Katarzyna Jaskółka-Leśniak

I am a historian and archivist. Since 2003 I have been working at the National Archives in Krakow, including since 2009 as the head of the Division for the Supervision of the Growing Archive Stock. In 2006 I completed the International Technical Archival Internship in Paris. I am also a member of the Association of Polish Archivists. As a member of collegiate bodies operating within the state archival network, I actively participate in developing solutions regarding methods of shaping archival resources, in particular criteria and methods of valuing and supervising documentation. I also participate in promoting solutions in the field of documentation management, including electronic documentation, in order to ensure permanent preservation of testimonies of the past for posterity. As a participant in the Doctoral School, I have decided to combine my professional experience with academic work and examine the development and changes in the forms and methods of shaping the state archival resource in the 20th century. I plan to investigate the individual elements of formation such as selection (creators of archival materials and scientific assessment of the value of documentation) and supervision (i.e. office control, supervision of company archives and supervision of the destruction of documentation). The aim of the project is to show how, over the years, the selection of documentation constituting sources for historical research was carried out and what the effects of the archivists’ actions were so that the testimonies of the past were permanently secured for future generations.

She submitted a doctoral thesis entitled “Archival selection and supervision conducted by the State Archives in Krakow in years 1919-1939”