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Week 1: Introduction

Hello! My name is Marissa Bellenger and I am a graduate student in the history department. This summer marks my second year in the program. My research interests are the Civil Rights Movement, Jim Crow, and the New Jim Crow. This summer I will be capstoning and defending my thesis proposal which is the NAACP Equalization campaign in Florida with a focus on the Florida State Teachers Association and professional member networks. This past year I have been a graduate research and teaching assistant for the history department. I also just finished an internship with the City of Orlando in the records department where I built my metadata, microfilm, and cataloging skills. In addition to working on the P.R.I.N.T project this summer I will be a research assistant for the Ah-Tah-Thi-Ki Seminole newspaper project. 

I hope my internship with P.R.I.N.T. will improve my transcription skills as many sources in my own research are cursive handwriting that can be difficult to read. I also have an interest in professional networks so it will be interesting to see how P.R.I.N.T. maps interpersonal networks. I hope to learn a multitude of skills while providing the team with own knowledge in metadata. I'm excited to work on an important project that continues to grow while creating meaningful relationships with my peers and leading faculty members.

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