UC’s Lynn Warner selected to complete Open Education Network’s Certificate in Open Education Librarianship

Lynn Warner, research and health sciences librarian in the Donald C. Harrison Health Sciences Library, is among nine librarians selected to complete Open Education Network’s Certificate in Open Education Librarianship.

Selection into the cohort was a competitive process based on the candidate’s “experience, passion and commitment to advancing the goals of the open education movement,” according to the program’s documentation. Administered by the Open Education Network (OEN), the Certificate in Open Education Librarianship is a professional development program that aims to create effective open education program leaders who want to be stewards and advocates for high-quality, public domain, open and adaptable educational resources (OER).

lynn warner

The cohort begins in January, 2024 and runs through September. After completing the eight-month OEN course, in addition to serving as OER advocates, the librarians will be prepared to support and advise faculty interested in transitioning from commercial to no-cost-to-student teaching materials.

Joint funding is provided by OhioLINK and the Midwestern Higher Education Compact, which supports post-secondary education through cost-savings initiatives and policy solutions. OhioLINK’s long-term objective for the program is “to increase the availability of Open Educational Resource(OER)-specialist librarians at OhioLINK institutions to support faculty, possibly sharing expertise among the consortium’s libraries.”

In interviewing Lynn, she replied:

  • What motivated you to apply?

I was motivated to apply as I have been interested in Open Access (OA) and Open Education Resources (OERs) for some time now, and I would like to learn more so I can better connect UC faculty and students with open resources. I find open education exciting for a variety of reasons; one main reason is that OERs have been shown to increase equity and help maintain student diversity as well as increasing student retention.They also can help engage students in new ways of learning, which I discovered when I worked with students to edit, modify and recreate an OER for a credit bearing class I taught previously.

  • What do you hope to get from this program in relation to your job at UC?

Part of this program is to create an action plan geared to moving an open education initiative forward on UC’s campus. As a liaison librarian to the College of Nursing and the College of Allied Health, it is part of my role to develop a collection to support the curriculum. It is my goal to advocate for the use of OA resources and OERs, as well as to aid faculty in discovering and creating open resources that will ultimately help level the playing field for students.

  • What is the value of Open Education – especially to your students/researchers?

Open education removes barriers for our students and researchers. Our model of sharing educational resources and information has not fully embraced the potential of our current technology. As SPARC notes: “Open Education maximizes the power of the Internet to make education more affordable, accessible and effective.” (https://sparcopen.org/open-education/)

Students have so much access to information through UC Libraries, but when they graduate or leave the university, that access is gone. It is important we are equipping students with valuable information literacy skills that will continue to serve them in their post-UC life. Understanding open access resources and how they can find reliable scholarly work outside of the university setting is an important part of being a member of society. 

  • At the conclusion of the cohort, what do you hope to have accomplished or what do you plan to do with the knowledge gained?

As I noted above, I will conclude this program with an action plan. In addition to working with my liaison areas, I hope to share my knowledge with other librarians and faculty across UC and the state of Ohio to help promote the use and creation of Open Education Resources.


Joining Lynn in the cohort are librarians from Bowling Green State University, Franklin University, Kent State University, Ohio University, University of Rio Grande, University of Toledo and Wittenberg University.

Tiffany Grant Awarded the 2023 Marian Spencer Equity Ambassador Award for Faculty

tiffany grantTiffany Grant, PhD, assistant director for research and informatics and co-director of the University of Cincinnati Libraries Research and Data Services Unit, in a ceremony held April 4, was honored to receive the 2023 Marian Spencer Equity Ambassador Award for Faculty. Named for the celebrated civil rights activist, this award is designed to showcase current campus-affiliated individuals and groups whose efforts relate to diversity, equity and inclusion and who have had a positive impact on the university.

Nominated by her colleagues, Tiffany was commended for her commitment to promoting awareness of diversity, equity and inclusion; exhibiting sensitivity to people of various cultures; facilitating growth among colleagues and peers; preparing students, faculty and staff to thrive in a diverse and global workforce; and collaborating with colleagues to create and implement initiatives and policies that build an equitable and inclusive environment. One nominator wrote of Tiffany that she, “embodies the spirit and dedication to spreading awareness of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in all her work at the University of Cincinnati.” Continue reading

Nimisha Bhat joins UC Libraries as assistant librarian

nimisha bhatNimisha Bhat joined the University of Cincinnati Libraries on Monday, Feb. 27, 2023 as assistant librarian and liaison to the departments of History, Anthropology, and Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Students.

Nimisha holds an MS in library and information science from Pratt Institute, School of Library and Information Science.

She comes to UC from Smith College where she was the visual arts librarian, planning and implementing research, instruction and reference support for faculty and students, as well as developing and managing collections in print, electronic and other formats for the visual arts, architecture, film and media studies. Prior to Smith College, Nimisha worked at Columbus College of Arts and Design and The Ohio State University Libraries.

Welcome, Nimisha!

Aja Bettencourt-McCarthy joins UC Libraries as Science & Engineering Global Services Librarian

Aja Bettencourt-McCarthyAja Bettencourt-McCarthy joined the University of Cincinnati Libraries on February 1, 2023 as the science & engineering global services librarian.

Aja holds an MLIS degree from University of Washington and Bachelor’s degrees (French, community and regional development) from the University of California, Davis.

Aja may be a familiar face to many as she comes to UC Libraries from the Faculty Enrichment Center, located in the Walter C. Langsam Library, where she was the manager of special projects and programs.  Aja brings a wealth of experience in science and engineering academic librarianship, including previous positions in instruction and public services. Prior to arriving at UC, Aja was the STEM instruction librarian at the University of Kentucky (UK). Before UK, she worked as instruction coordinator / head of public services at the Oregon Institute of Technology’s Library.

Welcome, Aja to UC Libraries!

UC Libraries seeks University Archivist and Head, Archives & Rare Books Library

The University of Cincinnati Libraries invites applications for the university archivist and head, Archives & Rare Books Library. The successful candidate will be responsible for the development and management of services and collections of the Archives and Rare Books Library, which includes rare books, manuscripts, the University Archives, and other archival and special collections. Additionally, as university archivist, the position is responsible for promoting use and engagement with collections documenting the history of the University of Cincinnati and providing leadership oversight of University Records Management Program.

This full-time, faculty tenure-track position has a salary range of $85-110K plus stipend and is covered by the American Association of University Professors (AAUP), UC’s collective bargaining agreement. UC faculty librarians have access to annual funding to support conference attendance and professional development needs.

This position operates under the principles of the UC Libraries Strategic Framework: NEXT Directions, which aims to increase the Libraries’ impact by: creating paths to education innovation and student success; contributing to the university’s research, learning and teaching agendas; and by creating partnerships within UC, the wider Cincinnati urban community and at national and international levels.

This work requires a substantial investment in people, a renewed commitment to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and a continued focus on and acceleration of digital transformations as the Libraries continues to fulfill its mission and achieve the vision to become the globally engaged, intellectual commons of the university—positioning itself as the hub of collaboration, digital innovation and scholarly endeavor on campus.

The full position description and application are available on the university’s career website.

Rachel Hill joins UC Libraries’ Research & Data Services Team

rachel hillWelcome Rachel Hill, MLIS, PhD, to UC Libraries’ Research & Data Services Team as a temporary research data services librarian. Rachel is a recent graduate of the University of Kentucky’s iSchool and holds a PhD in anatomy and neurobiology. Rachel will provide research data management support, help get the word out about the new NIH Data Sharing and Management Policy and develop a Data Literacy Curriculum.

Welcome, Rachel!

Congratulations to the newest UC Libraries faculty members

After a thorough review of UC Libraries staff positions with overlapping librarian faculty responsibilities, and in consultation with the Provost’s Office, the Libraries’ Executive Group, and library faculty members, Dean Xuemao Wang announces the newest UC Libraries faculty members:

  • Madeleine Gaiser, online learning & instruction specialist in the College of Education, Criminal Justice and Human Services (CECH) Library to assistant librarian
  • Suzanne Bratt, cataloging specialist in the Albino Gorno Memorial Music (CCM) Library to assistant librarian
  • Melissa Previtera, academic & research services specialist in the Donald C. Harrison Health Sciences Library to associate librarian

congrats Madeleine, Suzanne, Melissa

Lynn Warner joins UC Libraries as research and health sciences librarian

lynn warnerLynn C. Warner joined the University of Cincinnati Libraries May 31, 2022 as the new research and health sciences librarian in the Donald C. Harrison Health Sciences Library. Lynn comes to UC from Northern Kentucky University where she was the teaching and learning librarian at the Steely Library. While Lynn will primarily support the programs at the College of Nursing, she will also be available to work with all UC health sciences faculty, staff and students.

Lynn holds a masters of library science from the University of Kentucky and a BA in telecommunications from Bowling Green State University. She brings broad teaching experience and extensive work and partnership collaborations with faculty members at Northern Kentucky University (NKU). She is committed to information literacy and has delivered a wide range of information literacy education courses for undergraduate and graduate students during her teaching career. Lynn has working knowledge in assessment and critical information literacy concepts and indicates that she truly enjoys teaching information literacy and engaging with students on topics that she is passionate about.

Welcome, Lynn!

UC Libraries Mark Chalmers named Drexel University LEADING Fellow

mark chalmersMark Chalmers, science and engineering librarian, has been accepted into Drexel University’s highly selective Library Information Science (LIS) Education and Data Science Integrated Network Group (LEADING) program as a 2021 LEADING Fellow.

The LEADING program is a Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian (LB21) National Digital Infrastructures and Initiatives project, supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) and hosted at Drexel University’s College of Computing & Informatics (CCI). The LEADING program scales-up the highly successful LEADS-4-NDP initiative and will prepare a diverse, nation-wide cohort of 50 LIS doctoral students and early to mid-career librarians for data science endeavors.

LEADING Fellows will complete the following:

  • self-paced online preparatory curriculum,
  • an online data science bootcamp with Drexel and other LEADING fellows,
  • six-month virtual data science internship at a LEADING hub or node,
  • development of a communication plan to connect with mentor/s on a regular basis, and
  • development of research output (e.g., a paper, poster, presentation, published data, etc.).

Mark’s LEADING Fellow research project will focus on “Assessing Overlap and Aggregation Potential of Open-Source Software Platforms and Their Data.” LYRASIS, a consortium that provides access to the world’s shared academic, scientific and cultural heritage, currently offers six hosted services on open-source software. Five of the six of which involve academic libraries and their cultural heritage assets. As a result, LYRASIS seeks expertise in cultural heritage metadata and data science to assist in assessing this overlap between platforms. In addition, they seek recommendations on how machine learning models can be leveraged to connect data in different platforms and to assess how researchers can be served by access to data across the different platforms.

“I am eager to work with Drexel and LYRASIS to grow my competencies in the domains of data science, data integration, large scale machine learning and exploratory feasibility projects,” said Mark upon learning of his acceptance into the LEADING program.

“The experience and skills Mark will gain as a LEADING Fellow will not only contribute to the completion of the LYRASIS research project, but he will bring new knowledge back to his role in the Science and Engineering Libraries while at the same time contributing to the university’s digital future and open access agenda,” said Xuemao Wang, vice provost of digital scholarship and dean and university librarian.

Librarians Ted Baldwin and Eira Tansey receive honors at UC Faculty Awards Ceremony

In a ceremony held April 2 during Research and Innovation Week, librarians Ted Baldwin and Eira Tansey were recognized for their contributions to colleagues and to their fields. The Office of the Provost and the Office of Research jointly sponsor the awards to honor faculty who have demonstrated excellence in teaching, research and/or service. Continue reading