Tell me about your path to librarianship:
Like many librarians, I loved libraries as a kid. I was a military kid, so there was lots of moving around, lots of new neighborhoods, new schools and friends, but even though there were new libraries, libraries were a constant. I could always find libraries, and could always find librarians too, who were always friendly and like kindred spirits. They always treated me like an adult, they valued my questions, thoughts and curiosities so they have really special places in my heart.
Honestly, when I was an undergrad, I really didn’t know what I wanted to do and then I started working in my library at Pitt (The University of Pittsburgh) and I heard people talk about librarianship and thought “This makes a lot of sense!”
So I went to get my MLS after that, but I graduated into the recession, so it took awhile to get a professional job. I worked an overnight shift at Carnegie Mellon for a few years, and then got a job at Temple working the night shift. While I was at Temple I was lucky to have great supervisors who knew I wanted to be a librarian and they allowed me time and space to go out and do other things, like be at the Reference Desk and get experience doing other library work. I also earned another Masters Degree while I was there and that really helped me to get the Research and Instruction Resident Librarian position at Swarthmore College.
That was such a wonderful experience. I remember how wonderful Swarthmore was and the library staff. I remember my supervisor Pam Harris would say that the Residency was like a “Choose Your Own Adventure” book – I could follow my interests and be supported.
From Swarthmore I went to Lehigh and have been here five years. I think I’ve grown a lot – especially in my philosophy of librarianship, which has expanded to include thinking about students and faculty and community members as people more holistically – about how the library can support who they want to be beyond their academic work.
Quick follow-up – in what discipline is your second master’s degree?
It’s in Educational Psychology. I always wanted to teach and have been interested in teaching, but I was never taught how to teach, so it was great to learn and think about learning theory and cognition.
What do you most enjoy about your current position?
Lots of things! I work with our College of Education and they are super special and wonderful and so inclusive and they’re like-minded because they’re thinking about education too. I’m learning so much from the students and the faculty. And since it is an applied program, most of them know why they’re there, what they’re doing and what they want to get out of it, so there’s an immediacy that’s important.
The other part of my job is that I’m a manager now – I manage our Instruction and Outreach Librarians, so I work with amazing people who have such creativity and kindness and intelligence in thinking expansively about the role of librarians in our institution. It’s been great to do things like an Escape Room or a Poetry Workshop. The opportunities for creativity and experimentation are what I really value and the spirit of that in the people I work with too.
There are frustrations at my institution, like there are at any institution, but when you find like-minded people across the institution who are willing to partner and collaborate, so many wonderful and impactful things come out of that.
So what I enjoy most about my current position are the partnerships, the cooperation and the community, both within the Library, but also within the Institution and even the wider community. We have the opportunity to think broadly about what library outreach means and what it can look like.
These are difficult times for many people. There’s a global pandemic, its devastating effect on the economy, people are acknowledging anti-black racism and protesting – there are so many people in real turmoil – and there are real challenges in higher education as a result as well. How have these things impacted your work?
Everyday there is something that has changed that we now need to figure into our planning without really knowing what changes are actually going to happen. There are so many contingency plans.
I’ve been thinking a lot about change and change management because accelerating through change too quickly can be detrimental rather than useful to any organization, but yet, we’re in a time when there is no not-changing fast.
But in terms of what is the hardest thing? For me and for my colleagues, it’s about how we best support our students in relation to remote learning and being visible and available to students who are in different time zones and who might have varying access to devices and quiet space to talk. Also supporting our black students and students of color who have done tremendous work in voicing their experiences to our administration who don’t seem to really care because they don’t make changes. So how do we hold the Library accountable – what can we do to support those students, but also as a pretty critical part of the University, how can we hold the Institution accountable for making the changes that we need?
So there are definitely not any answers to that yet, but there’s been a lot of thought and the start of taking action. We’re pretty student centered, so the challenge is that we want to be available to them in whatever way that they need us but also keep in mind that they will be stressed and overwhelmed in all sorts of situations… Navigating that is the hardest thing.
Let’s switch gears… What have you read, attended or participated in recently that has had an impact on your professional development?
I thought of something from about a year ago: I went to Rare Book School in Philly at the Free Library. The name of the class was Community Archives and Digital Cultural Memory. I’m not an archivist, but that was the best professional development experience I’ve had personally. It was almost spiritual and it was deeply affecting.
The group of people who were in the class were so diverse in every way: their professional backgrounds, where they were geographically located, it has been to date the only library space I have been in that was at least half black or brown – it was mostly people of color.
The conversations we were having about reimagining archives were so rich and imaginative. It made me think differently about things I take for granted. Archives are human records, but yet they’re often not accessible in any way shape or form, so what are some ways of reimagining or re-envisioning the archive so that it is more useful? History is so important to understanding where we’ve come from so that we know where we’re going.
We had field trips to the Mutter Museum, which was an interesting conversation because that place does some problematic things. We went to the Library Company of Philadelphia when they had an Afro-futurism Exhibit. We went to the William Way Community Center and talked to the archivist there. It was really special to hear about all these people who are doing community archival work around the city and to be in this community with all these super wonderful people.
I’ve been thinking about it because we all just met on zoom last week, which was so wonderful. It boosted my spirit to see them all again.It was intellectually stimulating and it also stimulated my imagination and I think we don’t leave space for that so much in our daily work lives. Let’s use our imaginations! It can feel unproductive, but it’s not wrong.
That sounds almost magical.
That’s the word for it!
With so many responsibilities and so much going on, why did you choose to contribute so much time and energy to the Delaware Valley Chapter of the ACRL?
I’ve gotten so much from being a part of my local library professional community. I was a part of our Lehigh Valley group and was pretty active with some of the programs there and I just looked forward to seeing those people and talking with those people – even if we might have disagreements, I feel I grew so much with the work with them.
And then when I started going to the DVC things, the keynotes, the panels, there were so many substantive things that I brought back and started plugging in to my institutional context. So, basically giving back because I wouldn’t be where I am or who I am as a professional or a person without those networks. I want to help contribute and develop and grow the wonderful work that has already been done so that other people have those opportunities
What are your goals or hopes for the upcoming year?
The recent past presidents Stefani and Jess were so good and their leadership was such a great example. They were so great about articulating DVC values. So I want to maintain that momentum forward, and also think about how we can think outside the model of a Fall Event and a Spring Event and have ways for our members – and even people who aren’t members – to continually engage with each other and the Chapter.
That’s really the heart of it: facilitating opportunities for growth and keeping in mind an expansive view of professional development too. You don’t necessarily have to have a presentation from a librarian talking about a project although those are wonderful and I’ve learned so much from them. But what are some other things we can do to be in dialog with each other and then bring that back to our institutions?
What about your non-working time? Tell me about your interests:
Well, I love to read! [laughter!] I love to read, especially biographies. There’s something about them I find endlessly fascinating.
I also like to write. I’ve taken writing workshops.
And I’m a harp player – I have a lever harp. I like to play Celtic music – that is what my harp is made for – and also pop music – I try to adapt pop music for it.
I’m a big fan of taking walks – it’s my quiet, reflective time in the early 5am morning.
And in the past five years I’ve been more and more involved with my community with various groups, like youth focused non-profits that are related to the arts in some way. Those things have been valuable to my personal and professional growth. I’ve learned so much from those kids and also the people who run those programs.
So those things keep me pretty busy!
Sounds like it! This conversation has been delightful for me, thank you! Before we close, is there anything else you want to say or want people to know?
Only to let people know that if there is anyone who is reading this, if you’d like to be involved in the Chapter, don’t hesitate to reach out – there are a lot of opportunities and we’re really open to new people!