Spotlight on JD Larabie, Digital Scholarship Assistant

JD Larabie, Class of 2023, has worked as a Digital Scholarship Assistant since December 2021. He is a senior from Saranac Lake majoring in Performance and Communication Arts and English (Creative Writing).

What follows is a recent interview with JD about his work with the Digital Scholarship team at St. Lawrence University and his plans for after graduation.

What do you like about working with digital technologies, especially learning new digital technologies?

An aspect of working with digital media that I really enjoy is that it’s all very artistic, which as a PCA major with a focus in performance arts, I really enjoy.

My favorite part about learning a new tool or software is finding that moment when everything seems to fall into place and it finally just clicks. Once you hit that point it really gives you a sense of comfort in your capabilities, which makes me feel very accomplished.

What have been some of your favorite digital-scholarship-related tasks, projects, or activities, and why?

Probably my favorite task as the digital scholarship assistant is helping to manage and maintain the podcast lab. I absolutely love anything audio, and recording equipment like microphones and soundboards are really one of my favorite things to work with. This is in part due to a love of podcasts and streams that I listen to and watch, as well as my love for animated films in which the actors portray their characters through voice acting.

I know you did sound design for a recent campus production. Can you talk about what that process was like for you, and how it connects to your digital scholarship work and interests?

I did sound design for Neighborhood 3: Requisition of Doom, which was a student led productions as a part of a PCA students independent study this past semester. I recorded voice overs for the show in the podcast lab, chose and recorded audio and music for the production, and edited it all in Audacity. The process itself was really demanding and something I’ve never done before, but it felt so worth it to finally see the show underscored by my edits and mixes. It’s certainly a skill that I learned through my work with digital scholarship, and it is something I’m interested in perhaps pursuing again.

How do you see digital technologies—or your ability to learn new apps, workflows, etc.—helping you in the future, especially after you graduate?

The ability to pick up a new app, software, or device and learn its uses in the span of nearly a week I think will definitely be helpful in my future and after graduation. The skills I learned here and the practicing having to learn quickly and think on my feet is something that I think can fit in well into any future career. Not to mention being able to list the variety of digital skills I’ve learned on a job application will certainly be a big help when looking for a job.

Do you have plans for after graduation? And/or a particular field or area of interest that you would like to keep pursuing, or hope to find employment in? Dream job? Etc.

My plans for after graduation are to go home to the Adirondacks and begin work on creating a home audio recording booth. My dream job at the moment is to become a voice actor and to work on animated movies and television shows. I might even start a podcast once I’ve graduated. I’m thinking something with a spooky theme, like ghost stories or reading info pages from the IRS website (a joke, of course). I also want to continue writing, as I am also an English creative writing major with the intent to publish poetry, and perhaps writing a book at some point.