s Archives Internship Program, managed 12 interns from seven Atlanta-based colleges and universities, devised projects, and provided training and mentorship. • Coordinated special projects related to AARL’s mission; served as lead and curator for the online exhibition “Atlanta Since Stonewall, 1969-2009: A Local History” in partnership with the Atlanta History Center.

I established and cultivated relationships in the institution and community. I processed collections, created finding aids, and managed closed stacks. I served as project director for “Atlanta’s Unspoken Past,” a lesbian and gay oral history project funded by the Georgia Humanities Council resulting in 25 interviews and 10 acquisitions of personal papers. • Curated the exhibition, “The Unspoken Past: Atlanta Lesbian and Gay History, 1940 -1970,” and co-authored Gay and Lesbian Atlanta. • Served as project director for the “Atlanta Negro Chamber of Commerce Film Project,” by the National Film Preservation Foundation, which was the cover feature of NFPF’s Report to the U.S. Congress for 2007. • Drove the development of programs and outreach strategies for archives and initiated an internship program by connecting to public history programs offering archives courses.• Demonstrated leadership as chair of the Collection Development Committee comprised of archivists, curators, and librarians from units across the Atlanta History Center.

I preserved, arranged, and described records relating to the Atlanta Life Insurance Company (one of the largest African American financial institutions in the nation) and papers of the Herndon family, a two-year project funded by the NEH. I also managed, hired, and trained three grant assistants, developed workflows, assigned responsibilities, and conducted performance evaluations.• Developed programs and outreach strategies for the project; delivered presentations to professional organizations; coordinated tours of collections with host institutions.

I supported the acquisition and management of unique materials; processed, arranged, and described collections; wrote finding aids for women’s collections. I developed programs and outreach strategies. I also maintained and updated references, research materials, donor records, and acquisition files.

Ph.D., American Studies

Activities and Societies: American Historical Association, Society of American Archivists, Society of Georgia Archivists

M.A., Women'S Studies

B.A., Psychology