I am ACRL Member of the Week

Meet ACRL Member: Samantha Schmehl Hines

ABOUT

Samantha Schmehl Hines
Associate Dean of Instructional Resources
Peninsula College
Port Angeles, WA

Describe yourself in three words

Curious, tenacious, thoughtful

What are you reading (or listening to on your mobile device)?

I’m currently halfway through Not Free, Not For All: Public Libraries in the Age of Jim Crow. On my phone I have a bunch of comedy podcasts for my walk to and from work: Jordan, Jesse, Go!, My Brother, My Brother and Me, and 2 Dope Queens are some of my favorites.

Describe ACRL in three words

Advocating, collaborative, evaluative

What do you value about ACRL?

How easy it makes it to connect with other librarians across the U.S., and how many opportunities there are to get involved in the profession from service to networking to education.

What do you as an academic librarian contribute to your campus?

As the associate dean of instructional resources (a fairly fluffy term that encompasses directing the campus library), I help craft a welcoming place both on campus and online where students, staff and faculty can get what they need to get the work of the college done. This can take many forms such as collaborating with faculty to select materials for the library collection, advocating for funding to increase library hours, designing student workshops in partnership with our writing center, advising our campus chapter of Phi Theta Kappa, and heading up the campus’s peer-reviewed, online journal.

In your own words

I had the serendipitous luck to fall into a profession that I do passably well at and that I enjoy thoroughly, and one that allows me to surround myself with smart, caring people working toward the common good. I’m grateful every day for the life I get to live and want to do what I can to uphold and improve libraries and higher education for the future.