Social Media Team
Jessi Bennett
Jessi Bennett is the Digital Collections Specialist at the Library of Virginia. She helps maintain and create digital archival collections entrusted to the Library of Virginia by the state government and private donors as well as promote these collections to the public. She is responsible for several digital archival projects including the Virginia Yearbook Digitization Project and Transcribe, LVA’s crowdsourced transcription platform. She received her BA in English and History from Rutgers University, and her MLIS and MA in History from Simmons University and has worked in both government and academic archives in Boston and Richmond. Her research interests include the Virginia Merci Train gifts, new trends in digital humanities, and adding photographs to FindAGrave.com.
Afua Ferdnance
Afua is the Head of Archival Processing at William & Mary. As the Head of Archival Processing, she is responsible for overseeing the processing of special collection and archive materials at Swem Library’s Special Collections Research Center (SCRC), which entails establishing standards for arranging, describing, preserving, and making accessible special collection and archive materials. Prior to joining the SCRC staff, she was the Archivist at Broward County Historical Archives, the Bienes Museum of the Modern Book and the African American Research Library and Cultural Center. She also worked as the Visiting Archivist for African American Collections at the Beinecke Library. Afua holds a B.A. in American History from Connecticut College and an MLS from North Carolina Central University.
Mary Ann Mason
MA (They/Them) is a Local Records Archivist at the Library of Virginia. Their main responsibilities include processing records generated largely by Circuit Courts across the state, coordinating descriptive projects, and assisting with department-level digital initiatives. They are also involved in coordinating Virginia Archives Month. MA received a BA and MA in History, both from James Madison University. They enjoy gardening, good coffee, and watching really bad reality TV.