A lot has happened in the world since my last update! So many larger changes in tech and elsewhere have disrupted my professional sphere. The pandemic squashed things that have not really rebounded. Many colleagues have changed jobs or left academia entirely. The professional organizations that I counted on are evolving. I hesitated to start over after the Twitter exodus and now seem to have lost track of my network. My own work has shifted as initiatives plateau and people come and go. At a small school, the impact of individuals is strong. It’s a dense network where little movements can have big ripple effects.

Eight years ago, Erin White published this piece, “What It Means to Stay.” At the time, I took a lot of comfort in that piece (even though I had only been in my job for 3 years). And then even Erin left libraries. I’m still here, in my same old job. It’s weird to live in a world where people side-eye you for job-hopping and they side-eye you for staying in the same job for a long time. But it’s academia! It’s a system of ever moving goalposts. (I’m in the process of prepping my file to go up for full professor).

The thing is, I’m still doing a lot of neat stuff!

  • I just got back from this Mathematical Humanists workshop where I spent a lot of time in RStudio learning formulas and discussing when we can’t trust statistics.

  • I chaired the ILiADS Steering Committee this year. We had another solid year and I definitely learned some leadership lessons.

  • I spent the summer with a handful of students and a close colleague working on our institutional history research guides, including one on native history and presence. I’ve enjoyed digging in on some early American history as it has always been a pet interest of mine.

  • Last summer and fall, I spent time turning half of my office into a mini printing studio! I’ve used the tabletop presses in classes and with other student groups.

  • I continue to lead the DCI minor (we just completed a self-study and external review) and I just cycled off my term as team head for my team within the library. There is a lot I can say about both of these roles that I won’t do here, but I’m learning a lot.

  • In my personal life, I’ve hit milestones like: 1) been a master gardener volunteer for five years 2) maintained a regular gym habit for two years 3) started developing my own film (see new link on menu) and 4) wearing a mostly me-made wardrobe.

I’m good.

test letterpress print with random letters taped to the window