Internship: Archives and Special Collections Practicum, Summer 2026 – The Harold Baquet Archive Project

Description

Application Deadline: Monday, Mar 16 @ 5pm CST  

Organizational Department: Williams Research Center  

Project Season:   Summer 2026  

Program Duration:  June 22 – July 31, 2026 (6-Weeks) 

Internship Program Mission Statement  

The Historic New Orleans Collection’s internship program offers students and emerging public history professionals a unique opportunity to engage with collections that represent the creative heritage and rich history of Louisiana. HNOC internships foster experiential learning through exploration, inquiry, and practice. We aim to create an environment that enables interns to identify, actualize, and confidently pursue their academic and professional goals. 

The Archives and Special Collections Practicum 

The Archives and Special Collections Practicum at HNOC presents an opportunity for aspiring public history professionals to immerse themselves in the study, preservation, and engagement with collections that embody the rich cultural heritage of Louisiana. Through hands-on experiences under the guidance of experienced staff at the Williams Research Center, students will develop transferable skills essential for careers in public history, including effective research methodologies, and some fundamental techniques of collections management. Hosted with HNOC’s Williams Research Center, this program is designed to promote experiential learning through a structured curriculum that emphasizes practical skills and professional development in key areas such as library and information sciences, archival management, and historic research and writing.  

Project Description: The Harold Baquet Archive Project 

The Harold Baquet Archive (2016.0172) represents a significant repository of visual culture that captures the essence of African-American life in New Orleans during the last quarter of the 20th century. Comprising approximately twenty linear feet of slides, negatives, prints, contact sheets, and various other objects, this archive serves as a vital resource for scholars, historians, and those interested in understanding the complexities of urban life within a vibrant cultural milieu, including politicians and community leaders, second lines, Black Masking Indians, flambeaux, musicians, Mardi Gras, life in public housing developments, and the French Quarter and Tremé. Baquet's important work covers many subjects and a time period not otherwise widely represented in the holdings of the Historic New Orleans Collection or other local archives; significant for its historic, artistic and educational value as well as its historical representation of New Orleans.  

This internship offers an opportunity for professional development to students interested in exploring the field of archival management, particularly within the context of cultural heritage preservation.  Interns will engage in the processing and cataloging a segment of this extensive collection, participating in standard methods that adhere to preservation standards. 

Requirements

Intern Engagement and Learning Objectives:  

The intern(s) will:   

• Analyze and process archival collections with attention to preservation standards.  
• Conduct thorough research on diverse subjects related to archival materials.  
• Develop essential skills in creating detailed and accurate records for archival collections using a professional collection management system.  
• Execute standard processing and cataloging and re-housing techniques for diverse materials. 
• Implement descriptive cataloging practices using specialized collection management systems.  
• Demonstrate proficiency in object handling techniques. 

Project Format  

This is an on-site placement. The intern will be expected to report physically to the Historic New Orleans Collection French Quarter campus and be stationed at the Williams Research Center located at 410 Chartres St., New Orleans, LA 70130.  

Participant Expectations  

• Attendance: Regular attendance is required. Interns are expected to complete a minimum of 22 hours of engagement per week at the Williams Research Center. A specific weekly schedule will be coordinated with the intern, designated project lead(s), and program administration.  
• Time Commitment: Within the six-week duration of this program, the intern will complete a minimum of 100-hours of engagement, not to exceed a total of 125-hours.  
• Professionalism and Conduct: Interns should exhibit professional behavior, including punctuality, respect for the organization’s staff and patrons, and adherence to library policies. 

Candidacy Requirements: 

• Eligible applicants are undergraduate students of rising junior or senior classification, currently enrolled in a four-year university located in the state of Louisiana. 
• Students pursuing a degree in Fine Arts, Social Science, Cultural Studies or Humanities fields are encouraged to apply. 
• Experience in scholarly research, collections of management, and/or editing is welcomed but not required.