RUSA - STARGazing: Meet John Doe

RUSA - STARGazing: Meet Silvia Cho

1. What is your institutional affiliation?
I am at the CUNY Graduate Center, a public research institution providing doctoral and master's education. We belong to the City University of New York system, which consists of 25 colleges and is the largest public urban university system in the United States.

2. What’s your OCLC / Docline symbol?
ZGM

3. What's your job title?
I'm the Resource Sharing Librarian.

4. How did you get involved in resource sharing (or access services, etc.)?
I was an MLS student when a part-time student job at the Graduate Center caught my eye. I had never used interlibrary loan, unfortunately, so I only had a vague idea of what it meant. Then, in doing research for my application, I read several articles by Beth Posner, who worked at the Grad Center, and I fell in love with the idea of sharing library resources and amplifying access to wanted materials for readers, no matter where they are or what their affiliation might be.

Later on, I became the ILL Supervisor, and then, the Resource Sharing Librarian—which is a tenure-track faculty librarian position.

5. How has STARS helped you do your job?
Through STARS membership and committee work, I meet colleagues who do the same job that I do, in a diversity of environments—different types of institutions, in different regions, etc. Through them, I have access to wider and deeper knowledge of our shared work; and we learn from each other's experience and projects. STARS also provides solid guidelines and resources in our shared but also often super diversified and evolving field. With its Interlibrary Loan code (recently revised), and also the STARS checklist, I have references that cover the essentials of what we do, as well as what to aspire to. (A guiding star, if you will allow me the pun.)

6. What's your typical workday like?
There isn't truly a typical workday! Every day is a little different, but I try to give it a framework: I start early in the morning by attending a writing group. I am on the tenure track and so I have the luck of being able to research and write, which I love. It does take time though; and working with my writing group online gives me further support and motivation.

Then, it's ILL request processing time through our ILLiad queues. Our ILL team members route the more obscure requests requiring further research to my queue, and the sleuthing is so much fun.

After that, I check in with the ILL team and work through emails. Then I start to have meetings, project work, (etc!).

In the afternoon, I check in with the ILL team again, to greet the afternoon shift folks, making sure we got mail, and to answer any questions. Then it's time for a quick look at ILL queues and emails again. Then I continue with meetings and projects. In the later afternoon, as a faculty librarian, I often dedicate time to my subject liaison, teaching and service responsibilities. Finally, I try to end my days by reviewing the day and organizing next steps.

I repeat, this is ideal, and a work in progress! I do struggle with the amount of emails that come in, and often the day catches up with me. But I keep trying!

7. What are you passionate about? How does that passion inform your work?
Locally and in the everyday, what gives me the most joy is knowing that we were able to support and be helpful to our students, researchers, staff and faculty. And it is also essential for me to see our ILL team happy, and working so well together—supporting and teaching each other.

In the bigger picture, access to information, for everyone, and from many different voices, is important to me. I worry about Global North information flowing almost unilaterally to the rest of the world, and missing out on a lot of perspectives that don't come in easily from the reverse direction.

I do believe interlibrary loan and resource sharing has a big part to play here, helping facilitate greater exchange. It's not simple, and there are many barriers, particularly now, but it's important to keep trying.

8. What do you wish you'd known when you started out in resource sharing (access services, etc.)?
Just, in general, how awesome resource sharing is! The work we do every day helps so much to expand readers' possibilities.

And, how collaborative it is, in every way. Resource sharing folks are so collaborative and generous with each other, willing and eager to share not only resources, but skills, support and mentoring. This makes sense because resource sharing is strongest when everyone is doing well. If I knew this at first I would have lost the early fears and uncertainties of thinking that I have to figure things out myself, and being afraid of asking questions, and I would have discovered the joys of collaborating and developing solutions together sooner.

Also, I wish I understood more clearly how much the issues and ideas we encounter in our daily work matter to the broader library community. We are all in the same boat, and if I have a problem, it's likely some colleague, somewhere, does or has had it, as well. We can figure answers out better together, and we grow and we learn as a field by sharing and listening to each other. So, asking, sharing, and being in touch with colleagues in our community is key.

9. What would be the title of your autobiography?
A tough one! Maybe "I'm learning"?

10. What are you reading?
I'm always reading a couple of books at once, but my fun read right now is Gotham: A history of New York City by professors Edwin Burrows & Mike Wallace—it's a very large, 1,000-page volume that covers just the first two centuries of NYC history. It's a huge and incredibly well researched book, and it's even more impressive that it's still so engaging in its storytelling. It makes me see the city I live in differently, and I am able to imagine different times as I walk around.

10. Share your favorite fun fact about yourself.
I was born in Korea but grew up in Argentina, and came to NYC when I started college. I dabble in piano & bass and I am a soccer fan.