On June 12, our Fellows had the benefit of meeting and learning from Tara Schmidt, librarian for Research and Education Services at John Peace Library at UTSA. For years now, Tara’s been a crucial guide for our journeys into our research projects.
This year, like in the past, she had us marveling at the different available datasets. She was also showing us some of the new developments in how information systems track and display citations and scholarly conversations about articles online. Part of what we were marveling at, I now realize, was how easy and exciting Tara made that complex navigation seem.
But “seem” is the key word. She’s experienced, and has guided so many of us on these kinds of journeys.
For more than a decade and a half now, I’ve had numerous interactions with staff and faculty at libraries across the country. In the process, I developed the ability to recognize talented librarians when I encountered them.
They are knowledgeable yet constantly searching and raising questions, as if they are unsatisfied with what they already know. They are extraordinary communicators. They are deeply immersed in books, and at the same time, they are fluent in the use of online resources. They are energetic. They are, well, they are Tara Schmidt.
Related:
• Visiting the John Peace Library
• AALCI 2017
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