Jeffrey MacKie-Mason — a scholar with expertise in human interaction with online information, economics and public policy, along with administrative experience in higher education — has been named UC Berkeley’s University Librarian.
MacKie-Mason comes to Berkeley from the University of Michigan, where he has served as dean of the School of Information since 2010. Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost Claude Steele announced his new appointment in a June 12 CalMessage, following approval by the UC regents.
Much of MacKie-Mason’s scholarly work “has concentrated on questions concerning digital libraries and electronic access to materials and journals,” Steele wrote in his message to campus. As a scholar and a dean, he has “considered the very issues now facing university libraries.”
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MacKie-Mason earned his Ph.D. in economics from MIT and a master’s in public policy from the University of Michigan. He currently holds joint faculty positions in information and computer science, economics and public policy at Michigan, where he started working as an assistant research scientist in 1986.
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As University Librarian, MacKie-Mason will oversee UC Berkeley’s library system, which houses more than 11 million volumes in several dozen facilities across campus and has a combined staff of some 350 employees. He succeeds Tom Leonard, who is retiring at the end of June after 15 years in the position.
MacKie-Mason will assume his new post in October. Pending his arrival, Associate University Librarians Beth Dupuis and Erik Mitchell will co-direct the Library.
Gary Price (gprice@gmail.com) is a librarian, writer, consultant, and frequent conference speaker based in the Washington D.C. metro area.
He earned his MLIS degree from Wayne State University in Detroit.
Price has won several awards including the SLA Innovations in Technology Award and Alumnus of the Year from the Wayne St. University Library and Information Science Program. From 2006-2009 he was Director of Online Information Services at Ask.com.
