University Libraries

When the University of Iowa Libraries was established in 1855, its collection consisted of 50 books shelved in a room no larger than a broom closet. Over the past 170 years, the Libraries has developed into its current incarnation: a world-class system with seven campus libraries; a state-of-the-art, high-density print preservation facility; and a museum-quality exhibition gallery.

Undergraduate and graduate students from all disciplines depend on the Libraries for academic and research support—but for the thousands of student employees throughout the years, one of its most impactful offerings is on-the-job learning that sets them up for success.

Carmela Furio loves the hands-on nature of their job in the Libraries Special Collections and Archives. As new books arrive at the Libraries, Furio handles them with care, recording relevant attributes for future researchers. The School of Library and Information Science (SLIS) student works as a library support lead supervised by Jenna Silver, processing coordinator archivist.

“I’m grateful for the unique opportunity to process and accession manuscript collections as a student worker,” says Furio. “Be it World War II-era love letters, science fiction fanzines, or 19th-century ephemera, it’s amazing to know the materials I work with will go on to support historical narratives far beyond my time at Iowa.”

When Furio started as a library student employee, they were an undergraduate who had just accepted a place in SLIS after applying during their fourth year at Iowa. Already a frequent user of the Libraries, Furio was drawn to the field of library and information science because of its connection to some of their most deeply held values, including open access and community heritage. But before starting the program, Furio wanted to gain familiarity with the libraries they loved from a new perspective: that of an employee.

“It was actually a big worry of mine, not having enough experience before I started my program,” says Furio. “But Special Collections became this wonderful confirmation that library work was for me.”

Furio is one of about 135 students who are employed by the Libraries during any given semester. These student workers fill a variety of roles, and they’re essential to the daily operations of all seven libraries.

“From the Main Library Service Desk to the Annex, our student workers help the Libraries excel as learning environments and community-building spaces,” says John Culshaw, Jack B. King university librarian. “We do all we can—through scholarships, mentorship, and other support—to ensure that they get just as much out of the Libraries as they give.” 

The data shows that student library workers feel that support. In fall 2024, half of Libraries student employees were returning to roles they’d had the previous semester, and it’s common for students to continue working for the Libraries throughout their time at the university.

Upon graduation, student library workers also receive their diplomas while wearing Hawkeye old gold honor cords that set them apart as alumni of the Libraries. For many, like Dr. Lisa Kreber (BS ’99), it’s a designation they carry with pride long after they graduate. Kreber is a neuroscientist and multisite director of neurology at the Brain and Spine Institute within Adventist Health in Bakersfield, California. For 25 years, she has dedicated her career to improving results for patients recovering from brain injuries.

“All these years later, I often still think about the job I had working in the Libraries and how that shaped my life,” says Kreber. “It was quite the experience.”

Kreber sought a position in the former Biology Library (which has since been merged into the Sciences Library) immediately upon enrolling at Iowa. At the time, she felt confident about where her path would lead: to medical school, then on to a career as a neurosurgeon or neurologist. Instead, the job offered her something even more precious, revealing new possibilities when her certitude wavered.

“As I took classes, I realized I didn’t like biology as much as I loved psychology and neuroscience,” says Kreber. “My experience in the Biology Library interacting with professors gave me the courage to approach one of my psychology professors, Dr. Mark Blumberg, about becoming a student researcher in his lab.”

Kreber started working with Blumberg while continuing her role at the Libraries. From there, a path began to unfurl before her, including earning a PhD in psychology and neuroscience from the University of Colorado at Boulder.

“I’m not sure I would have decided to pursue a PhD had it not been for my experiences in the Biology Library,” Kreber says. “The conversations I had there influenced me, and I developed a passion for research.”

Kreber is not the only alum whose job in the Libraries led to a calling. James Fitzmaurice, emeritus professor of English at Northern Arizona University and now an Honorary Research Fellow at the University of Sheffield (U.K.), began working at the Art Library in 1967 while pursuing a PhD in English.

Without a visual arts background, Fitzmaurice was initially nervous that he wouldn’t know enough to help students at the Art Library. But through daily interactions with faculty and students, Fitzmaurice became interested in the intersections of art and literature.

Eventually, the visual arts found their way into his dissertation, which focused on 18th-century emblem books. His research took him deeper into Special Collections and Archives, where he handled volumes whose illustrated contents would become the core of his academic career.

To this day, Fitzmaurice looks back with extreme gratitude at the encouragement he received from his supervisor at the time, art librarian Harlan Sifford.

“[Sifford] said, ‘Well, if you’re checking in a book and it looks interesting, if there’s no one around, you should just read it,’” says Fitzmaurice. “Because of that, the visual arts have been extremely important in my understanding of literature throughout my career.”

Kreber, too, remembers the names of her supervisors and the lessons they imparted. “I strive to be a boss like Bob [Lane] and Jeff [Dodd] were to me,” she says. “Supportive, compassionate, and always willing to roll up my sleeves to help my team.”

These meaningful supervisory relationships are crucial in setting employment at the Libraries apart from the more than 7,000 other roles for students on campus. And they’re among the threads that bind generations of the Libraries’ student workers—no matter what else changes at the university or in the field of librarianship.

The Art Library’s Jim Hall, library assistant, takes that legacy seriously. In 2023, the students he supervised expressed their gratitude by nominating him for a campuswide award, UI Student Supervisor of the Year. The Pomerantz Career Center selected Hall for the award from a field of 106 nominees.

According to Hall, acting as an effective supervisor and mentor requires two central values: patience and encouragement.

“I try to impress upon student employees that we appreciate them,” says Hall. “Patricia [Gimenez, director of the Art Library] and I want them to know how important they are to the operation of the library, without laying on any additional pressure. It’s really not possible to be too patient.”

And that supportive philosophy clearly resonates with students. According to Hall’s nominators, his mentorship provides the knowledge they need for problem solving and he constantly prioritizes their mental health in the workplace. 

When student employees eventually move into the wider world—as Kreber and Fitzmaurice as well as Hall’s students have—the impact of the Libraries echoes far beyond campus. That’s why Culshaw has expanded opportunities for students to receive the kind of advanced training and scholarship support that have benefited student library workers through the decades.

“Our student workers remain a part of our community all their lives,” says Culshaw, who started his own career with a job at his undergraduate institution’s library. “They are an important part of the Libraries’ story, just as we hope to be part of theirs.”

Whatever happens, the priorities that will define the Libraries’ next chapter are clear, including support for students like Furio, whose time in Special Collections and Archives has affirmed more than their choice of career.

“I’ve gained so many mentors working here, and for the first time ever I can really see a path ahead where I’m happy and feel like myself,” says Furio.

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To learn more about how you can support Libraries’ student employees, including advanced students such as Furio, contact paula.wiley@foriowa.org.

Did your time as a Libraries student worker positively impact your life? Please share your thoughts with us at lib-communication@uiowa.edu for inclusion in a future Bindings.