Archival Digitization Assistant – Chiapas Marimba Research

Denver, CO; Denver (CO); Hybrid; USD 17,000 - 21,000; Part time

Benefits offered by this job

Work-study eligible

Job summary

University of Colorado Denver Office of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities is offering a EURēCA! student assistant position. The role supports digitization of archival materials and metadata workflows, with exposure to ethnomusicology and digital humanities.

Flexibility includes some remote work alongside on-campus duties; ideal for a first- or second-year student seeking hands-on experience in archival practices.

Qualifications

• Open to all majors; first- or second-year students welcome.
• Reliability, attention to detail, and strong written/oral communication.
• Interest in music archives, Latin American studies, or digital humanities is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Scan photographs, negatives, and paper documents.
• Run and verify OCR in English and Spanish; ensure accurate metadata.
• File naming, organization, and metadata entry in Tropy and Zotero.
• Rehousing original materials and maintaining backups.
• Prepare a semesterly report and present findings at local events.
• Assist with literature searches related to marimba, Mexican regional music, and archives.

Skills

Reliability

Attention to detail

Organization

Written and oral communication

Spanish language ability

Eagerness to learn tools

Tools

Tropy

Zotero

OCR software

Professional scanning software

Job description

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The EURēCA! Student Assistants Program provides introductory opportunities forCU Denver undergraduates to engage in research and creative activities.

StudentsMUSTcomplete the self-paced EURēCA! Presentation and Quizzes in Canvas (30min) or meet with a EURēCA! advisor before applying for all EURēCA! positions. Register Here.

Employer/Dept: University of Colorado Denver Office of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities

Supervisor: Laurence Kaptain, DMA

Job Location: CU DenverDepartment of Music and Entertainment Studies/ This position can be flexible with some remote and some on-campus components.

Purpose:

In 1985–86, supported by a Fulbright pre-doctoral research grant, I conducted a year of fieldwork in Chiapas, Mexico, on the marimba and its cultural world — research that became my University of Michigan doctoral document, was published in English, and was translated and published in Spanish by the government of Chiapas. Because this work predates personal computing, the primary materials exist only on paper and film: approximately 500 photographic prints, 20 rolls of negatives (roughly 500–700 frames), and 20 linear inches (approximately 2,000 pages) of newspaper clippings, government documents, and archival photocopies in Spanish and English.

This collection is not dormant. It directly supports an active, multi-year research program: a peer-reviewed article series in progress, a book under development for Routledge, and new fieldwork in Chiapas during a Fall 2026 sabbatical awarded by the CU Board of Regents in June 2026. Digitization will make forty-year-old primary sources citable, searchable, and preservable — and will place a CU Denver undergraduate at the center of building a research archive of lasting scholarly value, with the intention of eventual deposit in an institutional special collection.

1. Digitization of a fieldwork archive. The student assistant will digitize approximately 500 photographic prints, 20 rolls of negatives, and roughly 2,000 pages of documents and newspaper clippings in English and Spanish, working to archival standards (600 dpi TIFF for images; searchable OCR PDF for documents) with written protocols provided for every task.

2. Curation of a digital research collection. The student assistant will help design and maintain the collection’s digital repository: applying a consistent file-naming convention, entering item-level metadata (dates, places, people, subjects) in Tropy and Zotero, extending an existing nine-category taxonomy, and rehousing the original materials in archival sleeves and boxes.

3. Interpretation and dissemination. The student assistant will flag items of particular research significance, prepare a short report of notable finds each semester, and may develop a public-facing capstone from the collection — a digital exhibit or a poster for CU Denver’s Research and Creative Activities Symposium (RaCAS).

Duties and Responsibilities:

Scanning of photographs, negatives, and paper documents; running and verifying OCR in English and Spanish; file naming and organization; metadata entry in Tropy and Zotero (Chicago style, author-date); rehousing of original materials; maintenance of the 3-2-1 backup routine and periodic file-integrity checks; a semesterly written report of research finds; and presentation of the work at a local event such as RaCAS. The student may also assist with occasional literature searches related to the marimba, Mexican regional music, and music archiving.

Skills and Knowledge Gained:

Archival digitization standards, digital asset management, metadata schemas, OCR workflows, primary-source handling and description, preservation practice, database organization, written and oral communication, and exposure to ethnomusicological fieldwork methods and the scholarly publication process from raw field materials to peer-reviewed output. Software the student will learn includes Tropy, Zotero, professional scanning software, and OCR tools with Spanish-language support. The student will also gain insight into careers in music archives, libraries and special collections, digital humanities, and the asset-management side of the entertainment industries.

• Practical training in archival and digital-humanities methods: digitization standards, metadata schemas, OCR workflows, preservation practice
• Primary-source literacy — handling, describing, and evaluating original fieldwork materials
• Exposure to ethnomusicological research and the scholarly publication process, from raw field materials to peer-reviewed output
• A concrete, portfolio-ready contribution: the student may develop a digital exhibit or a poster for the Research and Creative Activities Symposium (RaCAS) from the collection

Minimum Qualifications:

• Reliability and resourcefulness, strong work ethic, careful attention to detail, organizational skills, basic computer and file-management comfort, eagerness to learn new tools, and effective written and oral communication. No prior archival or technical experience is required — all skills are taught on the job. Open to all majors; designed for a first- or second-year student.
• Preferred Qualifications
• Reading and spoken ability in Spanish; experience with digital media (photography, scanning, spreadsheets, or databases); interest in music, Latin American studies, history, or museum and archival work.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Preferred (not required) courses: any coursework in music, history, anthropology, Spanish, or digital design.
• Reading and spoken ability in Spanish; experience with digital media (photography, scanning, spreadsheets, or databases); interest in music, Latin American studies, history, or museum and archival work. Preferred (not required) courses: any coursework in music, history, anthropology, Spanish, or digital design.

Position Commitment: 8-10 hrs/week (dependent on work-study award amount)

Preferred Work Times: as arranged--most work will be conducted independently

Additional Application Components:

Single paragraph statement of interest

Length of Employment:

This position is available for Fall 2026 and Spring 2027, employment may continue at Professor Kaptain’s discretion. Please reach out to [e-mail] with any questions about the position. If both mentor and mentee agree, students can apply to continue with EURēCA! for a second year.

Offers for this position are contingent on a current work-study award.

• First complete 2026-2027 FAFSA or CASFA and confirm work-study eligibility with the CU Denver Financial Aid office.
• Once confirmed, attach email from Financial Aid stating potential work-study eligibility.
• Following interview and position offers, the EURēCA! Office will provide Work-study Authorization forms to confirm final work-study award amounts before formal offer letters.