TDL Member Profile: Sean Buckner
The March/April TDL Member Profile features Sean Buckner, Digital Preservation Librarian at the Texas A&M University Libraries. Below is the full member profile with background information and a question and answer session with Sean.
Background
Education
- 2012 Master of Science in Information: University of Michigan
- 2010 Master of Arts, Linguistics (Applied): University of Utah
- 1999 Bachelor of Arts, Linguistics: Brigham Young University
Professional Experience
- December 2014 – present: Digital Preservation Librarian (Clinical Assistant Professor), Texas A&M University Libraries
- Responsible for long-term preservation of the Libraries’ digital collections
- Develop, document, implement and update a digital preservation policy for collections
- Manage digital preservation systems and related workflows
- January 2013 – December 2014: Digital Preservation System Coordinator, Marriott Library, University of Utah
- Coordinate and execute the deposit of digital materials into Rosetta digital preservation system
- Administrator back-office environment and all interface configurations for Rosetta software
- Supervise and manage digital content on Library’s archival and production server spaces
- September 2011 – December 2012: User Information Services Assistant, Hatcher Graduate Library, University of Michigan
- Provide reference and information services for students and faculty both in person and online
Professional Affiliations & Involvement
- American Library Association (2014 – present)
- Emerging Leader Program 2016
- Association for Library Collections & Technical Services (2014 – present)
- Preservation and Reformatting Section
- Society of American Archivists (2012 – 2016)
- Minnesota Institute for Early Career Librarians from Traditionally Underrepresented Groups (2016)
Select Publications and Presentations
- Neatrour, A., Brunsvik, M., Buckner, S., McBride, B., & Myntti, J. (2014). The SIMP Tool: Facilitating Digital Library, Metadata, and Preservation Workflow at the University of Utah’s J. Willard Marriott Library. D-Lib Magazine, 20(7/8). [DOI: 10.1045/july2014-neatrour]
- Bogus, I., Buckner, S., Dowding, H., Mosbo, J., Mullins, J., Schumacher, J., & Titkemeyer, E. Preservation Showdown. Oxford-style debate presented at 2016 ALA Annual Conference, Orlando, FL.
- Broughton, J., Buckner, S., Goodsett, M., Powell, C., Martinez-Banuelos, M. Adding Disaster Planning to the IRRT Free Links Project. Poster presented at 2016 ALA Annual Conference, Orlando, FL.
- Buckner, S. “Crafting a Digital Preservation Patchwork.” Poster and minute-madness presented at 2016 Texas Conference on Digital Libraries, Austin, TX. https://conferences.tdl.org/tcdl/index.php/TCDL/TCDL2016/paper/view/937/415
- Bailey, G., Bondurant, J., Buckner, S., Creel, J., duPlessis, A., Huff, J., Melgoza, P., Mosbo, J., Muise, I., Potvin, S., Sewell, R., & Wright, B. Who gives a DAM? The Iterative Process for Assessing Digital Asset Management Tools. Poster presented at 2016 Texas Conference on Digital Libraries, Austin, TX. https://conferences.tdl.org/tcdl/index.php/TCDL/TCDL2016/paper/view/954/411
- Buckner, S. ARK as a Bridge between Digital Access and Preservation. Poster presented at 2014 Utah Library Association Annual Conference, Sandy, UT.
Military Service
- 2002 – present, service member, Army National Guard
- 2008 – 2009 served in Afghanistan; awarded Meritorious Service Medal
- Hold rank of Sergeant First Class (E-7); branch: military intelligence
Involvement with TDL
- 2015 – 2016, TDL Dataverse Implementation Working Group
- Policy & Governance Subgroup
- 2016 – present, Texas Archivematica Users Group Steering Committee
Questions and Answer
1) Why did you choose to work in libraries?
I love the university environment and the mission and work of academic libraries. Likewise, I have always appreciated the importance of accurately gathering, organizing, and saving information. Before working in academic libraries, I worked (and continue to work) in the military intelligence branch of the Army. My experiences and efforts in that field, combined with my love of academia, all blended together in a way that got me interested in actually starting a second career of sorts in academic libraries. The transition of my focus from military to library/archive information seemed relatively easy, the major difference simply being the content with which I work. Additionally, my wife, who is also a veteran, has worked in libraries longer than I have and her professionalism and passion for librarianship have served as an excellent example for me to follow.
2) What projects or initiatives are you most excited about at your library?
As the digital preservation librarian at Texas A&M University Libraries, it is my responsibility to develop a digital preservation program. A major component of that program revolves around our digital preservation systems. I am excited that we are finalizing the implementation of multiple Archivematica instances synced to Amazon Web Services and the Digital Preservation Network (DPN) via DuraCloud@TDL. In conjunction with those systems, we are also working on a metadata/content packaging tool to help further automate our digital workflows.
3) What is your most memorable TDL experience?
Attending one’s first TCDL – Texas Conference on Digital Libraries – of course is a memorable experience, but I will say that my participation on the Dataverse Implementation Working Group as a member of the Policy and Governance subgroup is my most memorable experience. It was a privilege to work with so many capable and accomplished individuals, and to see the group research, document, and establish the Texas Digital Repository (TDR) was both satisfying and significant. It’s rewarding to view online the portions of the policy that I personally wrote. I’m grateful that I was allowed to participate and play an active role in that project.