UMSI alum Allan Martell on the importance of documenting and preserving stories from U.S soldiers

The experiences of U.S. soldiers and veterans are often unheard. With the U.S. participating in significant military conflict since the end of the 19th century, documenting and preserving their stories is critical to helping understand the firsthand experiences of war and the sacrifices soldiers make. 

2020 UMSI graduate Allan Martell is helping unearth the personal experiences and voices of soldiers by collaborating with the Virtual Footlocker Project, which seeks to preserve the personal records of modern soldiers. A PhD graduate from the University of Michigan School of Information, Allan is currently an assistant professor in the Luddy School of Informatics, Computing and Engineering at Indiana University Bloomington.

“This gap in preserving information matters because veterans are human beings who have committed themselves to serve and even sacrifice their own lives for this nation,” Allan says. 

Before joining UMSI, Allan worked as a journalist and completed his master’s in digital media at Georgia Tech. At UMSI, Allan was able to combine his interests in storytelling and documentation into a career in information. 

Today, Allan is doing what he loves and helping amplify veteran voices. 

“The experience of being at UMSI did transform my life for the better,” he says. “This has to do with not only the diversity, but the intersectionality of the diverse group of people at UMSI. The diversity combined with the tensions and messiness of that has provided me with the opportunity to have meaningful encounters from my time at UMSI.”

For students pursuing an information degree at UMSI, Allan recommends mapping your journey through the program and building connections with peers. 

“The professors are certainly a wonderful resource, but I think that a big portion of the experience of being at SI has to do with engaging with like-minded peers around the same phase in their professional development,” he says. “You learn a lot from them and their support is going to be pivotal to your success.”

Learn more about Allan’s career and how he found his way to UMSI in his alumni snapshot here.