The search for a new head librarian is over. After a nationwide call for candidates by a committee composed of library and university-wide faculty, students and community members, Marilyn Moody was appointed as Portland State’s University Librarian. She will begin work on August 27.
The search for a new head librarian is over. After a nationwide call for candidates by a committee composed of library and university-wide faculty, students and community members, Marilyn Moody was appointed as Portland State’s University Librarian. She will begin work on August 27.
“The University Librarian is a Dean-level position and is responsible for the leadership and administration of the Portland State University library,” said Roy Koch, provost and vice president for Academic Affairs.
“PSU has a great reputation. It is a university I have watched with interest for several years,” Moody said. After a review of candidates, Moody was invited to PSU’s campus for a two-day interview, where she had the chance to meet with a variety of groups, including a session with PSU students, before she was hired.
Moody, who has more than three decades of library administrative experience at University of California, Santa Barbara; the University at Buffalo; Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute; and Iowa State University. Additionally, she has been the dean of the university library at Boise State University since 2006. She has a master’s degree in library science and a bachelor’s degree in the teaching of social studies from the University of Illinois.
According to Koch, Moody was the candidate who best satisfied the committee’s criteria. “She has a record of effective interaction with faculty and administrators as demonstrated by some of the things she has done at Boise State,” he said.
Qualities being sought in candidates included demonstrated experience in the administration of an academic library as well as a deep understanding of the changing landscape of libraries. An ideal candidate would be able to translate his or her experience and knowledge into an ability to deliver effective leadership at PSU’s library, Koch explained.
A vacancy in the position was created when former University Librarian Helen Spalding retired in 2010. Interim librarians have served in the position while the national search for a permanent librarian was being conducted.
Moody looks forward to opportunities that the university librarian has to contribute to both the library and the university’s success.
“The PSU library is already a vibrant place, but I’d like to look for even more ways to provide a welcoming environment for all students,” Moody said. She wants to expand the connections between students and the library while implementing innovative strategies to support both student success and faculty teaching and research.
Moody said she is passionate about providing both physical and remote library services and resources to library users. She also enjoys the challenge of using new technologies and has been exploring ways to integrate mobile devices into the library experience.
Moody’s plan comes at a time when, as reported in the Vanguard, the PSU library is reconfiguring a portion of its physical space to create space for student support activities, with administration officials saying that the reduced library space was supported by a growing digital collection of resources [“Merger claims up to 4,800 square feet of Millar Library,” May 31].
“Academic libraries are in the midst of all sorts of immense change,” Moody said. “Especially impactful are the rapid changes in technologies. Changing faculty and student expectations of the role of libraries on campus have also greatly affected libraries. From my previous positions, I bring a lot of experience in dealing with these changes,” she added.
Library faculty vouched for Moody’s vision.
“Marilyn Moody has a proven history of strong leadership and management experience as well as a vision of excellence and innovation for the future of the university library. I believe she will also be an exciting partner in fund-raising for the library and be the key leader in garnering support for our resources, services and programs to support the research and learning at PSU,” said library Director of Development Jennifer Wilkerson.
“She is energetic and has a personal style that will fit well with the university,” Koch added.
Creating closer relationships with faculty and students was one of Moody’s major accomplishments at Boise State. “One of the most successful initiatives has been to assign librarian liaisons to work with individual departments and programs. Under my leadership at Boise State, we also very rapidly increased the library digital resources available to the campus,” Moody said.
Moody described her philosophy as one of forward-thinking interconnectedness.
“While making strategic decisions for the long-term, I also look for ways for libraries to be flexible and agile enough to take advantage of opportunities as they arise,” she said, adding that “academic libraries have a vital role to play as they support the vision, mission and strategic priorities of their university. The position of university librarian provides many opportunities to work with others to shape and define that role.”
