Intergenerational Oral Histories at Rutgers: Documenting the Past, Bridging Generations and Building Young Women’s New Media Capabilities

This project identifies new ways for libraries to engage oral history, and nurtures intergenerational ties among the women of Douglass College at Rutgers. Through innovative workshops that incorporate video-based Douglass alumnae oral histories, students are exposed to each other's unique voices, encouraged to appreciate the power of their collective ambitions as young women, and learn of the historical events that have shaped their alma mater and, by extension, their own experiences. Additionally, we seek opportunities to facilitate contact between current students and Douglass alumnae, thus enabling students to reframe their perceptions of Douglass, expand their networks, and strengthen their pride in their institution and its traditions. Finally, we investigate ways in which students can use social media to gather compelling alumnae narratives, and use a host of other digital tools to express their thoughts while drawing upon the numerous forms of media available to them in our facilities. Our vision for this transformative oral history paradigm is to expand the new media literacy and production skills of today's Douglass women, foster an intergenerational dialog, and redefine the role of libraries on campus.