Ben Ostermeier

University of Illinois Scholarly Commons

August 2020 - Present

Graduate Assistant

• Answered patron questions about software and scanning services available in Scholarly Commons using virtual library chat software and email.
• Assisted in digital initiatives at the University of Illinois, including publishing the Scholarly Commons podcast, georeferencing historical maps, researching data collection policies at other universities, exploring machine learning library projects, and creating a virtual timeline of the history of the Scholarly Commons.

University of Illinois Rare Book and Manuscript Library

August 2020 - Present

Graduate Assistant

• Assisted in the creation of a theme for the Omeka S platform for the Rare Book and Manuscript Library. The goal for this Omeka S theme is to use it as a basis for Omeka S themes to be used throughout the library.
• Assisted in the creation of digital exhibits to feature the collections of the Rare Book and Manuscript Library
• Answered research questions about rare books and manuscripts in the library’s collection, which included locating and handling these artifacts from the library’s high-volume storage.

SIUE IRIS Digital Humanities Center

August 2017 - July 2020

Technician

• Provided guidance and technical support for faculty and student digital scholarship projects at SIUE, including planning and design of digital archive infrastructure, developing front-end interfaces for website users, and training students in artifact digitization and metadata writing.
• Performed periodic software updates on computers in the IRIS Center when released by the application developers and helped select new hardware and software for purchase to meet the growing needs of the IRIS Center
• Wrote successful SIUE internal grants to support digital scholarship projects and the purchase of software and hardware updates for the IRIS Center

Madison Historical

August 2016 - July 2017

Tech Developer, part-time

• Developed the website for the SIUE project using the WordPress and Omeka Content Management systems, created infrastructure for the digital archive and the workflow for artifact digitization, and designed the front-end interface for the website.

SIUE University Archives

August 2015 - May 2016

Archives Assistant, Student Worker

• Worked with the Eugene B. Redmond Collection of Lovejoy Library, which documents both the literary work of Redmond and his relationships with other members of the Black Arts Movement. I identified and created folder and box categories in which to place the wide variety of materials in the collection and played a role in the early development of the collection’s finding aid.

St. Clair County Historical Society

Summer 2014 and Summer 2015

Collections Volunteer

• Cataloged the society's extensive collection of documents, photographs, and objects related to the history of St. Clair County. I separated objects from flat objects like photographs and artifacts and updated and added entries for artifacts in the society’s digital catalog using the PastPerfect application.

The Alestle

April 2013 - May 2014

Online, Opinion, and Copy Editors; Reporter

• Wrote articles on several SIUE topics, including a potential smoking ban, the reliability of campus Wi-Fi, and the treatment of wildlife on campus. As the opinion editor I assigned editorials to reporters and created the layout of the opinion section. As the Online Editor, I published our articles online and promoted them on Facebook and Twitter.

University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign

August 2020 - May 2022 (expected)

Master of Science in Library and Information Science

Southern Illinois University Edwardsville

August 2012 - May 2016

Bachelor of Arts in History

Minor in Digital Humanities and Social Sciences

Minor in Computer Science

Cumulative GPA: 3.925