The Archives and Archivists of Color Travel Fund Award seeks to increase the networks and professional opportunities of minority graduate students and early career professionals by sponsoring attendance at the Midwest Archives Conference, to be held this year on April 3-6 in Detroit, MI.

Last year, thanks to the kind generosity of the CAA community and friends, the AAC Travel Fund Award sent three people to MAC 2018 in Chicago. Here is a testimonial from one of the winners, Maira Herrera. She was a graduate student at the time that she received the travel fund award and has since taken the position of Archivist with the Dominican Sisters of Springfield, IL.

What I loved about going to MAC was seeing different archivists interact and hearing their perspectives. I spoke to a seasoned archivist who encouraged me to branch out of Chicago and see how different archives function. She spoke of her experiences and how that has changed her moving forward. It made me understand just how big this community is, and how it will continue to grow.

This experience has taught me the importance of diversity in archives and how we can improve to make this field more accessible to minorities. One panel that I attended, "De-Centering Whiteness in the Archive", discussed this exactly. It was a great way to address the lack of inclusion in archives and understand that there can be room for improvement.

Attending MAC taught me that there is a community out there for novice archivists. It really helped me understand why I wanted to become an archivist and how I can contribute in the future. --Maira Herrera

Fundraising for the AAC Travel Fund Award continues through January, and the deadline for applications for the award is January 31, 2019. All who qualify are encouraged to apply.