Skip to content Skip to navigation

Student Success: Blaire Topash-Caldwell

Maxwell Museum Blog

Blaire Topash-Caldwell

 

Blaire Topash Caldwell
Home town: Egg Harbor Township, NJYears employed at the Maxwell: 5Title: Graduate Assistant PhD student, Ethnology, Department of Anthropology Type of employment: Hibben Fellow

Work with content management systems organize historical documents, research materials, input museum accession information and conduct analyses including archaeological museum archives and ethnology collections. Outreach to Indigenous communities for various museum programs such as artist residencies and repatriation, Act as liaison between UNM student organizations and Maxwell Museum.

“Blaire has had comprehensive work experience in the Museum over the past five years.  In addition to being an invaluable contributor to the activities of the Ethnology Department, Blaire used her collections management responsibilities to focus her research interests, integrating her museum experience within her course of study.  An adept and dependable assistant in the Department, she facilitated several important projects as a liaison with Indigenous scholars, artists, and community members.” Lea McChesney, Curator of Ethnology

“Working as a Hibben Fellow at the Maxwell Museum not only gave me a lot of practical experience in archiving and collections management, but also provided engaging research opportunities. These included the Chaco Heritage Project and the Smith Family Totem Pole Project, just to name a few. I felt valued as a young Indigenous scholar, especially in my community outreach work with Dr. McChesney.. As a result of my time working at the Maxwell Museum, and because of the invaluable guidance I received from multiple Museum faculty and staff, I will soon begin a new position as my tribe’s very first Archivist in the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Department of Language and Culture.”