Biography:

Lauren joined the Colored Conventions Project (CCP) as the project manager and digital scholarship librarian in 2018. In 2020 she moved to Penn State with CCP to launch the Center for Black Digital Research (CBDR) as the Center-wide digital scholarship librarian and managing director. Lauren works with students, faculty, librarians, and partners to implement, develop, and manage digital scholarship and publishing projects. As a member of the CBDR Exec Team, she participates in strategic planning, grant writing and management, and relationship development.

Lauren has a MLIS degree from the University of Maryland, College Park, with a specialization in archives and digital curation. Her bachelors degree is in Visual Sociology: Struggle and Resistance from the Johnston Center for Integrative Studies at the University of Redlands.

Prior to becoming a librarian, Lauren worked in the publishing field, primarily at non-profit and education organizations, for more than 20 years promoting underrepresented voices, communities, and histories. Through this work, she experienced publishing’s digital evolution and how this transforms the way we communicate ideas, stories, and histories.

Her technical work includes managing digital platforms, database projects, website migrations, and web development.