Introducing Our Library Faculty: Kelly Banyas

This Q&A originally appeared in Information Update, the Weinberg Memorial Library's newsletter.

Kelly joined the Library faculty in June 2017 as the Research & Instruction Librarian for Health Sciences and has recently transitioned to the Research & Instruction Librarian for Student Success on Jan. 2, 2019.

Frank Conserette (FC), editor of Information Update, recently interviewed Kelly (KB).

FC: Please tell us a bit about your background and how you got into librarianship?

KB: I actually grew up down the street from a small public library, where I began volunteering in high school. I have always loved to read and spent a lot of time there while growing up. My experiences there led me to pursue a part-time library job while I was in college. After I graduated with degrees in history and classics, I realized I had no idea what I actually wanted to do. When I remembered how much I loved working in libraries, I pursued a full-time library position while saving up to work towards my Master of Library Science degree. After a few years, I decided to attend The University of Maryland (UMD), and it was there that I realized I wanted to focus on being a librarian at an academic institution. I had been working at one of the University’s libraries, and I also completed a fellowship where I taught classes about doing research. I was lucky enough to be hired here shortly after graduation!

FC: It sounds like you had a really great experience at UMD with being able to work at the library and complete a teaching fellowship. What was it about the Research & Instruction for Health Sciences position and The University of Scranton that interested you?

KB: It was really a combination of a lot of different factors. It was primarily my newly discovered interest in teaching that led me to look for positions that involved instruction. On top of that, I was pre-med for a brief time in college and my parents have both worked in the medical field, so I’ve always had an interest in the health sciences. My experience working at the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) library at UMD, which involved health-related subject area responsibilities, helped familiarize me with a lot of the resources that would be central to the Health Sciences position. I also grew up in Northeast Pennsylvania, so it was really great to be able to move closer to my family.

FC: So, you had a pretty good idea of what you would be getting into as the Health Sciences librarian. Tell us about some of the work you did and your experiences in that position.

KB: My day-to-day as the Health Sciences librarian was constantly different. I typically staff the Research Services desk for a few hours, and you never know what questions you’ll get when you’re there. I also met with a lot of students and faculty for research consultations; it’s amazing the things the students are studying in these disciplines! Also, I was invited to teach a lot of information literacy instruction sessions within the health sciences disciplines because many of their classes are research focused. Some of my time was spent just keeping up on all the different changes within the databases and publishing platforms.

Read on in Information Update here.