Opinion | UDC is the perfect location for the D.C. Archives
I have taught at the University of the District of Columbia for 12 years, and I strongly support bringing the D.C. Archives to our campus.
I was surprised Theresa Vargas didn’t include in her Sept. 21 Metro column, “UDC students say demolition wouldn’t just erase a building,” the perspective of the people who have been working to bring the D.C. Archives to UDC — most notably Lopez Matthews Jr., the director of the D.C. Archives.
Mr. Matthews has a tremendous vision for integrating the archives into student academic life. I teach D.C. history at UDC, and I’m thrilled the D.C. Archives is coming to our campus because of the opportunities it will provide our students, from hands-on research into their city’s history to internships that could lead to jobs in the largely White field of public history.
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I also worked and taught for seven years in Building 41 — the structure that needs to be replaced to build the new home for the archives. Building 41 is a poorly functioning concrete behemoth and was not a good place in which to work or learn. So I’m delighted by the plans for the beautiful new building that will house the D.C. Archives.
The university conducted a campuswide planning process in 2020, which included discussion of bringing the D.C. Archives to our campus — so the claim that this proposal has come out of nowhere is simply untrue.
Amanda Huron, Hyattsville
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