Miranda Welch papers

Collection

Identifier: IWA1186

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Scope and Contents

The Miranda Welch papers date from 1991 to 2012 and measure 2.9 linear feet. The collection is split into four series: Webster City Schools (1998-2006), University of Iowa (2006-2012), Photographs (1991-2006), and Artifacts.

The Webster City Schools series contains materials from Welch’s junior high and high school career in the Webster City school district. This series includes several yearbooks; scripts and newspaper clippings from school theater productions; and several examples of Welch’s English class work such as an anthology of feminist works that she compiled in high school. The series also houses information about honors she received such as the chance to attend the Iowa American Legion Auxiliary Girls State meeting in 2005, and the Honorary Matthew Shepherd Scholarship for openly LGBTQ students that she won in 2006.

The University of Iowa series covers Welch’s years as an undergraduate at the University of Iowa. It includes academic and activist involvement. Welch’s class notes and class projects in this series mostly pertain to Gender, Women’s, and Sexuality Studies course work, but her creative writing portfolio also contains examples of her reporting for her high school newspaper. The activism content in this series includes Welch’s work on the Women’s Resource and Action Center (WRAC) advisory board, and her involvement in Take Back the Night marches. The newspaper clippings file contain articles about the election of Barack Obama and the 2008 marriage equality decision in Iowa.

The Photographs series contains mostly photographs of Welch and her friends from their junior high and high school years, and a few from her childhood. The prom file contains a formal picture of Welch and her girlfriend at the high school prom.

The Artifacts series contains ribbons, medals, pins from high school theatrical productions and Welch’s high school graduation cap, which she decorated with her initials and rainbow colored rhinestones.

Dates

Creation: 1991-2012

Creator

Miranda Welch, 1987 - (Person)

Conditions Governing Access

The papers are open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Copyright held by the donor has been transferred to the University of Iowa.

However, copyright status for some collection materials may be unknown. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.) beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owner. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owners. Responsibility and potential liability based on copyright infringement for any use rests exclusively and solely with the user. Users must properly acknowledge the Iowa Women’s Archives, The University of Iowa Libraries, as the source of the material. For further information, visit https://www.lib.uiowa.edu/sc/services/rights/

Biographical / Historical

Miranda Welch was born in 1987 to Missy Malone. She was raised in Stratford, Iowa and attended Webster City schools. Welch had an aptitude for the arts and participated in extracurricular activities like choir and theater as well as excelling in creative writing as a junior high and high school student. During high school, Welch came out as a lesbian and took her girlfriend to the high school senior prom. As an openly lesbian student, Welch was eligible for and won an Honorary Matthew Shepard Scholarship in 2006 that helped her attend the University of Iowa.

As a student University of Iowa, Welch studied Gender, Women and Sexuality Studies and continued to write poetry. On and off campus, she was involved in a variety of feminist activities. She served on the in the Women’s Resource and Action Center Advisory Board, marched in Take Back the Night events, and participated in Iowa N.E.W. Leadership, a program designed to empower women across the political spectrum. In 2008, Welch received Margaret P. Benson memorial scholarship for applicants committed to women’s issues, diversity and social activism. She graduated in 2010.