Skip to Main Content

HIST 100: Commonwealth (Fall 2025)

Introduction: Who Am I? (Rick)

Hello! I'm the W&M History Librarian. A few facts about me:

  • I started as the W&M librarian for History, Philosophy, and Government Documents in Fall 2022.
  • Before moving here, I was an assistant professor & librarian at Portland State University (Oregon), and before that was the History Librarian at Drew University in Madison NJ, where I was also on the History & Culture faculty. I began my library career as the research librarian to the North Dakota legislature in Bismarck ND - it was very, very cold.
  • In addition to a Library Science masters degree, I'm trained as a historian (BA, MA, PhD), and my research interests are Anglo-American History, the history of 19th century cultural & intellectual life, and (my favorite topic!) the history of higher education.
  • I grew up in a farm town about an hour from Buffalo NY; my town was so small that learning to square dance & using snow shoes were part of the K-12 curriculum. My town has 1 traffic light, 4 pizzerias, and a weekly farmers' market. My older brother is the Principal.
  • My publication areas have been the history of education, history of publishing, data management, and government information. I'm currently working on two projects: a study of how COVID-19 impacted the distribution of government publications to libraries, and a study of the 19th century academic profession. 

Introduction: Who am I? (Rachel)

Hello! I'm the W&M Arts & Digital Humanities Librarian

I am the Instruction & Research Librarian for Art & Art History, Music, Theatre & Performance, Speech, and Digital Humanities, and I have been at W&M since 2023.

  • I have a Master’s in Library and Information Science from Syracuse University and a BA in English Literature with a concentration in Digital Humanities from Pepperdine University.
  • At W&M Libraries, I help plan fun events and activities like the Draw the Line Comics Contest, International Love Data Week, and the Digital Humanities Discovery Group - all open to students.
  • My research interests are academic librarianship, information literacy, digital humanities in the library, digital pedagogy, arts-based research, Arthuriana, and adaptation theory.
  • I grew up an hour north of Los Angeles, CA, and for many years, my town had the distinction of being the 3rd safest city in the US. However, both with my family and on my own, I have lived in 4 different states: CA, AZ, NY, and VA.

Contact Info & Extra Help

General W&M Libraries Information