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In her role as the special collections and digital initiatives librarian, Allison Galloup feels that she's bridging ¹û¶³´«Ã½'s past with its future.

She works with ¹û¶³´«Ã½ Special Collections & Archives and the Nighthawks Open Institutional Repository (NOIR). ¹û¶³´«Ã½ Special Collections & Archives consists of university archives, rare and special books, and some personal manuscript collections. Digital Commons is an open-access source for university publications, faculty publications, and some student publications which includes CURCA’s Papers and Publications. Some of the materials included in ¹û¶³´«Ã½'s Special Collections have been digitized and are available through NOIR, too.

"No two days are the same in the archives world," Galloup said. "I learn or discover something new every day. You never know what you’ll find when you open a box of archived treasures. I feel like I’m merging the past (special collections) with the future (digital commons) for ¹û¶³´«Ã½."

But her work isn't limited to ¹û¶³´«Ã½'s materials. Galloup often works with local historical societies, which enables her to understand the area's regional histories and emphasize the importance of archiving it. 

She also shares her expertise with historical documents and archives to assist faculty and students with their research.

"I hope that students become better researchers and learn how to use archives of primary sources," Galloup said. "I want to make archives more accessible and less intimidating."

Galloup has a bachelor's degree in history from Berry College and a Master of Library and Information Science degree from the University of South Carolina – Columbia.