Running for Executive Committee Chair:
Alejandra Gaeta
Alejandra Gaeta is Archivist/Librarian at the Autry Museum of the American West, where she is responsible for overseeing the physical management and processing of the Autry Museum’s manuscript and archive collections. Before joining the Autry, she was Archivist at the Center for the Study of Political Graphics (CSPG) and previously worked at UCLA in the Digital Library Program. She received her MLIS from UCLA and her B.A. in English and Latin American Culture & Literature from Whittier College. Her fundamental philosophy, throughout her education and work experience, has been that the development and the creation of collections in the archive should always keep the communities they are a part of, and those they represent, a priority.
Running for Secretary:
Liane Schirmer
A native of Los Angeles, Liane has a passion for all aspects of our history - from Hollywood lore to aerospace to ethnic enclaves. Armed with several languages and an unerring sense of direction, she takes pride in uncovering every detail about Los Angeles, no matter how obscure…or how far she has to drive! This magnificent obsession logically led to a dual career in history and the performing arts. While auditioning or rehearsing a play, Liane managed to carve out a few hours exploring local history and amassing a ton of knowledge about L.A. She was fortunate to have worked in Spanish and English and witnessed the growth of Latinx theatre in Los Angeles. Recently, Liane’s two loves - L.A. history and the performing arts - are finally coming together in a groundbreaking way. A member of the Latinx Theatre Alliance/Los Angeles, she is the Project Director for “Voces del Teatro - An Oral History of Latinx Theatre in Modern Los Angeles - 1960s to the Present.” This is the first attempt to record, preserve and study this unique movement in the cultural history of the city.
Liane Schirmer is an L.A. native of Costa Rican descent, who has a passion for languages, theatre and L.A. history. She has an extensive background in entertainment as an actress, director, voiceover talent and translator. She specializes in bilingual theatre. Liane is also an L.A. historian, and a member of L.A. as Subject. Current projects include “Voces del Teatro - An Oral History of Latinx Theatre in Modern Los Angeles - 1960s to Present”. She is currently researching the history of theatre in Los Angeles, with a concentration on various cultural communities.
Running for Archives Bazaar Committee Lead:
Claire Kennedy
Claire Kennedy is a native to Southern California, born and raised in Orange County, working and living in Los Angeles. She is the Archivist at LA Metro, accessioning, processing, and exhibiting its historical and institutional collections.
She has previously held positions at the South Pasadena Public Library, the studio of artist John Baldessari, The Huntington Library and several private collectors and antiquarian booksellers in Southern California. She holds a BA in anthropology and an MLIS from UCLA.
Running for Outreach & Publicity:
Lizeth Ramirez
Lizeth Ramirez is currently a Librarian/Archivist for Los Angeles Communities and Cultures at UCLA Library Special Collections. Her current work and collecting priorities focus on local marginalized communities, working to center them and their stories in the archival record. She received her MLIS with a focus on archival studies from San Jose State University. Prior to joining UCLA, she was an Archivist and Reference Librarian at the Orange Public Library & History Center in Orange, California, where she managed the local history archive for over eleven years. Born and raised in Southern California, she has worked in a variety of library settings as both a library assistant and librarian for over 20 years.