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Anna Sheftel – Candidate statement for H-Net Council

I would like to thank Matthew Gilmore for nominating me to the H-Net Council. I first began using H-Net when I entered my doctoral programme in 2003. Recently, I founded one of H-Net’s newer networks, H-Memory, in March of 2007. My work with H-Memory has given me real insight about the strengths, and potential, of H-Net. When, within the first two weeks of launching, we found ourselves with over 400 subscribers, I knew that we were onto something. The network has only continued to grow, and is currently preparing to launch a French language stream of the list, about which we are very excited.

I am currently a final-year doctoral candidate in History at the University of Oxford, and working out of the Centre for Oral History and Digital Storytelling at Concordia University in Montreal, Canada. Launching H-Memory was an interesting experience as a then UK academic, as H-Net has yet to catch on overseas as widely as it has in North America. My colleagues and I took the opportunity of our launch to organize events and publicize both our network and the organization at large in the UK, with great success. Many scholars were thrilled at their discovery of this rich means of communication and collaboration with colleagues around the world. Once H-Memory becomes bilingual, I am excited to further strengthen our ability to reach out beyond a North American subscribership.

As such, I am excited at the prospect of serving on the H-Net council, for the opportunity to continue expanding H-Net’s relevance. I want to work on reaching scholars outside North America, particularly in the developing world, where contact with like-minded academics worldwide is an impossibly important resource. As someone reaching the end of her graduate studies, I am also interested in looking at how graduate students can become more involved, and benefit from, the services offered by H-Net. As the founder of a network on a topic as essentially interdisciplinary as Memory Studies, I would also like to look at how we can expand H-Memory’s reach beyond the academy, and into other relevant domains such as the non-profit world and community organizations, government, museums and arts organizations, archives and libraries, etc. I have worked both as an academic, and as a social worker, and thus I am keen to see how we can bridge worlds such as these. Whether we are talking about listings, discussion networks, reviews, pedagogical tools, or any other aspect of H-Net’s operations, I want us to be able to be as inclusive and far-reaching as possible.

There has been a lot of discussion recently in regards to keeping H- Net relevant and forward-thinking. I am, of course, interested in the new technologies that are emerging that offer us new possibilities for communication, having been involved in professionally in internet work since 1998. However, my experience has also led me to believe that at the end of the day, H-Net is about people, and about getting as many people as possible, from across geographic regions and a wide variety of disciplines, in touch with each other, collaborating with each other, and learning from each other. To me, this is what makes H-Net unique and invaluable.

I hope that you will all give me the opportunity to serve on the H-Net Council, as I am eager to participate in the ongoing discussions on these and other topics. I am a dedicated team-player and a diligent communicator, and I am confident that I can bring fresh and considered perspectives to the council table.

With my warmest regards,
Anna Sheftel

-- Anna Sheftel
D.Phil. Candidate, History Faculty, University of Oxford

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