Library Director
Dudley Knox Library, Naval Postgraduate School
Librarians are partners in the scientific process -- we organize resources and help researchers define, discover and access the information they need to do their work.
Education
- B.A., Environmental, Population and Organismic Biology, University of Colorado at Boulder
- M.L.I.S., University of Washington at Seattle
Salary
$125,000+
Contact
What is your current job and what does it entail?
I have been the university librarian at the Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) in Monterey, Calif., since 2006. I am in charge of the Dudley Knox Library, an award-winning academic library with 33 employees who provide services and resources to support Masters' and Ph.D. level graduate programs at our university. We serve NPS students who are military officers from all U.S. services, allied nations, and government civilian employees in areas of homeland security and defense. NPS offers graduate degrees and conducts research in a variety of scientific and technical fields (e.g., oceanography, meteorology, physics); business; computer and information sciences; national security affairs; and homeland security. Dudley Knox Library has a budget of approximately $5 million and provides a variety of in-person and virtual services, workshops, and $2 million worth of scholarly content to approximately 3,000 resident and distance-learning faculty, students and staff of the Naval Postgraduate School. I have always worked in graduate-level higher educational science and technology institution libraries. Past positions I held include: associate library director for the MBLWHOI Library, which is operated jointly by the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) in Woods Hole, Mass. The MBLWHOI Library serves the scientific research and instructional needs of members of the Wood Hole scientific community, which consists of scientists and staff of the MBL, WHOI, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Woods Hole Science Center, and the Sea Education Association (SEA). MBLWHOI Library maintains a collection of resources to support scientific research and information needs for resident and visiting researchers and undergraduate, graduate and postdoctoral students working in the fields of biomedicine, environmental sciences, marine sciences and oceanography. Director of marine sciences and information services at the University of Rhode Island (URI) in Narragansett, R.I., where my day-to-day activities focused on the leadership and administration of three units at URI's Graduate School of Oceanography: Pell Marine Science Library, the National Sea Grant Library, and the Coastal Data and Information Center. Head of library and information services at Bodega Marine Laboratory, a field station of the University of California at Davis. In this remote marine laboratory setting I worked very closely with students, faculty and researchers as well as with the general public.
What was the key factor in your career decision?
My interest in oceanography began when I was 13 years old and attended a week-long special course at the University of Delaware's marine laboratory in Lewes...now a campus. Although I lived far from the ocean, I grew up watching TV shows like Sea Hunt, Flipper and, of course, specials by Jacques Cousteau! I was totally focused on oceanography and planned a very specific path to reach my career goal: get a college degree in a core scientific discipline, work for a bit, then go back to grad school so I could get a job in oceanography. Following graduation from the University of Colorado [which may seem an odd choice for marine science but in fact had excellent science programs as well as proximity to major laboratories of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)], I attended a 10-week officer training course at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy and then served as an officer aboard a 292-foot NOAA oceanographic research vessel working in the Gulf of Alaska and the Bering Sea. Although I thoroughly enjoyed the exciting experiences I had at sea, I discovered that I did not like shipboard life and decided I wanted a more shore-based oceanographic career. I went to work as a scientific manuscript editor for the NMFS laboratory in Seattle in the early days of computing, and then transferred to a higher-paying job in the lab's library. I soon discovered that I really enjoyed working with the "end results" of scientific research rather than "doing the science" itself. I knew I still wanted to go to graduate school to advance my career so I applied to a number of Ph.D. programs at oceanographic institutions, but I also applied for the masters' library science program at University of Washington (now the iSchool). I was accepted into all of the programs I applied for and was faced with a major career choice -- oceanography or library science? In the end, my selection of librarianship over research science was based on two things I had learned about myself -- I wanted a steady paycheck (and did not want to write grants for my research and salary) and I did not enjoy the process of designing and executing experiments, although I did want to be involved in other aspects of science. It was a wise choice; I have been involved in many exciting changes (including the Internet and digital communications revolution) and have partnered with scientists doing amazing marine science research.
What do like most about your career?
I love working with faculty and students at the cutting edge of marine science. Librarians are partners in the scientific process -- we organize resources and help researchers define, discover and access the information they need to do their work. I love working with anyone who is interested in understanding more about oceans and their impact on global climate and ecology. There is a wonderful international group of information professionals working in marine labs, universities and government agencies who have formed an organization called IAMSLIC (International Association of Aquatic and Marine Science Libraries and Information Centers). IAMSLIC has an annual conference in various parts of the world and an active network of regional groups that also meet once a year in various parts of the world. The connections we make here are important for us as information professionals, but they are also valuable to our scientists because science is multinational and multidisciplinary, our scientists move among our disparate institutions, and because information knows no bounds.
What do you like least about your career?
As I've moved up the ladder to an executive leadership position, I've become more removed from the day-to-day scientific enterprise but have moved into the university-level leadership team. I spend most of my time making sure that the library has the resources that our faculty and students need to do their scholarly work rather than visiting labs and participating in research efforts. It is my job to understand our faculty/student requirements and make sure that our librarians have the skills and resources they need to work with NPS faculty, students and staff. New tools for mining and visualizing data and information are creating exciting partnership opportunities for librarians and researchers and we will help them leverage scholarly information to make scientific discoveries.
What do you do to relax?
I live in beautiful Monterey County where I am surrounded by ocean, coastline, hiking trails and vineyards. I spend as much time outdoors as possible. I am also very involved in several community non-profit associations working to promote education, health and wellness in our community.
Who are your heroes/heroines?
Batman and Ironman -- they have superb critical-thinking skills instead of "super powers" and they use their knowledge to analyze situations and create the specific tools they need to make the world a better place.
What advice would you give a student who expressed an interest in pursuing a career in your field?
Take as many science, math, grammar/composition and computer classes as possible. A strong background in a basic science will be the best preparation for any career in marine science. I encourage all students to pursue non-classroom experiences through volunteer or paid positions -- this is a great way to discover the variety of job possibilities awaiting them. To quote Mary Chapin Carpenter, "We've got two lives, one we're given and the other one we make" (Source: Come On Come On, copyright 1992 Mary Chapin Carpenter). This is your career path -- you have control and get to make it up as you go along. Make your opportunities and go for it!
Are career opportunities in your field increasing or decreasing and why?
Positions in library and information science are definitely increasing. There is a significant need for librarians with scientific backgrounds who can help manage, present and preserve our rich scientific data and information for easy discovery and access. Librarians serve a critical role by organizing and facilitating access to distributed information and by teaching and educating users about new ways to access information. National and international initiatives in marine sciences are renewing and stimulating interest, research and new facilities. Librarians will be more critical than ever to the process of selecting and evaluating information and teaching users how to use and evaluate information resources.
What will you be doing 10 years from today?
In 10 years I hope to be retired from my job and volunteering heavily in our community...when I am not walking along the coast, shores and trails in Monterey County.
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