SLU Appoints University Librarian

Gail M. Staines, Ph.D.

Saint Louis University has appointed Gail M. Staines, Ph.D., University librarian. Staines currently is executive director of the Western New York Library Resources Council, a member library system serving more than 600 different types of libraries including public and private universities in New York. She officially joins SLU June 1.

"Dr. Staines is well qualified for this important role, boasting more than 15 years of leadership experience in library and information science organizations," said Saint Louis University Provost Joe Weixlmann, Ph.D. "Moreover, she brings to SLU a wealth of administrative and fund-raising knowledge, which will help take our libraries to the next level."

Staines' appointment follows a national search that included faculty and staff participation as well as open forums for the entire University community.

"From the moment I first set foot on Saint Louis University's campus, I knew it was a very special place," Staines said. "In addition to the rich library collections and well-educated, hard-working librarians and library staff, there is a clear message that SLU is a university on the move."

An accomplished grant writer, Staines has secured a nearly 100-percent acceptance rate for grants during her tenure as CEO of the library system in New York. In that leadership role, she strives to improve access to all types of information for the 1.5 million people of western New York.

Staines also is very familiar with the needs of faculty members, having been one for more than 15 years. Since 1990, she has served as a visiting professor at the University at Buffalo's School of Informatics, teaching graduate-level courses on library and information science and on library management. At Buffalo, Staines has taught courses in the traditional classroom setting as well as through distance learning programs.

From 1988-1998, she served as a tenured associate professor at Niagara County Community College in Sanborn, N.Y., where she also was coordinator of information literacy. In that capacity, she managed an information literacy program of 10 librarians that reached more than 3,500 students per year. She doubled faculty participation in the program, eventually involving 250 full- and part-time faculty members. At Niagara, she also served as the faculty development coordinator for a decade.

"Top-level professors, researchers and administrators at Saint Louis University have shared with me their enthusiasm for working in an environment where the goal is to be the finest Catholic university in the country," Staines said.

"I am thrilled that I will be a part of this process, and I am very excited about becoming part of the SLU family."

Staines has received a number of distinctions and honors during her career. She was selected as one of Library Journal's 2004 "Movers and Shakers" in the library and information profession. She serves a reviewer for the Journal of Library Administration and Management.

She is a member of the American Library Association and served on the ALA Presidential Special Committee on Community Partnerships. She also is a member of the Association of College and Research Libraries, the Library Administration and Management Association, and Beta Phi Mu, the international library honor society. She also served on the board of directors of the academic and special libraries section of the New York Library Association.

Staines earned her doctorate in higher education administration from the University at Buffalo. She also earned her master of library science (MLS) and bachelor's degree in political science from Buffalo.

Weixlmann expressed his gratitude to Richard Amelung, Ph.D., who has served as interim University librarian since September 2004. Amelung will continue in his role as head of technical services for the SLU Law Library.

"I want to thank Dr. Amelung for the great job he has done in leading our libraries during this time of transition," Weixlmann said.

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