Dean Adriene Lim of the UO Libraries will step down in July
This message about the departure of Adriene Lim, dean of Libraries and Philip H. Knight Chair, was sent by Provost Banavar to faculty and staff in the UO Libraries.
May 28, 2019
Dear Colleagues,
I am writing to let you know that Adriene Lim, dean of Libraries and Philip H. Knight Chair, has accepted a position as dean of the University of Maryland Libraries on the flagship College Park campus. Her last day at University of Oregon will be July 8.
Among the deans, Adriene has provided great vision for UO Libraries, and she has been a vocal advocate around issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion. Please join me in congratulating her on her new position. She will do great things at the University of Maryland and I am proud of her accomplishments.
In five years at UO, Adriene has completed a number of strategic initiatives and collaborated with her colleagues to enhance our teaching, learning, and research across campus. She has been the backbone behind UO Libraries strategic planning, implementing many initiatives that greatly improved infrastructure, programs, services, and systems for us all. She spearheaded improvements in operations in the Special Collections and University Archives department, conducted a redesign of Digital Scholarship Services in order to improve collaboration amongst humanities and social sciences faculty, and reinvigorated the libraries by recruiting and hiring talented staff and faculty.
Adriene took the lead in developing and improving the Libraries’ collection of resources in order to enhance research, creative inquiry, and student education. Under her leadership, UO Libraries joined the Digital Public Library of America and the HathiTrust digital repository, which allows users to have access to millions of digital resources and improved access for persons with print-related disabilities.
She worked closely with Advancement and helped the Libraries surpass an ambitious campaign goal of $36 million by reaching the $44 million mark. Her work has resulted in the completion of the renovation of the science library.
I will begin work immediately with my team to ensure a smooth transition. First, I will name an interim dean of UO Libraries by the end of June. I encourage you to send me any recommendations you might have for interim dean right away to [email protected]. I will consult with department heads and others within UO Libraries to get feedback and ideas on how best to move forward. I also plan to hold an open office hour session at the Knight Library for staff and faculty to drop in to share your thoughts with me in person for a few minutes. This session will be held from 10:00 a.m. to noon on June 5 at a room location to be determined.
To be sure, there will be questions about the process of how we replace Adriene, and I will provide more information soon once my office establishes a plan. Like other academic leadership searches at this level, we will follow all standard practices, including putting together a diverse hiring committee and hosting public presentations for finalists.
We have had several changes in leadership at the deans’ level this academic year. These changes represent both challenges and opportunities to continue to build on recent successes. Adriene’s departure after her successful five years as dean of libraries creates a temporary void, but we will diligently work to appoint an interim before determining our next steps moving forward.
Please join me in congratulating Adriene. Our UO community appreciates all she did for the university; we will miss her, and we wish her the best.
Sincerely,
Jayanth Banavar
Provost and Senior Vice President
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