Laura-Edythe Coleman

Doctoral Candidate,

School of Information,

College of Communication and Information

Florida State University

Tallahassee, FL 32306

http://www.lauraedythe.com

lcoleman@fsu.edu

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH

Laura-Edythe Coleman is a Doctoral Candidate in the School of Information at Florida State

University. She has a Masters of Library and Information Science and a Bachelors of Fine

Arts. She has an extensive background in cultural heritage informatics, LIS education, and

information technology.

Ms. Colemans research and teaching interests include museum informatics, museum evaluation, knowledge management, critical social inclusion and justice theories, and the co-

creation of identity. Her particular area of research examines the management of culturally

sensitive information for cultural heritage institutions in communities reconciling civil

conflict. She seeks to understand the role of information in the creation of individual and

collective identities; to provide cultural heritage practitioners with the theoretical based tools

for evaluating the social inclusivity within their institutions; and to save the world: one object, one exhibit, one museum, one community, one nation at a time.

EDUCATION

Doctor of Philosophy, Candidate (2015)

School of Information, College of Communication and Information,

Florida State University.

Dissertation Title: The Socially Inclusive Role of Curatorial Voice: A Qualitative

Comparative Study of the Use of Gatekeeping Mechanisms and the Co-Creation of Identity in

Museums.

Dissertation Committee: Paul F. Marty (Chair), Melissa Gross, Michelle Kazmer, and

Jennifer Koslow.

Master of Science, Library and Information Science, (2012)

School of Information, College of Communication and Information,

Florida State University.

Concentration: Museum Informatics. Certificate: Information Architecture.

Bachelor of Fine Arts, Music Performance (1996)

College of Fine Arts, University of Florida.

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PUBLICATIONS

Refereed Journal Articles

Coleman, L.-E. (Forthcoming). The Socially Inclusive Museum: A Typology Re-

imagined. The International Journal of the Inclusive Museum.

Refereed Book Chapters

Coleman, L.-E. (2015). Social Inclusion and the Gatekeeping Mechanisms of Curatorial

Voice: Are Museums Ready to be Agents of Social Justice? In Progressive community

action: critical theory and social justice in library and information science. Duluth,

Minnesota: Library Juice Press.

Coleman, L.-E. (2015). Perspectives on Museum Informatics: Curatorial Voice re-

imagined through Gatekeeper theory; Museum as Place re-envisioned through Nonakas

SECI ba. In Annual Review of Cultural Heritage Informatics 2014 (Vol. 2). Lanham,

Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield.

Refereed Conference Proceedings

Coleman, L.-E. (2015). The Socially Inclusive Museum: Measuring Our Social Impact. In

The Social Value of Museums: Inspiring Change. Atlanta, Georgia: AAM.

Urban, R., Coleman, L.-E., & Marty, P. (2014). Libraries, Archives, and Museums:

Connecting Educational Communities and Cultures. In Connecting Collections, Cultures,

and Communities. Seattle, Washington: ASIS&T.

Articles Under Review

Coleman, L.-E. (n.d.). Mission statements, purpose, and the raison dtre of iSchools: A

Literature Primer.

Poster Presentations

Coleman, L.-E. (2015). Museum Informatics for the Socially Inclusive Museum. Presented

In Mirrors & Windows: Reflections on Social Justice and Re-Imagining LIS Education,

Works in Progress. Chicago, Illinois: ALISE.

Coleman, L.-E. (2014). The Socially Inclusive Museum: A Typology Re-imagined.

Presented at the Seventh International Conference on the Inclusive Museum, Los

Angeles, California.

Spears, L., Mardis, M., Coleman, L.-E., McClure, C., & Lee, J. (2014).

Assessing Information Technology Educational Pathways that Promote

Deployment and Use of Rural Broadband. In Works in Progress. Berlin,

Germany: iConference.

Coleman, L-E, Urban, Richard J., Marty, Paul F., Braun, Kathy (2014). LAM at

Universities: Convergence in Graduate Education In Connecting Collections, Cultures, and

Communities. Seattle, Washington: ASIS&T.

Coleman, L-E 3

TEACHING AND PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Teaching Experience

Instructor, Florida State University (2014-2015)

Perspectives in Information Technology

Course Description: This course is designed to assist graduating seniors majoring in

Information Technology to articulate what they have learned from their training in each of

these four areas: to work productively with people, to communicate effectively, to manage

information purposefully and to apply technology innovatively for the benefit of individuals

and organizations.

Teaching Assistant, Florida State University (2012-2015)

Usability Analysis and Design, Project Management for Information Technology, Excel for

Business, Introduction to Information Technologies, Network Administration Linux and PHP

Home Educator, (2003-2011)

Private Music Teacher, (1998-2003)

Graduate Teaching Assistant, University of Florida, (1998)

Substitute Teacher & Assistant Band Director, Marion County Schools, (1996-1997)

Professional Experience

Help Desk Analyst, (2011-2014)

College of Communication and Information, Florida State University

Research Assistant, (2013)

Information Institute, Florida State University

CURRENT RESEARCH

Coleman, L-E. (2015). The Socially Inclusive Role of Curatorial Voice: A Qualitative

Comparative Study of the Use of Gatekeeping Mechanisms and the Co-Creation of Identity in

Museums. Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL.

Description of Research Study:

Museums, and museum professionals engage in a significant role within society. This

dissertation is a qualitative exploratory study of the ways in which museum professionals

promote or hinder the social inclusivity of a museum through curatorial voice. Through a

series of exhibit evaluations and intensive interviews, the researcher investigates the

mechanisms used to craft curatorial voice within museums handling contested subject

material. This research seeks to broaden the understanding of curatorial voice, as viewed

through the theoretical lenses of gatekeeper theory and co-creation of identity, with the

explicit purpose of aiding in the development of professional guidance to help make

museums more socially inclusive.

Coleman, L-E 4

Coleman, L.-E., Moore, P., & Paquet-Kinsley, R. (2015). Museum Professionals and

Inclusion: A Study in Practitioner Perception. Atlanta, GA.

Description of Research Study:

In February 2014, the American Alliance of Museums (AAM) released a Diversity and

Inclusion policy statement. This statement is likely to have major long-term consequences for

the field, impacting particularly (1) the museum (re)accreditation process (2) professional

practice and (3) professional training. Building on the momentum the AAM Diversity and

Inclusion policy statement has created in the museum field, a research opportunity has

emerged to better understand the role of museum professionals: to study those professionals

who will be impacted by this call for change, and; to study the possible connections between

conceptual inclusion and practiced inclusion as articulated by those museum professionals.

The goal of this exploratory study is to describe the landscape of how museum professionals

in the U.S. currently understand inclusion. Given the goal of this study, we will utilize two

common interpretative research methods, namely, a survey (Conducted at the 2015 AAM

conference) and follow-up semi-structured interviews. We will conduct an extensive

literature review on the concept of inclusion to develop an analytical framework for our data.

This study is a collaboration between three PhD students: Rose Paquet Kinsley, University of

Washington; Porchia Moore, University of South Carolina; Laura-Edythe Coleman, Florida

State University. Findings will be communicated to the AAM and submitted for publication

in the journals Curator or Museum, Management, and Curatorship. We hope that our

findings can help inform the development of museum diversity and inclusion policies and

action plans, and serve as a basis to pursue funding for future research.

PAST RESEARCH

Coleman, L.-E. (2015). Curators of Conflict: The Gatekeeping Mechanisms of Curatorial

Voice. Tallahassee, FL.

Urban, R., Coleman, L.-E., & Marty, P. (2014). LAM at Universities: Convergence in

Graduate Education, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL.

Spears, L., Mardis, M., Coleman, L.-E., McClure, C., & Lee, J. (2014). Assessing

Information Technology Educational Pathways that Promote Deployment and Use of Rural

Broadband. (NSF), Information Institute, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL.

PROFESSIONAL, ACADEMIC, AND SERVICE ACTIVITIES

Professional Affiliations

American Association of Museums (AAM)

American Society for Information Science and Technology (ASIS&T)

Association for Library and Information Science Education (ALISE)

American Library Association (ALA)

Beta Phi Mu (BPM)

International Council of Museums US (ICOM_US)

Professional Boards

Board Member, Education, Cincinnati Museum Center (2004-2006)

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Professional Review Activities

Manuscript Reviewer, The International Journal of the Inclusive Museum (2014)

Contributing Editor, The International Journal of the Inclusive Museum (2014)

University and Departmental Service College of Communication and Information, Florida State University,

Technology Services Committee Member (2013-2015)

School of Information, Florida State University,

Graduate Assistant Union United Faculty of Florida, Departmental Rep. (2013-2015)

College of Communication and Information, Florida State University,

Tallahassee Code Camp Liaison (2013-2015)

HONORS AND AWARDS

7th International Inclusive Museum Conference Graduate Scholar Award (2014) Los Angeles, CA.

School of Information, Lewis-Marxsen Fellowship Endowment (2014)

School of Information, Departmental Scholarship Liz Cropper Award (2013)

School of Information, Professors Choice Scholarship Dr. Alphonse Trezza Award (2013) Museum of Florida History, Presidential Volunteer Service Award: Translation of La Florida

Bibliography, (2012) Tallahassee, FL