About

Librarian -- Aspiring Calligrapher -- Midwest native

Started in Wisconsin, went on a little Midwestern tour through Iowa and Illinois and ended up in the East. Pennsylvania to be exact. It's got the same sort of charm as southern Wisconsin with hills that are tricky after biking in flat Illinois.

I'm currently the Student Engagement Librarian for the Penn State University Libraries. I came to Pennsylvania from Illinois after finishing up my Masters in Library and Information Science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. I am a proud alumna of Coe College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

My focus in librarianship includes engaged scholarship, digital and information literacy, community informatics, reference services, peer-to-peer communities in the academic library, student work in the library, and community engagement. I enjoy teaching others and feel that the best collaborations come with a visible and constant presence paired with lots of enthusiasm. As a librarian, I feel it's important to meet a community where they are and provide resources they want. This requires extensive relationship building for trust to be formed.

I seek out adventures, challenges, and rewarding work. I value building friendships and asking lots of questions. 

Experience

Student Engagement Librarian, Penn State University Libraries

July 2017 - Present

As the Student Engagement Librarian, I'm interested in the work students are doing outside of the classroom and finding ways the Libraries can help support and or provide those opportunities. I'm also invested in learning about the Penn State student experience and finding ways to leverage and amplify those voices and experiences. In my role, I liaison with non academic units on campus (Residence Life, Student Affairs, undergraduate research, etc.), collaborate with librarians across the Commonwealth to have an aligned approach to student engagement, and find ways to help make student employee work in the Libraries meaningful.

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Evening Reference & Instruction Librarian, Penn State University Libraries

July 2016 - June 2017

In this position, I worked Sunday-Thursdays, 1-10 PM. This position allowed me to work closely with students and provide reference help at their time of need. I also created and provided instruction training to our student employees and one-shot instruction to first-year.

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Residence hall Library Supervisor, University of Illinois

May 2015 - May 2016

Managed two libraries that were located in University of Illinois residence halls. Supervised 12 student employees and fostered community relationships with residence life staff, resident assistants, multicultural advocates, and students living in the residence halls. Planned programs and events, and hosted weekly office hours to provide reference assistance.

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Community Ambassador, Urbana Neighborhood Connections Center

August 2014 - July 2016

The Urbana Neighborhood Connections Center is an after-school center serving students K-12 in the Urbana community. In my various roles during my time at the Center, I provided digital literacy instruction, helped set up and maintain three computer labs in the Center, provided technology support, tutored students at the Center, and advocated on behalf of the Center to community partners.

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