Steve Ely, librarian at large

About Me

I'm a librarian focused on the uses of technology to improve access, understanding, and knowledge.

For over 15 years, I worked in a university library first as a reference librarian and then an electronic resources librarian.
In January 2024, I decided to leave that workplace to better pursue professional growth and a results-oriented organization with values I share.

Throughout my library career, I've engaged in dialogue with patrons and colleagues to understand their needs and to devise and communicate solutions.

In recent years, I coordinated with vendors, colleagues, and patrons to acquire, configure, manage, and provide access to electronic resources and to provide guidance and assistance in the use of them.

This has often entailed coordination with vendors, colleagues, and patrons to acquire, configure, manage, and provide access to electronic (and print) resources–including with product activation, EZproxy configuration, Alma link resolver management (after 2 previous systems), LibGuides A-Z databases management and guide development, Primo Back Office (and previously EDS) configuration, EBSCOadmin maintenance, wide-ranging troubleshooting, library website contributions, EBSCOnet use, usage statistics reporting, subscription renewal determinations, and analysis toward recommendations for potential additions.

I've taught hundreds of library instruction sessions and directly helped several thousand individual patrons.

So far in 2024, I'm especially focused on:

• improving my knowledge of
  • tools such as CSS, JavaScript, SQL, Python, Java, and R, among others,
  • and concepts and practices around cataloging, metadata, authentication, collection development, and scholarly communication,
• investigating several different LIS research questions, which I hope to document here,
• and pursuing meaningful work with an organization that's a good fit for me philosophically and functionally.