05/07/2026
It's officially commencement season, which means congratulations are in order for our three graduating staff members: Sam Mueller, Lilly Fordham, and Catherine Kraemer!
Over the past two years as our Graduate Assistant, Sam has completed multiple projects to help maintain the organization of our Rare Book Room, including constructing custom housing for some of the Room's most fragile materials. He has also played a huge role in creating physical exhibits to promote our collections. Following commencement, he will be returning to his alma mater, Murray State University, for a summer internship mending books at the Pogue Special Collections Library. Sam plans to pursue a career in either academic archives or local museums, ideally somewhere in Europe.
Lilly (left) has worked with Special Collections & Archives for the past two years, and was one of the primary processers of the Jean Bell Mosley Papers, also working extensively with the League of Women Voters of Southeast Missouri Papers. We are happy to say she will be returning to join us as our new Graduate Assistant in the fall, after completing an internship repairing historic windows with Moss Restoration in St. Louis.
Catherine (right) has been with us over the last year-and-a-half, also playing a key role in processing the Mosley Papers. This summer, she will be completing an archaeology internship with the Missouri Department of Transportation. After her time with MoDOT, she will be attending the University of Missouri-St. Louis to earn a Master of Arts degree in History with an emphasis in Museums, Heritage, and Public History. Join us in wishing all three of them well, along with all the rest of this year's graduates!
