Each month, we feature a Core member for an interview profile called #IAmCore. This month, we are pleased to get to know Steve Kelley, Core’s new Vice President/President-Elect. Outside of Core, Steve is Head of Continuing Resources & Database Management at the Z. Smith Reynolds Library (ZSR), Wake Forest University. Congratulations and thank you for your leadership, Steve!
Describe yourself in three words.
I’m going to go with three words from my StrengthsFinder assessment: Includer, learner, communicator.
Describe Core in three words.
Community, educational, innovative.
What do you value about Core?
Core provides a welcoming community and a wonderful network of colleagues, as well as a forum to find practical and useful information and training to help librarians in their day-to-day work.
How long have you been a Core member?
Since before it began. I was a long time member of ALCTS and was present at some of the discussions about the merger. When Core was created in September of 2020, I was asked to serve on the Leadership Team for the Metadata & Collections Section, which I’ll be rolling off of in July.
What drew you to and continues to attract you to the Core Community?
I was initially drawn to ALCTS and then Core by the opportunity to learn about current developments in my particular area of librarianship. While I still highly value those benefits, I have really grown to treasure the community and networking that Core provides and the excitement of working with and getting to know so many highly engaged and innovative librarians.
What are you working on now that you’re excited about?
Getting ready to make the transition to being Vice President/President-Elect of Core. Thankfully, the current leadership team has been very welcoming and brought me into all the ongoing discussions as I learn the ropes. As for my day job, my library is undergoing a huge and disruptive renovation project this summer. At the same time, I will be training a new employee. I don’t know if I find that exciting exactly, but it will certainly be a challenge.
What are you currently reading/listening to/watching/making?
- Reading: Essays by George Orwell and collected reprints of The Fantastic Four from the 1960s.
- Listening to: New albums by two Welsh jangle pop bands that are technically different bands but share many of the same members and the same songwriter: Cotton Crown by the Tubs and In Love Again by Ex-Void.
- Watching: My wife and I are watching two detective shows that take place in remote locations: Shetland, which is set on the Shetland Islands, obviously, and Dark Winds, which is set on the Navajo Nation reservation in the 1970s.
- Making: Trying to make order out of chaos at home and at my library as both are undergoing renovation projects this summer.
What advice can you share with others for a fulfilling and beneficial Core experience?
Get involved! Join an interest group (or two or three), volunteer for a committee, attend a committee meeting at ALA, or a committee forum online (both are open to folks who aren’t on the committee). Check out the Core website for info on current activities. And don’t be afraid to ask questions. Reach out to committee chairs for information. Also, if you’re attending ALA, be sure to attend the Core 101 session, it provides great information about engagement opportunities.
Anything else you’d like to share?
Attend the Core Forum in Denver this November! It’s a beautiful city and a really fun and informative conference.
We hope you’ve enjoyed learning more about the people of Core. If you would like to nominate someone or self-nominate, please fill out this Form.
