Helen Wong Smith
Archivist for University Records at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa Helen Wong Smith has over 40 years’ experience in historical repositories in Hawaiʻi. With a B.A. in Hawaiian Studies and MLIS and PhD from the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, she has held numerous positions including Executive Director of the Kauaʻi Historical Society, Lead Archivist for the Pacific Island Network of the National Park Service, and Librarian/Archivist for the State Historic Preservation Division.
Elected President of Hawaiian Library Association, Hawaiian Historical Society and twice of the Association of Hawaiʻi Archivists, she was named a Distinguished Fellow of the Society of American Archivists in 2016, serving as their 78th President in 2023-2024. She provides cultural competency training for a number of organizations including the Society of American Archivists, Hawaiʻi Museum Association, and the Council of State Archives, the latter through an IMLS Leadership Grant.
Building on a plenary address "Adopting Cultural Diversity Competence" at the Society of American Archivists 2015 Annual Meeting, Helen has been sharing how cultural competency can advance cultural heritage professions across the country. She and Dr. Rebecca Hankins successfully proposed cultural competency as a new domain to the Academy of Certified Archivists.
She has served as an ambassador of Hawaiian and Pacific cultural heritage repositories, bringing little-known collections to the forefront through her research and presentations and shares her expertise providing workshops to help promote the care of family and establishment of local repositories to adhere to professional best practices.