CRD members, later this month you’ll receive ballots from PaLA to vote for the Vice Chair/Chair Elect and Professional Development Funds Manager for 2020. You can learn more about the candidates below.

Professional Development Funds Manager

Carrie Bishop

Statement:

I have thoroughly enjoyed serving on the CRD Board as a member-at-large and especially providing Pennsylvania librarians with an opportunity through the Virtual Journal Club to engage with and learn from their peers in a no-cost, virtual format.  As Professional Development Funds Manager, I will be committed to my role of facilitating the LSTA Grant process to further the professional development of librarians throughout Pennsylvania. I recognize the importance of these funds in the production of workshops and other professional development opportunities that allow librarians to gain new skills, share their ideas and expertise, and build community.  I will do my part to see that CRD continues to provide these opportunities for librarians.

Bio:

Carrie Bishop is the Distance Learning Librarian at Indiana University of Pennsylvania.  In this role, she promotes and supports the inclusion of library resources and services in online and distance courses.  She regularly serves as an embedded librarian in online liberal studies English courses and creates digital learning objects to teach information literacy and library research skills.  Carrie joined the CRD Board as a Member-at-Large in 2018 and worked with a team to develop and pilot the CRD Virtual Journal Club. She has also been an active member of the PaLA Teaching, Learning & Technology Roundtable planning committee and served as the Chair in 2017.  Carrie holds an M.A. in Instructional Design and Technology from Indiana University of Pennsylvania, an MLS from Clarion University of Pennsylvania, and a B.A. in English and Journalism from Indiana University of Pennsylvania.

Vice Chair/Chair Elect

Bryan McGeary

Statement:

It is both an exciting and yet challenging time to be an academic librarian, as many of us are taking on new roles to meet changing demands or reinventing our approaches to the services that we have traditionally offered at our institutions. We are also finding new ways to engage with our patrons and extend our reach to those who have been underserved. The PaLA College and Research Division provides valuable programming and professional development opportunities to help librarians with achieving their goals and navigating the changes happening in our profession. Serving as the CRD Professional Development Funds Manager since 2016 has allowed me to witness the impact that the CRD has on furthering the professional development of librarians throughout Pennsylvania by providing and supporting relevant, timely programming. I would be honored to serve the CRD as Vice Chair/Chair Elect, providing leadership and support to an organization that has fostered my professional growth. I believe my experience as the CRD Professional Development Funds Manager will prove useful in navigating the budget and grant management responsibilities that come with this leadership position. 

Bio:

Bryan McGeary is an Information Literacy Librarian at Dickinson College, where his duties focus on instruction, reference, and subject liaison responsibilities. He previously served as the Subject Librarian for the Humanities at Ohio University from 2016-2018 and as a Library Specialist at the University of Pittsburgh from 2013-2016. In addition to serving on the CRD board as the Professional Development Funds Manager since 2016, he is the chair of the ALA Film and Media Round Table’s Notable Films Committee, chair of the ACRL European Studies Section’s Research & Planning Committee and a member of the section’s Publications Committee, as well as News Editor and Layout Editor for Pennsylvania Libraries: Research & Practice. He is also a graduate of the ACRL Immersion and ILEAD USA programs and currently a member of the inaugural cohort of the Open Textbook Network’s Certificate in OER Librarianship program. He serves as Dickinson College’s Campus Partner to the Affordable Learning PA program and was recently selected as one of the members of ALPa’s second cohort of OER Specialists.

Bryan earned a Ph.D. in American Culture Studies from Bowling Green State University, an MLIS from the University of Pittsburgh, an M.S. in Journalism from Ohio University, and a B.A. in Journalism from Indiana University of Pennsylvania. 

Vice Chair/Chair Elect

Emily Mross

Statement:

As an early career professional, the Pennsylvania Library Association and the College & Research Division have been essential in helping me grow as a librarian and develop within the outstanding academic library community in our Commonwealth. As the Vice Chair/Chair-Elect, I will promote the services and resources that are benefits of membership within our association to increase our impact with Pennsylvania colleagues. I plan to increase dialog between library types and to encourage more academic libraries to receive recognition for the stellar work they already do to support the essential literacies of their campus communities through the PA Forward Star Library program. CRD provides a wealth of support and professional development opportunities for academic library staff. It is my ultimate mission to amplify the work of our division and increase participation in and recognition of the hard work that we all do.

Bio:

Emily Mross is the Business Librarian and Library Outreach Coordinator at Penn State Harrisburg Library. She previously served as the Library Manager at Northampton Community College – Monroe Campus from 2014-2016. Emily is active within the Pennsylvania Library Association. She is a PALS 2018 graduate, currently serves as the CRD publicity coordinator, and is a member of the Public Relations and Marketing Committee and the PA Forward Working Group. Emily holds a BA from Indiana University of Pennsylvania, an M. Ed. from East Stroudsburg University, and an MLIS from the University of Pittsburgh.