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+---
+title: "Lauren Kehoe on The Zine Union Catalog (aka ZineCat)"
+category: spotlight
+series: seed grant spotlight
+date: 2024-02-26
+author: Jo Suk
+hero_image: https://nyu-dh.github.io/website-media/files/projects/zinecat.png
+tags:
+  - seed_grants
+abstract: |
+  An interview with Lauren Kehoe, Accessibility and Accommodations Librarian
+---
+
+<article class="message is-success mb-4" style="max-width:800px">
+  <div class="message-body has-text-warning" markdown="1">
+
+  <img src="https://nyu-dh.github.io/website-media/files/people/kehoe.jpg" class="is-pulled-right circle-128" alt="portrait of Lauren Kehoe"/>
+
+The DH Seed Grant Spotlights highlight work supported by the [NYU DH Seed Grants](/funding/seed-grants). Lauren Kehoe and Jenna Freedman were selected for a 2021-2022 NYU DH Seed Grant for their project [The Zine Union Catalog (ZineCat)](https://digitalhumanities.nyu.edu/projects/zinecat/). This year, ZineCat earned a grant from NEH to continue expanding the catalog.
+
+Below, Digital Scholarship Graduate Student Specialist Jo Suk and Lauren Kehoe reflect on the DH Seed Grant process and share the latest updates on ZineCat.
+
+  </div>
+</article>
+
+The Zine Union Catalog, or ZineCat, has been in the making since 2009. It started at the inaugural [Zine Librarians unConference (ZLuC)](https://www.zinelibraries.info/wiki/zluc-2009-sea/), where attendees began talks of developing a zine union catalog. Years later, in 2017, ZineCat creators Jenna Freedman and Laura Kehoe met at the CUNY Graduate Center’s M.A. in Digital Humanities program. During their coursework, Freedman and Kehoe created a prototype of the catalog using 25 records from three libraries. For their capstone project, the catalog grew to include eight collections and about 35,000 records of zines.
+
+In 2021, ZineCat won a NYU Digital Humanities Seed Grant to continue building on their prototype. Kehoe and Freedman used a variety of digital humanities skills in this round of development. “Maybe the most basic skill is longer term project planning for digital projects and grappling with the longevity and maintenance of a project that changes all the time,” Kehoe said. In terms of technical resources, they used visualization tools like Tableau for the zine metadata, and [Collective Access](https://collectiveaccess.org/) for managing digital assets. Kehoe also recognized the support of her colleagues at NYU Libraries during the grant application process.
+
+Keeping the momentum alive, Kehoe and Freedman submitted ZineCat for a [Humanities Collections and Reference Resources grant](https://www.neh.gov/grants/preservation/humanities-collections-and-reference-resources) from the National Endowment for the Humanities this year. It was their second time applying, and though they were unsuccessful both times, they were able to find discretionary funds for half the amount they initially requested. Kehoe and Freedman plan to use these funds toward a two-day meeting at Barnard in August, where stakeholders will plan the next phase of ZineCat. The discussions will assess tools for catalog development, challenges in metadata description, and the overall harmony of the diverse metadata, in addition to shared decision making and the governance structure of the project.
+
+Kehoe advised future seed grant awardees to make ample use of the resources available to them through NYU Libraries, including technical support and troubleshooting. Drawing from her own experience, she also encouraged persistence in seeking support. “Sometimes it does take more than one time, more than two times to get kind of support and funding as well. So to keep at it,” Kehoe said. She also suggested keeping an eye out for smaller, more niche sources of support, in addition to those from larger grant organizations.
+
+<hr style="max-width:800px">
+
+Read more about [The Zine Union Catalog](https://zinecat.org/about).
+
+The DH Seed Grants are administered and funded by NYU Libraries, the Center for the Humanities, and NYU Research and Instructional Technology. The goal of the program is to sponsor the initial development of projects that may go on to receive greater funding from external sources or otherwise build NYU’s institutional capacity in Digital Humanities work. We especially welcome projects that give voice or expression to underrepresented communities and that engage with the urban fabric of the cities in which NYU has campuses.
+
+You can also read more about the [NYU DH Seed Grant program](/funding/seed-grants) and read the [2024-2025 call for proposals](https://nyuhumanities.org/opportunity/digital-humanities-seed-grants/).