Congratulations to everyone celebrating a service anniversary this year. The comments posted by supervisors about these employees are posted below.
5 Years
Corrie Hutchinson:
Corrie has become an invaluable member of the Libraries’ leadership team since she joined us as Acquisitions Librarian five years ago. She has managed cutting huge amounts of money from our collections budget and very significant changes in Technical Services. Corrie has proven herself a talented leader with great analysis skills, and is now a valued and essential part of the Libraries.
–Ann Campion Riley
Noel Kopriva:
Noel first came to the University Libraries to serve as the subject specialist for agriculture and other applied sciences. When the Engineering Librarian retired, Noel stepped up to handle that role as interim, and was later appointed into the role permanently. A team player, she agreed to keep a portion of her prior role supporting applied sciences. Noel is known for her commitment to instruction, and the many sessions she leads each year speak to that. In response to her advocacy work this year, she received the Librarian of the Year Award from ULSAC, for outstanding service to student library users. I appreciate Noel’s calm analysis of issues, and her ability to navigate in uncharted territory. Congratulations on your award, Noel! Thank you for your first five years of service to the University Libraries.
–Deb Ward
Erin Powell:
Erin has a great laugh. But besides that, she has been a wonderful team member who asks great procedural questions, takes on new tasks like government document checkin, stretches her experience by volunteering at the Research Desk, helps come up with ideas for Instagram, feeds our fish Harry 3.0, and all the while continues to process the daily receipt of print serials. Thank you.
–Corrie Hutchinson
10 Years
Sandy Schiefer:
Sandy has been a gift to journalism. When the last Columbia Missourian Librarian retired and budgets were tight, I never thought that we would be able to fill that position. My only hope was for a librarian who would be willing to transfer to the Columbia Missourian. I knew that Sandy was intelligent, independent and incredibly competent. She had tech skills, had worked with and knew all about government documents, public affairs and geography. Then, as if a miracle occurred, Sandy volunteered. When she decided to stay, we changed her title from Missourian Librarian to Journalism Research and Digital Access Librarian because we had big plans to expand the scope of the position. Sandy, not only is the information expert assisting reporters and editors with daily news and special projects, she teaches information gathering and evaluation skills. She manages contest entries, and the digital news archive staff. As the journalism school undergoes its curriculum redesign, she will play a huge role in the creation and management of the new digital multiplatform news archive. The journalism library staff, the Digital Curator of Journalism, the newsroom student reporters, faculty and staff are so grateful that she is now a part of our team. We can’t wait to see what she will be able to accomplish in the next 10 years.
–Dorothy Carner
15 Years
Michelle Baggett
Michelle has all the qualities you hope for in someone who works in libraries: a strong service mentality, great sense of humor and plenty of curiosity. She tempers justice with mercy in her dealings with our student workers and our patrons, and keeps us all on an even keel. Finally, and I can’t stress this enough, Michelle is nice. Not wishy-washy nice, but genuinely kind and sympathetic, patient and a great listener. We in the Engineering Library are fortunate to work with her.
–Noel Kopriva
Susan McCormack
Susan McCormack is a dedicated and skilled professional who has been working with consortial e-resource purchasing for the University of Missouri System campus libraries since late 2003, after nearly 10 years of full-time work at the Missouri State Historical Society. Her position here was originally with the Library Systems Office (LSO) at UM System until 2012, when LSO was merged into University Libraries. Susan has always been an asset in this role. She is dependable and meticulous when working with detailed budgets. She is quick and thorough with communications. Her enthusiasm for full documentation of procedure and policy is unsurpassed even within University Libraries. Susan resolves problems and issues by working with a range of contacts: librarians, accountants, and publishers/vendors. Even when the situation is difficult, Susan maintains a calm and helpful attitude. In her spare time, Susan has earned her reputation as a fantastic cook & baker. You can find her selling handmade goods at the Fulton Farmer’s Market on Saturday mornings in the summertime.
–Abbie Brown
Ernest Shaw
Ernest Shaw is cheerful, resourceful and hard-working. He has handled many difficult situations well, and is a wonderfully supportive member of the Library Management Team. His support of the changing technologies for libraries has enabled us to move forward with many projects over the years. Adjusting to all the IT structural changes has been stressful, but Ernest has kept things going for the Libraries throughout, and has grown as a supervisor and manager. Working with Ernest is always fun.
–Ann Campion Riley
20 Years
Rachel Brekhus
I’ve only known Rachel for a couple of years and have only worked with her in the Instructional Services department for the past year, but it’s been clear to me from the start that she is a skilled practitioner of reference and instructional services, a strong advocate for the students and faculty in the academic departments that she serves, and a librarian who is respected by her peers. To quote Anne Barker: “Rachel has a deep concern for the well-being of people in general and has made every effort in her service commitments to encourage and support University Libraries employees. She has a strong sense of community engagement, and her concern for and dedication to diversity, inclusion, and equality, both in scholarship and more generally, is especially admirable.” Congrats on 20 years, Rachel!
–Joe Askins
Yasuyo Knoll
Yasuyo worked at the Health Sciences Library for 18 years, as head of Photocopy Services, and was integrated into the Circulation Department. She was always willing to lend a hand to the Interlibrary Loan Department when their work-load exceeded their capacity. She opened the HSL on Sundays during that time, and was always reliable no matter what the weather brought her way. In December, 2017, Yasuyo moved to the Math Library, where she has exercised her user-centered vision to bring improvements to furnishings, equipment, and the use of space. I note when I visit the Math Library, that there are more users than before taking advantage of what the library has to offer. It’s clear that the faculty and students appreciate the Math Library services, and I especially appreciate her thoughtful approach to Math Library challenges. Thank you, Yasuyo, for twenty years of capable service to the University Libraries.
–Deb Ward
Caryn Scoville
We are so very lucky to have Caryn as a colleague. She provides a great sounding board for developing ideas, bringing a great combination of creativity and practicality to improve our library services. She is our data goddess, and is incredibly talented at using data to tell the library’s story. We all benefit from Caryn’s skills as a creative problem solver. She is generous in sharing her expertise, and diplomatic in her interactions with all library staff.
–Diane Johnson
25 Years
Michaelle Dorsey
The University Libraries have been lucky to have Michaelle as an employee for so many years. Her hard work, attention to detail, collegiality and devotion to serving our community is not something you can teach. From working with Special Collections to conserve rare materials, to serving on ESFAC helping with space projects, to leading the recovery of materials damaged by fire, to her daily oversight of protecting our print serials, she has made the collection, ACTS, and the Libraries better. Thank you.
–Corrie Hutchinson
Stephen stanton
Stephen will tell you that he has his dream job, and I will tell you that he is well-placed. His interest in science, the outdoors, maps of all kinds, and information make him a perfect fit for his position at the Geology Library. His knowledge of geology and information about it make him a magnet for the library users. The Geology faculty and students regard him and the Geology Library as a “huge asset to the research and teaching missions of the department.” In the words of the chair, Dr. Alan Whittington: “The library helps us to recruit students and faculty, and plays an integral role in the Department’s success.” I appreciate his sense of humor, as well as his obvious commitment to the Geology Library. Thank you, Stephen, for twenty-five great years with the University Libraries.
–Deb Ward
Rhonda Whithaus
Rhonda came to us as a G.A. She’s grown in every role she’s assumed, from part-time in journalism to full-time as the data archives librarian and then electronic resources librarian and now the Head of Research Services. “Service” is what matters to her, service to patrons, service to her supervisees and co-workers, and service to her community. She responds to problem reports at all hours as she believes it’s the library’s responsibility to make sure the patron can get the information they need when they need it. Rhonda listens to and solicits opinions of others to solve problems. If she rejects a solution, she can back it up with a good reason. Rhonda is patient, logical, careful and caring, persistent and straightforward, in every document she prepares and in every interaction with every person. She exemplifies that activity of maintaining, which is often overshadowed by innovating when spotlights are shone, but without which the world simply falls apart. Rhonda is a superb leader of the Research Services Department.
–Jeannette Pierce (text compiled from comments shared by colleagues)
30 Years
Laura Buck
At Zalk Library, Laura Buck manages circulation and reserves, takes care of the collection, hires and trains our student assistants, answers reference questions, and keeps the place running smoothly. Basically, we’d be lost without her. Over her career, Laura has seen an incredible amount of change in how libraries operate. But no matter the process or the technology, she has always been a positive force in the library, keeping the needs of the students, faculty, and staff foremost in her mind. Indeed, the major changes in the library over the past several years are due in no small part to Laura’s eagerness to create a more welcoming and usable space for the veterinary students. Thank you and CONGRATULATIONS, Laura!
–Kate Anderson
Marie Concannon
Marie is a very “outside of the box” thinker. When a new approach is needed to a problem, she is one of the people we can count on to come up with a different idea on how to do so. She uses that creativity on the state level (creating a geographically distributed regional depository collection) and national level such as when she served as the Depository Library Council Chair and now as one of the members of the steering committee for the Preservation of Electronic Government Information Project. She is ever in motion, identifying needs, marshalling forces on campus, within the state, or at the national level, to do what today can no longer be taken for granted: making sure that the information and the knowledge created in our government’s many departments and agencies does not perish, and also does not merely wait, storing their potential, on the proverbial “dusty shelf” so often invoked by those who disparage the waiting. Marie is respected among her peers for her energy, knowledge and commitment to providing access to government documents and information. Her knowledge, expertise and determination to find exactly what the patron is looking for translates into excellent customer service and satisfied students and faculty. Marie is a gem, and her hard work and dedication are an inspiration to us all.
–Jeannette Pierce (text compiled from comments shared by colleagues)
35 Years
Tammy Green
Thirty-five years of work experience make Tammy anything but “green!” Tammy’s job in Interlibrary Loan-Lending means her “patrons” are other libraries and institutions to whom we lend materials. Law firms, Missouri High schools, and the St. Louis Zoo are just a few of the entities Tammy has interacted with over the years. Tammy’s employment longevity now rivals another “Green” library employee – her mother, Carol Green—who retired after also working 35 years at Mizzou. This mother-daughter Green team has contributed a total of 70 years to MU, with most of that time in Ellis Library Access Services! The University Libraries have had a “Green” employee since the 1960s. Congratulations, Tammy!
–Cindy Cotner
