Thank you, Terry McQuilkin. Also, thank you to Annie Zeidman-Karpinski, Hana Chan, and Lara Nesselroad for nominating me for this award. Those were very kind comments. Having been a senator for four years I’ve had the chance to take part in the process of handing out these awards. I am truly grateful to be included among the recipients.
I also want to thank my library supervisors and library administration for creating a work environment that supports staff growth and leadership opportunities.
My goal is to empower others through my work. In keeping with that, I want to close by highlighting some of the amazing work of my colleagues and the student employees I have the privilege of mentoring.
- Our DeArmond Makerspace crew of student employees provide specialized equipment and software support for members of the UO community looking to take advantage of our fabrication lab. This team of student employees puts in an immense amount of work researching, designing, marketing, and leading workshops where UO community members learn to create objects like wax stamps, silicone food molds, laser cut playing cards, Nazgul gauntlets (Lord of the Rings reference, for you non-Tolkien nerds), t-shirt stencils, and other similar creative ideas.
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Dean Walton, the Science & Technology outreach librarian, has been leading a weekly robotics group while also teaching classes on preparing for the FAA Drone license exam.
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Lara Nesselroad, the PSC & Math Libraries manager, recently planned out and hosted an event, “Our Bodies, Our Spaces”, with the Library Diversity committee on the issues surrounding body diversity, our physical spaces, and the planning involved in making them comfortable and accessible to everyone.
The people around me are hands-on creators, developers, and leaders that are making real and positive change happen on campus and I have the opportunity to be right in the middle of it because of this job.
I don’t often have the opportunity to speak before such a large group. While I have you all I’d like to make one request. What has helped me the most during my time on the Board of Trustees has been the conversations I’ve had with people on campus. Please, consider reaching out through phone, or email, or over a coffee at the EMU. It helps me, and it helps the other trustees to hear how things are going on campus.
Thank you.