Celebrate the NOVA Libraries in April!

National Library Week is April 24-28, but we are celebrating the library for the entire month of April!  Get to know Abby Bricker, Technology and Research Specialist at the MEC campus library.  Check out her National Library Week interview to learn why everyone should love libraries.

I’m Abby Bricker, the Research and Technology Specialist at the MEC Library. I started as an intern in the MEC library in May 2022 and then began my full-time position in August 2022. The most visible part of my role is supporting students at the reference desk and with research. That includes finding and accessing articles and giving citation guidance. I’ll also help people use the printers, connect to wi-fi, and access the other fun library technologies. Behind the scenes, I’m working to bridge the gap between you and IT by ensuring our technology is as user-friendly (and functional) as possible. I craft the library bulletin boards, flyers, and buttons, and assist my fellow library staff where I can. This is my first job in libraries, and I’m simultaneously working on my Master’s Degree in Library and Information Science (MLIS) with the University of South Carolina. Previously, I was a registered nurse which is a big part of how I found myself here at the MEC of NOVA.

Tell about the moment you 1st knew you wanted to be a librarian or library staff.

Despite being something I’m still passionate about, being a nurse was not a long-term goal for me. There are countless amazing aspects of nursing and other healthcare roles; I became a registered nurse because health and medicine were endlessly interesting to me, I enjoy being of service to others, and the job offered me the stability I needed. I stayed because I enjoyed helping people learn about their bodies, navigate the healthcare system, and discover and connect with resources. But, as many of my former colleagues can attest, I often joked that I still hadn’t figured out what I wanted to be when I grew up. Well, in a wide open, no filters added, frustration fueled Indeed search, I figured it out. There was an opening at my local public library for a librarian. I was not remotely qualified for the role. But I wanted to be. After looking at all manner of library job postings in the greater DMV area – after all, I had to make sure the first one wasn’t a fluke – I started researching how to become a librarian and what library staff had to say about their jobs. I connected with a few MLIS students and professional librarians and, within a few weeks, applied for the MLIS degree that I will (hopefully) finish this year. I finally figured out what I wanted to be when I grew up! It’s quite the career pivot, and many people close to me struggled to understand why I would leave nursing behind. This is what I told them. Picture a 1940’s era phone operator. You dial the operator, tell them what you need or what you’re looking for, and they know just the right wires and connections to make that happen for you. That’s a lot like what librarians (and many library staff) do. Librarians are uniquely trained and positioned to help you navigate confusing and complex information systems, find and use resources, and understand the information you’re interacting with. That’s what I want to do for the foreseeable future.

What is your favorite thing or story about working in the library?

When I left the field of nursing, I didn’t want to leave nursing behind. I love that being a library staff member at the MEC allows me to continually build off my favorite parts of being a nurse. Now, instead of patients, I help future healthcare professionals access and understand the information they need. My experience allows me to offer some perspective and examples of real-life applications for what can sometimes seem like tedious, classroom-based work. I particularly enjoy that my position allows me to work with students without being a part of their official teaching or clinical faculty. I get to be a safe, grade-free space for students to vent frustrations and anxieties, find validation and support, and even problem-solve. I consider that a huge honor.

Why should everyone love libraries?

Everyone should love libraries because libraries are for everyone. What I mean by that is that libraries exist to meet community needs for knowledge, support, creativity, and more. If your library doesn’t feel like a space for you, if it doesn’t feel like something you can love, then you can change that. You, the community, should feel empowered as an integral part of your library’s structure. Good library staff will foster that empowerment, help bring about change, and ultimately create with you a library that you love. Maybe not physically (we, too, are limited by things like gravity and budgets), but the environment and atmosphere, programs, collection, and purpose are all for you; they can change with you.

https://libguides.nvcc.edu/NLW2023/AbbyBricker

Submitted by:
Liz Leon, ileon@nvcc.edu