MELISSA W. BEHAR
626 Merrill Street
Houston, Texas 77009
(713) 868-1142
m_bradsha@lycos.com
http://www.ischool.utexas.edu/~mbradsha/home.htm
EDUCATION:
Certificate of Advanced Study in Conservation, Preservation and Conservation
Studies, The University of Texas at Austin Graduate School of Library and
Information Science.
MLIS with Endorsement of Specialization (12 hours past the MLIS). The
University of Texas at Austin Graduate School of Library and Information
Science.
BA, French. Austin College, Sherman, Texas.
Junior Year Abroad. Université Paul Valéry, Montpellier, France.
EXPERIENCE:
Conservation Lab, The University of Iowa Libraries, Iowa City, Iowa
Conservation Intern
 Performed treatments on special collection and circulating collection items
 Constructed various binding models for educational and instructional purposes
 Attended meetings on preservation issues, including a teleconference of the
Iowa Communication Network
Aug.-Dec. 2003
Mar. 2002-May 2003
Benson Latin American Collection Serials, UT Austin General Libraries
Library Assistant I
 Decided on and performed repairs to circulating collection—book repair,
pamphlet binding, and custom boxes
 Liason with central preservation and book repair unit
Sep. 2001-May 2003
Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center, UT Austin
Volunteer
 Participated in photo album survey project in Book Conservation lab
 Performed treatments and constructed housings for photo albums
 Rehoused archival documents in Paper Conservation lab
May 2002-Jul. 2002
Houston Museum of Natural Science, Houston, Texas
Field work project
 Conducted preservation needs assessment survey for 1,600-item malacology
library
Feb. 1997-Aug. 2001
Harris County Public Library, Maud Smith Marks Branch, Houston, Texas
Reference Librarian
 Aided patrons in finding information
 Created and edited bimonthly newsletter
 Bibliographic instruction of online catalog, the Internet, and magazine database
 Designed and implemented exhibits; created graphic illustrations for library
signage
 Developed collection of adult and young adult materials
 Attended training workshops on the Internet
 Supervisor to 11 employees in absence of branch manager and assistant branch
manager
Melissa W. Behar, Page 2
Jul. 1998-Jul. 2001
Houston Museum of Natural Science, Houston, Texas
Volunteer in Collections
 Cataloged collection of coins and transferred information to database
 Stored, created finding aid, and assigned catalog information to collection of
Native American artwork.
Sept. 1996-Feb. 1997
McNay Art Museum, San Antonio, Texas
Volunteer Librarian
 Documented and stored photographic collection in archives; involved
accessioning and updating series description and finding aid
 Developed collection of medieval and Renaissance art literature
 Served at museum library reference desk
Jan.-May 1996
Texas Memorial Museum, The University of Texas at Austin
Practicum
 Prepared exhibit of 16th- to 19th-century French medallions; included
cataloging, translating inscriptions, and composing historical story line
Nov. 1994-May 1995,
Sep.1995-May 1996
Perry-Castañeda Library, The University of Texas at Austin
Clerical Assistant
 Answered minor reference questions
 Shelved and distributed books
Jun.-Aug. 1995
Department of Medicine, The University of Texas Health Science Center
(UTHSC), San Antonio, Texas
Electronic Information Specialist
 Conducted online medical literature searches
 Created bibliographic database for reference materials
 Devised lesson plan for the instruction of Medline
Dec. 1994
Alliance Française de San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas
Volunteer Cataloger
 Originally cataloged and organized Alliance Française library
Jun.-Sep. 1994
Department of Medicine, UTHSC, San Antonio, Texas
Social Science Research Assistant II
 Performed library searches
 Assisted with pilot orientation seminars
 Generated statistical and graphic analyses of survey results
Aug. 1993- Jan. 1994,
Jul.-Sep. 1994
San Antonio Public Library, San Antonio, Texas
Volunteer Librarian
 Served at Business, Science, and Technology reference desk
 Aided with automated circulation desk and with shelving
 Verified books for deselection
COMPUTER SKILLS: PC/Windows, Macintosh. Online Databases: Medline, Dynix, OCLC. Software:
Microsoft Excel, Word, Power Point, Publisher; Adobe Photoshop, Dreamweaver
MX, EndNote, FileMaker Pro.
Melissa W. Behar, Page 3
COURSE WORK
HIGHLIGHTS:
Papermaking, Structure of the Handmade Book, Beginning Linotype, Treatment of
Bound Documents I, II, and III, Treatment of Paper Documents I and II,
Conservation Science I and II, Protection and Care of Records Materials,
Technology and Structure of Records Materials, History of Printing, Preservation
Management, Photograph and Cinema Archives, Museum Studies I and II.
LANGUAGES:
Fluency of spoken and written French. Basic knowledge of Italian, Latin, and
German.
PROFESSIONAL
ORGANIZATION:
American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works
American Association of Museums
REFERENCES FURNISHED UPON REQUEST.