Librarian of Congress Appoints Jennifer Meehan Director of Special Collections

From the Library of Congress:

Jennifer Meehan, head of the Eberly Family Special Collections Library at Penn State University, has been named director of the Library of Congress’ Special Collections Directorate effective Aug. 1.

Meehan’s career spans over 18 years in academic and research institutions in positions of progressive responsibility including 14 years of management and leadership experience. She currently serves as head of the Eberly Family Special Collections Library at Penn State University. In this role, she provides leadership and strategic direction for special collections and university archives across the University Libraries.  She also leads operations for collection development, maintenance, access, reference and instruction, outreach and public programming, and community and stakeholder engagement.

Meehan previously served as associate director of the Stuart A. Rose Manuscript, Archives and Rare Book Library at Emory University and has held positions at Yale University, the Smithsonian Institution and Virginia Tech. Jennifer received a master’s in Archival Studies from the University of British Columbia and a B.A. in English and Film Studies from the University of California, Berkeley.

Meehan is passionate about facilitating discovery, learning and creativity by connecting people to the rare, unique and distinctive resources of special collections. Across her various roles, she has led collaborative initiatives to develop holistic, integrated programs and inclusive services aimed at enhancing access to and use of cultural heritage and broadening the reach and impact of special collections, especially for underrepresented and underserved communities.

The Special Collctions Directorate comprises six Library of Congress curatorial divisions that have extensive unique or rare holdings: the American Folklife Center (including the Veterans History Project), the Geography and Map Division, the Manuscript Division, the Music Division, the Prints and Photographs Division and the Rare Book and Special Collections Division. The Special Collections Directorate is part of Researcher & Collections Services, currently led by Dale.

Filed under: Archives and Special Collections, Government Libraries, Libraries, Management and Leadership