I currently work at NYPL's 58th Street branch.
We are a cozy branch, a few blocks South of Central Park where I am the Senior Librarian for Adult Services.
I started out in the Mid-Manhattan Library (mml),
relocated to the Science, Industry & Business Library (SIBL) during a major, 3 year renovation, and then returned to the previous MML, now dubbed The Stavros Niarchos Foundation Library.
We had the longest hours and the largest circulating collection in the New York Public Library system.
And no: we were not the library with the lions... we were the funky old 6 story library across the street from it.
We had the longest hours and the largest circulating collection in the New York Public Library system.
And no: we were not the library with the lions... we were the funky old 6 story library across the street from it.
My duties varied day to day, and I wouldn't have it any other way. Aside from desk shifts in a variety of busy environments...
I ran the Instagram account (which has since unfortunately been deleted during the move) for the library
and contributed to our Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest as well.
and contributed to our Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest as well.
I created an original program called Picture Yourself Online! which has since provided free professional photos to over 500 patrons and staff members for use in social media and online job hunting.
In June of 2018 the program won the Library Instructional Round Table's Innovation in Instruction Award.
I have written a number of blogs for the library.
The first was an interview with James Spader who was shooting a scene for The Blacklist in Bryant Park.
The first was an interview with James Spader who was shooting a scene for The Blacklist in Bryant Park.
It ended up being the #3 blog post in the entire NYPL system that month.
The second post established a theme for my library blogging:
I managed to interview four of the Harlem Globetrotters after a shoot near my apartment.
I managed to interview four of the Harlem Globetrotters after a shoot near my apartment.
Since then I've interviewed several others and written a few food related pieces as well.
At MML and SIBL I taught computer classes several times a month, from Computer Safety & Maintenance to Facebook to Travel Tips.
At MML and SIBL I taught computer classes several times a month, from Computer Safety & Maintenance to Facebook to Travel Tips.
There are always events and programs going on (such as the author talk below) and I hosted or shot photos of a few each week.
Eric Bogosian speaking about his book Operation Nemesis on November 5th 2015.
Then the pandemic hit
Just as we were coming back to the newly renovated building, COVID-19 made its way to New York City and we went under lockdown. I spent a lot of time posting to our social media accounts, and hosting virtual programs providing tech help, teaching patrons how to access our digital collections, and playing gameshow host as patrons and staff filled out crossword puzzles I created based on our book lists.
The Best Books for Adults 2020 puzzle. All answers can be found on this list!
Once back in person, I moved mountains getting the travel section in shape. We'd received a massive shipment of new travel books... for a year in which no one could travel. I weeded old editions, shelf shifted thousands of books, and reached out to other branches to find homes for several hundred extra copies. In the end, a section that was chronically overcrowded not only fit, but was one of the most up to date, and well managed in the building. Then I set my sites on the New Books section, changing over 1,500 records in just over a month to make room for the incoming new books. I also re-homed several hundred duplicates we didn't need in this branch, keeping them from being discarded. I have a passion for preventing waste, and put it to work for the system as a whole.