Helen Wong Smith

Helen Wong Smith in July 2023 at the Society of American Archivists and Council of State Archivists Joint Annual Meeting Open House at the National Archives in Washington, D.C. Helen Wong Smith is an American archivist and librarian. She is the archivist and librarian for University Records at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. She works in the University Archives and Manuscripts Collection of the Public Services Division. She is formerly an Archivist and Librarian for the State Historic Preservation Division as well as the executive director of the Kauaʻi Historical Society. Smith is an active member of the Society of American Archivists, becoming president in 2023, and having served in many leadership roles including on the council, the Committee on Education, and the Nominating Committee from 2012 to 2014. Smith was named an SAA Fellow on June 10, 2016.

Early life and education Smith's hometown is Heʻeia on the island of Oʻahu. She has researched and written on Hawaiian cultural resources as well as presenting her discoveries through lectures and workshops for over 35 years.

Smith is also a strong advocate for cultural competency among archivists and allied professions. In 2015, she addressed the SAA at their Annual Meeting with her "Adopting Cultural Diversity Competence" presentation, which is now a workshop that is offered by the SAA. Among the desired outcomes, the course should bring students to critically examine their interactions with people of other cultures, create methods to improve those interactions, and "combine cultural-mindedness with culturally centered communication skills for effective relationships with all people forming the basis for culturally competent organizations, communities and societies." Smith has advocated for diversity among archivists and archives. In the same interview, she states that "our job as archivists is to show what we have, but also what isn't there—what this collection lacks. This is why it's important for professionalization." Awardee, Lei Lau Kukui Award, Society of American Archivists Student Chapter, Hawaiʻi, 2018 Awardee, Archives Leadership Institute, Berea College, Kentucky, 2016 Fellow, Society of American Archivists, 2016 Agnes C. Conrad Award, Association of Hawai'i Archivists, 2009 Awardee, Mary Edward Professional Award - Library Alumnus, 1990 Awardee, Beta Phi Mu (Library Honor Society) Chapter XI, 1986