Fourth KU Libraries dean candidate to present Feb. 23
LAWRENCE — The fourth candidate for the University of Kansas Libraries dean position will give a public presentation at 3 p.m. Feb. 23 in Watson Library in Watson 3 West Event Space.
The event will be livestreamed, and the passcode is 959680.
Catherine Quinlan is the final candidate who will describe her vision and aspiration for the role of libraries in the next 10 years at a flagship university. She is currently university librarian and dean emeritus at the University of Southern California.
Faculty, staff and students are encouraged to offer their impressions and observations of Quinlan online in a limited-time feedback survey. Feedback on Quinlan’s presentation is due by 5 p.m. Feb. 28. A recording of her presentation will be available on the search website until the survey closes. Additional search information is also available on the Provost Office website.
Quinlan will meet with Chancellor Douglas A. Girod, Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor Barbara A. Bichelmeyer, senior administrators, KU Endowment, KU Alumni Association, University Governance and KU Libraries groups, including faculty, staff, and the board of advocates. She will also tour KU Libraries’ facilities.
Quinlan is the inaugural holder of the Valerie and Ronald Sugar Dean’s Chair at USC. She stepped down as the dean of USC Libraries in June 2022 after 15 years in that role and was awarded a two-year sabbatical leave in recognition of exemplary service. She guided the university’s efforts to establish the model for the 21st century library.
Quinlan started several innovative programs to expand the USC Libraries’ support for teaching, learning and research on campus and to expand the libraries’ influence beyond USC. She oversaw the development of the USC Sidney Harman Academy for Polymathic Study, which was established as a unit of the libraries in 2011 to bring together students and eminent faculty to cultivate polymathic perspectives and integrated, interdisciplinary practices in teaching, research and artistic creation.
In collaboration with the USC School of Business, Quinlan developed and launched the Master of Management in Library and Information Science program, which received full, seven-year accreditation from the American Library Association in 2017. She also established the USC Digital Repository, one of the most advanced providers of digital preservation and access services for academic and corporate clients, including the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
In partnership with KCETLink Media Group, a leading national independent broadcast and digital network, Quinlan produced “Lost L.A.” The four-time Emmy Award-winning show draws upon the libraries’ collections and other resources to engage filmmakers in telling stories of the city and the region to showcase USC’s role as a source of scholarship on and understanding of Los Angeles as a Pacific Rim metropolis.
Quinlan went to USC after a decade at the University of British Columbia (UBC), where she headed a library system encompassing 300 full-time staff members and more than 21 sites. She also served as managing director of UBC’s Irving K. Barber Learning Centre for three years. Before that, she spent seven years as director of libraries and chief librarian at the University of Western Ontario in Canada and as an adjunct professor.
Quinlan holds degrees from three Canadian institutions: a master’s degree in business administration from Memorial University of Newfoundland, a master’s in library studies from Dalhousie University and a bachelor’s degree in music from Queen’s University.
About KU Libraries
KU Libraries sets out to transform lives by inspiring the discovery and creation of knowledge for the university and global community. Furthermore, KU Libraries is a place of welcome, amplifying the diverse voices of the KU community. It also serves as a leader in the dissemination of knowledge, advancing innovative and substantial ways to collect, create and steward resources. KU Libraries partners in connecting and engaging communities, fostering student success and transformative research.