This year we welcomed new staff to our team here at the Library. To get to know them better, I asked each of them a few questions. Read on for their answers (and keep watching the blog to get to know another group of new faces soon!):
When did you start at DePaul? What is your job title and your responsibilities?
Andrew Brown: I started at DePaul in January 2024 as the Evening Circulation Supervisor. I help supervise the student team at the Access Services desk during the evening and weekend hours.
Keith Engwall: I started at DePaul in January of 2024. I am the new Systems Librarian and I help the Digital Services team manage the library’s systems infrastructure, including system interoperability, data integrity, and analytics design.
Kelly Hallisy: I started at DePaul in January 2024. My job title is Scholarly Communications and Social Sciences Librarian. I support open educational resources, scholarly visibility and impact, equitable access to scholarly output, and the library’s institutional repository, Digital Commons@DePaul.
Margaret Heller: I am Head of Digital Services, which is the department that manages most of the digital and online platforms patrons use to access books, articles, and digitized special collections. Since so much of what the library does is accessed or found online, we work really collaboratively with all the other departments in the library to make sure all the staff have what they need, as well as working directly with students, faculty, and staff who need online access help.
Olivia Landgraff: I started at DePaul in February 2024 as a Digitization assistant in the Special Collections and Archives Department. My job includes digitizing materials, including VHS and cassette tapes, for special collections and other paper materials like photos, posters, and more!
Where were you before joining the DePaul University Library?
Andrew: I worked at the public library in Lake Forest, as well as the library at Lake Forest College.
Keith: Most recently, I was the Web and Technologies and Interim Systems Librarian at Fairfield University, doing pretty much the same thing.
Kelly: Before DePaul, I was a librarian at Loyola University Chicago.
Margaret: I was at Loyola University Chicago as Digital Services Librarian for nearly 11 years before joining DePaul, and I was at Dominican University before that. I have enjoyed my tour of Chicago area Catholic universities and the different ways they live their missions.
Olivia: Before joining the DePaul University Library, I was working at the Feinberg Medical school at Northwestern University as curriculum coordinator. I also started my MLIS degree through the LEEP program, which made me really excited about working in a library!
What is a favorite book, film, album, video game, etc. that is available in the Library catalog?
Andrew: I t
end to read more nonfiction than any other genre, so I always recommend The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating by Elisabeth Tova Bailey. It is a short read that teaches fantastic lessons about isolation, patience, and perspective.
Keith: The Devil in the White City : Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America is a fascinating depiction of the vast and harrowing undertaking to prepare for the Chicago World’s Fair of 1893 that inadvertently attracted a charismatic and sadistic serial killer, Henry H. Holmes, who used the massive influx of workers and people to build and populate, respectively, a diabolical murder hotel. It deftly navigates between these two parts of Chicago history.
Kelly: I cycle through a new thriller/suspense novel every couple of weeks and we have many, but I am in an Overcooked 2 phase.
Margaret: While I didn’t read this first from the DePaul library, The Book of Eels is one of the most fascinating books I’ve read in awhile. It features meditations on family, time, and the fascinating creatures on our planet. Creative non-fiction trending to memoir about scientific topics is having a real moment in the last five years or so, and I am happy about it.
Olivia: Everything is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer! This book is so twisty, covering so many different timelines and lives of people tied together through family, love, war and more. I also love how it discusses how we tell stories and what those stories mean.
What is your favorite hobby or activity to do in Chicago?
Andrew: Since I live outside of the city, I have really enjoyed exploring around different neighborhoods and getting to know my way around a bit better. Chicago is such a fun city and I hope to eventually move here in the near future.
Keith: As I go from place to place in the city, I like to take in and admire the variety of architecture and artwork that is on display. Chicago has an abundance of diverse styles and forms in both its building composition and its public art.
Kelly: There are so many great things to do in Chicago! It’s hard to choose. Running or walking on the Lakefront Trail is probably my favorite. Chicago has so many different sports teams and events, too, so this summer I’ve been watching baseball, basketball, soccer, and tennis.
Margaret: You’ll find me at live music several times a month, and occasionally several times a week. The museums of Chicago are a favorite; I make it to most big exhibitions at the bigger art museums, but I love finding the smaller gems throughout the city as well. Despite all these indoor pursuits, I also make time to be outside at the beach or hiking in the metro area.
Olivia: I love going to movies, especially at the Music Box, Siskel Center, and Regal City North (it’s a little gross, but it’s mine). I also love walking with friends, especially on the 606 or in Humboldt Park.
Any family or pets you wish to brag about?
Andrew: I have a tuxedo cat named Domino! He’s a very intelligent and polite guy that loves to cuddle up after a long day of window watching.
Keith: I have a precocious and affectionate cat named Willow. She wakes me every morning demanding either cuddles or play and follows me around after work meowing until she gets sufficient attention.
Kelly: I have two cats – Archie and Gus.
Margaret: My tuxedo cats are named for garden plants, Nasturtium and Fennel. They are 16 but still going strong. My kids are 8 and 10, and big readers.
They definitely get this from their parents, but they also love video games, so I am excited to share more about the DePaul video game collection with them in time.
Olivia: My cat Fiona!! She’s been enjoying the sun.
Coffee or tea?
Andrew: I like both! I drink coffee more regularly, but I always enjoy a good London Fog, chai, or just iced green tea.
Keith: I reject the premise as a false dichotomy (lol). I have both a hand grinder for a cup of fresh-ground whole bean coffee and an infuser for loose-leaf tea. Life is short. Choose both.
Kelly: Coffee. Almost always hot coffee, no matter the season, and sometimes a chai latte.
Margaret: Ideally, both and in great quantity.
Olivia: Tea! I am not a coffee drinker, but I love matcha or loose-leaf tea.
Thanks for this! Great to see these new staff and learn of their cats! And for the mention of The Bool of Eels. I’d heard about it, but now it’s on my to read list! One of the things I miss about retirement is not getting the reading recommendations from other staff.
Looking forward to The Book of Eels.