Alice Prochaska ''née'' Barwell, (born 12 July 1947) is a former

archivist An archivist is an information professional who assesses, collects, organizes, preserves, maintains control over, and provides access to records and archives determined to have long-term value. The records maintained by an archivist can cons ...

and librarian, who was Pro-vice-chancellor of the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

and

Principal Principal may refer to: Title or rank * Principal (academia), the chief executive of a university ** Principal (education), the head of a school * Principal (civil service) or principal officer, the senior management level in the UK Civil Ser ...

Somerville College, Oxford Somerville College is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It was founded in 1879 as Somerville Hall, one of its first two women's colleges. It began admitting men in 1994. The colle ...

, from 2010 to 2017.

Career

Alice Prochaska studied at Somerville College in the

and received BA and DPhil degrees in

Modern History The modern era or the modern period is considered the current historical period of human history. It was originally applied to the history of Europe and Western history for events that came after the Middle Ages, often from around the year 1500, ...

. Prochaska was initially a

museum curator A curator (from , meaning 'to take care') is a manager or overseer. When working with cultural organizations, a curator is typically a "collections curator" or an "exhibitions curator", and has multifaceted tasks dependent on the particular ins ...

, and then an

at the

Public Record Office The Public Record Office (abbreviated as PRO, pronounced as three letters and referred to as ''the'' PRO), Chancery Lane in the City of London, was the guardian of the national archives of the United Kingdom from 1838 until 2003, when it was m ...

, now

The National Archives National archives are the archives of a country. The concept evolved in various nations at the dawn of modernity based on the impact of nationalism upon bureaucratic processes of paperwork retention. Conceptual development From the Middle Ages i ...

. From 1984 to 1992 she was administrator and deputy director at the

Institute of Historical Research The Institute of Historical Research (IHR) is a British educational organisation providing resources and training for historical researchers. It is part of the School of Advanced Study in the University of London and is located at Senate Hou ...

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a collegiate university, federal Public university, public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The ...

. From 1992 to 2001 she was Director of Special Collections at the

British Library The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom. Based in London, it is one of the largest libraries in the world, with an estimated collection of between 170 and 200 million items from multiple countries. As a legal deposit li ...

. She then became head librarian at

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

, United States, from 2001 to 2010. She became Principal of Somerville College from 1 September 2010. She was affectionately known as 'Ali P' by the student body. She stepped down at the end of her seven-year term in August 2017. Prochaska was involved with the design of the first

National Curriculum A national curriculum is a common programme of study in schools that is designed to ensure nationwide uniformity of content and standards in education. It is usually legislated by the national government, possibly in consultation with state or othe ...

for

history History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the Human history, human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some t ...

in the United Kingdom during 1989–90. She was a governor of

London Guildhall University London Guildhall University was a university in the United Kingdom from 1992 to 2002, established when the City of London Polytechnic was awarded university status. On 1 August 2002, it merged with the University of North London to form Londo ...

, now part of

London Metropolitan University London Metropolitan University, commonly known as London Met, is a public university, public research university in London, England. The University of North London and London Guildhall University merged in 2002 to create the university. The Un ...

. She chaired the National Council on Archives and was a member of the

Royal Commission on Historical Manuscripts The Royal Commission on Historical Manuscripts (widely known as the Historical Manuscripts Commission, and abbreviated as the HMC to distinguish it from the Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England), was a United Kingdom Royal Co ...

. Prochaska is a Fellow of the

Royal Historical Society The Royal Historical Society (RHS), founded in 1868, is a learned society of the United Kingdom which advances scholarly studies of history. Origins The society was founded and received its royal charter in 1868. Until 1872 it was known as the H ...

and served as vice-president from 1995 to 1999. In the US she chaired the

Center for Research Libraries The Center for Research Libraries (also known by its acronym, CRL) is a consortium of North American universities, colleges, and independent research library, research libraries, based on a buy-in concept for membership of the consortia. The con ...

and several committees of the

Association of Research Libraries The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) is a nonprofit organization of 125 research library at comprehensive, research institutions in Canada and the United States. ARL member libraries make up a large portion of the academic and research li ...

, served on the board of

Yale University Press Yale University Press is the university press of Yale University. It was founded in 1908 by George Parmly Day and Clarence Day, grandsons of Benjamin Day, and became a department of Yale University in 1961, but it remains financially and ope ...

, and lectured on subjects relating to archives and special collections. During her tenure at Somerville she served as a Pro-Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford. She chairs the Sir Winston Churchill Archive Trust. She also lectures and publishes on topics related to national heritage and national identity. Prochaska is an Honorary Fellow of Somerville College.

Personal life

Alice Prochaska is married to the historian Frank Prochaska.

Books

* (1973) ''London in the Thirties'' (exhibition catalogue for the London Museum) * (1973) ''London since 1912'' (co-author with John T. Hayes) * (1976) ''Young Writers of the Thirties'' (exhibition catalogue for the

National Portrait Gallery National Portrait Gallery may refer to: * National Portrait Gallery (Australia), in Canberra * National Portrait Gallery (Sweden), in Mariefred *National Portrait Gallery (United States), in Washington, D.C. *National Portrait Gallery, London ...

) * (1982) ''History of the General Federation of Trade Unions, 1899–1980'' * (1986) ''Irish History from 1700: a guide to sources in the Public Record Office'', Archives and the User 6:

British Records Association The British Records Association (widely known as the BRA, pronounced as three letters) is a British learned society founded in 1932 to promote the preservation, understanding, accessibility and study of historic records and archives. It is a regi ...

. * (1987) ''Margaretta Acworth's Georgian Cookery Book'' (co-editor with Frank K. Prochaska)

References

External links

Dr Alice Prochaska home pagePrincipal's blog
by Alice Prochaska {{DEFAULTSORT:Prochaska, Alice 1947 births Living people Alumni of Somerville College, Oxford Fellows of Somerville College, Oxford English curators English archivists English librarians British women historians People associated with the University of London Employees of the British Library Yale University faculty Principals of Somerville College, Oxford People associated with London Metropolitan University Fellows of the Royal Historical Society Women academic administrators British academic administrators 21st-century American academics 21st-century American women academics 21st-century American librarians 21st-century American women librarians British women librarians British librarians