Betsy Peterson Retires from American Folklife Center

Betsy Peterson retired as director of the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress after 10 years in the role.

On the Library of Congress blog Folklife Today, Head of Research and Programs John Fenn wrote:

Her achievements as Director are numerous, impressive, and will continue to shape the work of AFC in the coming years. Under her direction and encouragement, the Center accelerated the digitization of collections for preservation but also, and importantly, for online access. She put particular emphasis on the AFC “field survey” project collections in this regard, and also championed online access for the Occupational Folklife Collections generated by the Archie Green Fellowships. These materials represent some of the most significant collection efforts supported by or undertaken by the American Folklife Center, and when she began her term as Director both collection clusters were largely unavailable online (or fully cataloged). Today, these materials  have a significant online presence and see use by a broad audience.

Folklife Today

Read more about Peterson’s work and legacy here.