With goals to redefine academic libraries, Lisa Norberg stepped into the position of dean of Barnard library and academic information services on Monday.
In an email to students, Barnard Provost Elizabeth Boylan announced the arrival of Norberg, who, in her new position, will oversee the Barnard library, Media Services, the College Archives, and Educational Technology.
Norberg, who is replacing Carol Falcione, will be in charge of library collections, services, archives, and technologies like CourseWorks and Media Services.
Before coming to Barnard, Norberg, who has held administrative positions in several college libraries, served as the director of public services at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. There, she initiated the renovation of the first two floors of UNC’s Davis Library as well as a campus-wide document delivery service.
As the new dean overseeing Lehman Hall facilities, Norberg said she is focusing on revamping Lehman and engaging students and faculty directly.
“I am very excited about the potential for a renovation of the first floor and kind of rethinking that space,” she said. “But really, my first task is going to be to get to know the students and the faculty and understand what they want and need.”
She added, “I think there’s enormous potential and opportunity to do new things, but I want to make sure it aligns with what the students and faculty want and need.”
Beyond renovations and service changes, Norberg said that she has a larger vision for rethinking the role of libraries on campus.
“I am also excited about collaborating with the Columbia University libraries to also see how we can support their initiatives and efforts to redefine academic libraries,” she said. “We can be a test bed for changes that they’d like to see.”
Norberg said that her role must center around the interests of students and faculty who use the library.
“One of the things I focused on at Carolina was understanding the users’ needs, the needs of both the faculty and students ... how they use information,” she said.
She added that Barnard is the perfect place to continue these kinds of efforts.
“It kind of retains its small liberal arts college feel while having accessibility to the resources of Columbia University, which are pretty vast,” she said.
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