NAP Scholarship

Esperanza Bey

NAP Scholarship

2025 NAP SCHOLARSHIP AWARDEE

The Nomadic Archivists Project is thrilled to announce Esperanza Bey as the recipient of the 2025 NAP Scholarship!

A third-generation Oaklander and recent graduate of UCLA’s MLIS program with a specialization in archival studies, Esperanza’s work reflects a deep commitment to community memory, archival justice, and liberatory practices within Black cultural heritage spaces. Esperanza’s passion for archives is rooted in personal history — mapping her family’s story within Oakland’s shifting landscape and working within institutions like the African American Museum and Library at Oakland and the Eastside Arts Alliance. Through these experiences, she’s nurtured an archival practice centered on ethics, activation, and advocacy.

Her current project, FRAGMENTS OF A BIP, is a post-custodial community archive and digital zine that documents the collective memory of Oakland’s Black community, examining how it has navigated displacement, state-sanctioned violence, and systemic neglect. The project will feature oral histories, visual essays, and testimonies from community elders, culture workers, and historians — mapping the survival strategies and cultural resilience of Black Oaklanders in the face of ongoing dispossession.

With the support of the NAP Scholarship, Esperanza will develop a dedicated website for FRAGMENTS OF A BIP, ensuring broader access to these vital stories, and attend the 2025 Society of American Archivists Annual Meeting to deepen her knowledge in managing post-custodial community archives.

Please join us in congratulating Esperanza on this well-deserved recognition! We’re proud to be in community with her and look forward to witnessing the transformative impact of FRAGMENTS OF A BIP.

See past scholarship awardees here.

SCHOLARSHIP BACKGROUND

The NAP Scholarship is an annual fund awarded to students, early career, and independent archivists of African descent who wish to attend the Society of American Archivists (SAA) conference or use the funds to support an archival project. The scholarship awardee(s) will receive up to $1,500 to pay for registration, travel, membership, classes/trainings, supplies, personal time, or other expenses.

As archivists, we understand that access means everything, from information to opportunities. One way we can be active, learn, and leverage skills early in our careers is to participate in professional organizations. We know that the Society of American Archivists (SAA) is an important platform for archivists to network, share work with peers, attend workshops, join leadership committees, and more.

NAP acknowledges that there can be barriers for new and independent archivists to enter these spaces. We also believe that organizations like SAA benefit from our insights and talents. NAP feels it is essential to facilitate these kinds of relationships.

ELIGIBILITY

Those wishing to apply for a NAP Scholarship should review the following criteria to ensure they meet the eligibility requirements.

Applicant must be a current undergraduate or graduate student or an independent archivist of African descent
Committed to being or becoming an archivist
Demonstrates a need for the scholarship

APPLICATIONS MUST INCLUDE:

500-750 word essay describing an interest in pursuing a career in archives or an archival project that this fund would support
Resume
Headshot

Applicants who wish to attend SAA can request funds for registration, travel, membership, classes/trainings, supplies, personal time, or other expenses. Applicants seeking funding for their project should submit a budget (supplies, travel, etc.).

The application period for 2025 is now closed.

If you believe that you meet these eligibility requirements, we encourage you to apply.

Please send applications to Miranda Mims: miranda@nomadicarchivistsproject. Should you have any questions about our eligibility requirements, please contact Miranda Mims.

SPONSORSHIP

We appreciate the community's effort to assist visionary new archivists on their archival journey. We would like to acknowledge scholarship donors Tanya M. Beltran, Novella Ford, Minda Harts, Dr. Ida Jones, Diana Lachatanere, Damien Laudier, Lee Livingston Perine, Cornelius Moore, Rodney Nelson, Lela Sewell-Williams, Azure Thompson, and Artis Wright. Thank you for your support of library science students and archivists of African descent globally!

Interested in becoming a sponsor? NAP is currently accepting all levels of support for the scholarship. Sponsors will be publicly acknowledged on our website.

Please contact Miranda Mims: miranda@nomadicarchivistsproject.com if you are interested in becoming a sponsor.