Sharad J. Shah

Collections Management Librarian

As Collections Management Librarian, Sharad manages collections space and collections projects and works in various locations and branches across SLA.

Prior to joining the Smithsonian, Sharad (rhymes with "Jared") spent four years working in the Library of Congress's Rare Books and Special Collections Division (RBSCD) and the U.S. Copyright Office. Before moving to the DC-Metro area, he lived in Wilmington, North Carolina, where he worked as an archivist, historical consultant, and in special collections at UNC-Wilmington's William Randall Library, the New Hanover County Public Library, and the Wrightsville Beach Museum of History.

In his free time, Sharad enjoys traveling, reading history-related topics, hitting the gym, rooting for his Philadelphia teams (go, Eagles, Flyers, Phillies, and Sixers!), playing video games (fan of Fallout and Red Dead Redemption), and binge-watching Netflix and HBO.

Education/Background:

Certified Archivist (CA), The Academy of Certified Archivists (2013)

MSLIS (Cultural Heritage Information Management), Catholic University of America (2013)

MA (History), University of North Carolina-Wilmington (2008)

BAs (History and English, minor in Film Studies), University of North Carolina-Wilmington (1999)

PUBLICATIONS

Shah, Sharad J. A History of Public Health in New Hanover County. Wilmington, NC: New Hanover County Health Department/LinPrint Company, Inc., 2010.

Shah, Sharad J. “Killing the Golden Goose: Balancing Preservation and Development in Wilmington, North Carolina.”  Master’s Thesis, University of North Carolina at Wilmington, 2008.

Shah, Sharad J. “Operation TPAJAX and Blowback in the Middle East,” in Journal of North Carolina Association of Historians 16 (April 2008): 1-33.

PRESENTATIONS

Shah, Sharad J. “Identification and Access: Working with Grey Literature in the Smithsonian Libraries and Archives.” Twenty-Fourth International Conference on Grey Literature, online, 5 December 2022.

Shah, Sharad J. “One Smithsonian, Many Libraries and Archives.” Society of American Archivists Annual Meeting, Austin, TX, 3 August 2019.

Shah, Sharad J. “Challenges of Planning the Relocation of Special Collections and Archival Material.” Society of American Archivists Annual Meeting, Washington, DC, 16 August 2018.

Shah, Sharad J. “It's Full of Stars (and Technical Reports): Challenges of Managing the NASM Library Special Collections.” To Boldly Preserve: American Institute of Physics, College Park, MD, 1 March 2018.

Shah, Sharad J. “Historic Postcards of Virginia: A Collaboration between CUA and the Arlington Public Library’s Center for Local History.” Society of American Archivists Annual Meeting, Washington, DC, 14-15 August 2014.

Shah, Sharad J. “Historic Postcards of Virginia: A Collaboration between CUA and the Arlington Public Library’s Center for Local History.” CUA-LIS “Bridging the Spectrum” Symposium, the Catholic University of America, Washington, DC, 31 January 2014.

Shah, Sharad J.  “Operation TPAJAX and Blowback in the Middle East.” North Carolina Association of Historians, University of North Carolina at Pembroke, Pembroke, North Carolina, 28 March 2008.