Sylvia Rodgers Albro of the Book and Paper Section in the Conservation Division, has been selected as the Library's first Kluge Staff Fellow. The Librarian announced the selection at the Scholars' Council luncheon held on Oct. 11.
Sylvia Rodgers Albro places a modern, hand-made Italian paper on a lightboard to show its watermarks. - Christina Tyler Wenks
Ms. Albro will begin her residency in the Library's Kluge Center beginning on Jan. 1. For a period of up to nine months, she will research the history of hand paper-making in Fabriano, Italy, from the 13th century to the present. In addition, she will document and photograph the rich array of materials made with Fabriano papers found throughout the Library's collections.
Ms. Albro first joined the Library staff in 1984 as a paper conservator. She graduated magna cum laude from the University of Santa Clara, Calif. (1978), with a bachelor's degree in fine arts and Italian. She received a master's degree in fine arts and a certificate of advanced study in conservation from the Cooperstown Graduate Program in the Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works, State University at Oneonta, N.Y. (1982). She is the author of articles and chapters in several books on the topic of conservation of historic materials.
In addition to working at the Library, she has served in positions related to paper conservation in such institutions as Yale University, the European School for the Conservation of Library Materials in Spoleto, Italy, and the Phillips Collection in Washington. At the Library, she has been the recipient of three Special Achievement Awards and a Quality Increase.
The research project Ms. Albro proposed for the Kluge staff fellowship was praised by members of the external selection committee as being a blend of scholarship and practical application. Reviewers were impressed by the scope of her project, entailing the use of a wide array of resources from several areas of the Library.
Ms. Albro's proposal was selected from a pool of highly qualified projects submitted by Library staff. These 21 staff applications were reviewed and rated for completeness and appropriateness to the program's goals by a Kluge Center Staff Advisory Working Group subcommittee of three: Donald DeGlopper, Reference Division, Law Library; Georgette Dorn, chief, Hispanic Division; and Marilyn Kretsinger, assistant general counsel, Office of the Copyright General Counsel.
Because of their overall excellence, 10 topically diverse applications were forwarded to an external selection committee appointed by Prosser Gifford, director for scholarly programs. Selected for their experience in judging research of the type proposed by Library staff, the external review panel consisted of Kathleen Lynch, executive director, Folger Institute; Theresa O'Malley, associate dean, Center for Advanced Study in the Visual Arts, National Gallery of Art; and Hugh Heclo, Clarence J. Robinson Professor of Public Affairs, George Mason University, and a member of the Library's Scholars' Council.
The selection committee praised the staff proposals for their range of intellectual activity and diverse and imaginative use of the Library's collections.
"The Kluge Center Staff Advisory Working Group has done a wonderful job in moving quickly to formulate criteria for the staff fellowship competition, review submitted applications and forward them to the external panel for its recommendation. I am extremely pleased with how smoothly and professionally this first competition was conducted," said Carolyn Brown, assistant librarian for Library Services.
The next Kluge Staff Fellowship competition will be announced in mid-November. Applications will be due by close of business on Feb. 14, 2002. A briefing for interested staff will be held in early December. Additional information about the Kluge Staff Fellowship can be obtained from the Office of Scholarly Programs, LA-5255, or by calling 7-3302.
Funding for the Kluge Staff Fellowship for a Library of Congress employee is provided by an endowment grant of $60 million from John W. Kluge, chairman of the Library's James Madison Council. Announced in October 2000, the grant supports five chairs and other visiting scholars appointed by the Librarian, a dozen Kluge Fellows selected annually through an international competition; and a $1 million prize in the intellectual arts. Jaroslav Pelikan, Sterling Professor Emeritus of History at Yale University, is the first to hold the Kluge chair for Countries and Cultures of the North in the John W. Kluge Center.
Additional resident scholars at the Library hold fellowships funded by the Mellon, Luce and other foundations.
