Biography

Kristen M. Mathieu is the Coordinator for the Commercial Pattern Archive (CoPA) in the URI Libraries Archives and Special Collections unit. As the CoPA Coordinator, Kristen is responsible for the management of a unique archive of over 60,000 vintage and antique sewing patterns dating from the 1860s to the present; as well as fashion periodicals, patternmaking books, and ephemera related to the home sewing industry. Prior to joining the UASC Staff, Kristen spent over a decade working professionally as a Geographic Information Systems Analyst. She received her MLIS and Graduate Certificate in Archives and Special Collections from the University of Southern Mississippi in 2023. Kristen is an avid sewist and amateur fashion historian, having previously run her own historically-inspired alternative apparel and millinery brand. This passion combined with her love of archival description and metadata greatly inform her work with the CoPA collection.

Pronouns: she/her

Research
Bibliometrics, Fashion & Textiles Collections, Geographic Information Systems

Education
M.L.I.S., University of Southern Mississippi, 2023
Graduate Certificate in Archives & Special Collections, University of Southern Mississippi, 2023
Masters of Environmental Science & Management, University of Rhode Island, 2011
B.S. in Marine Affairs, University of Rhode Island, 2009