Gibbons named vice provost for collections and scholarly communications

Susan Gibbons, the Stephen F. Gates ’68 University Librarian and deputy provost for collections and scholarly communications, has been appointed Yale’s vice provost for collections and scholarly communications, President Peter Salovey announced. The appointment is effective July 1.

In her new role, Gibbons will further connect Yale’s world-class collections with its mission of education, research, preservation, and practice. In addition to the Yale University Library, her expanded portfolio of responsibilities will include the Institute for the Preservation of Cultural Heritage at West Campus, Yale University Art Gallery, Yale Center for British Art, Yale Peabody Museum, and Yale University Press.

The university will launch a search for a new university librarian, and Gibbons will continue to steward the library system until her successor is appointed.

In 2016, after serving as the university librarian for five years, Gibbons received a second appointment as deputy provost for collections and scholarly communications to foster collaboration among Yale’s libraries, museums, galleries, and other collection holdings. She has led the development of a common experience for students, faculty, staff, and visitors across more than a dozen libraries and locations.

“Major digitization projects, cutting-edge research on digital preservation, and innovative discovery systems have made the library’s collections — among the largest in North America — more accessible for teaching and research than ever before,” said Salovey in an email announcing the news. “The Fortunoff Video Archive’s Holocaust testimonies, rare performances of Charles Ives compositions, and the Kilpatrick collection of Cherokee manuscripts are just some of the cultural materials that have been made available to Yale faculty and students and the global research community.”

Gibbons led fundraising efforts that secured more than $43 million in gifts and grants to support the library’s central role in Yale’s mission, and she has been responsible for significant advances in library programs, service offerings, research support, spaces, and community outreach. She expanded special collection classrooms and teaching support, and established a student-curated exhibit program. She led the renovation of spaces in Sterling Memorial Library and the Center for Science and Social Science Information in Kline Biology Tower. She also has raised the profile of Yale externally through her leadership and professional service, including in her current role as president of the Association of Research Libraries. Her commitment to internships helped earn the first Ivy Award from New Haven Promise in recognition of the library’s contributions to the New Haven community.

“Her success in the last eight years has reinforced the importance and uniqueness of Yale’s collections in providing educational opportunities for students and avenues of research for faculty members,” said Salovey. “In her expanded role as vice provost, Susan will lead campus-wide, national, and global conversations about integrating cultural heritage resources in teaching and research. She will accelerate our collections strategy by developing and implementing initiatives for sharing technology, storage, conservation, preservation, and teaching programs across the university’s collections.”

Salovey has appointed a search advisory committee  for the university librarian position, which will be chaired by Christina Kraus, the Thomas A. Thacher Professor of Latin. Use this webform to write to the committee with recommendations and suggestions.