News

Jeffry Archer appointed Associate Dean, User Services

Published: 27 October 2016

The McGill Library and Archives is pleased to welcome Jeffry Archer as the new Associate Dean, User Services, on a four-year term effective January 3, 2017.

“Jeffry will be an incredible asset to the entire McGill community. Throughout his career, he has shown himself to be a hands-on leader who understands the importance of listening to the diverse needs of students, faculty and researchers and has the ability to develop services to best support the community,” said C. Colleen Cook, Trenholme Dean of Libraries.

Archer joins McGill after more than over two decades with Regenstein Library at the University of Chicago, where he most recently served as Head of Reference, Instruction and Outreach (RIO) and Bibliographer for Business and Economics. Archer was an active participant in desk and email research consultations and in providing specialized reference and bibliographic services to support teaching and research programs. He also led initiatives on campus, including efforts to increase disability accommodations and accessible technologies in the library.

“The world class students, faculty and researchers who use the Library are our most important resource. As the academic heart of the McGill campus, our primary responsibility is designing, implementing and offering the services that allow them to access the information they need, however, whenever and wherever they want it,” said Cook.

As Associate Dean, User Services, Archer will play an integral part in shaping the Library’s role in the McGill community moving forward. Technology has altered the very mandate of modern libraries, and pivoting and developing services centered squarely on the needs of users—students, faculty or researchers—has become a crucial component in re-imagining today’s spaces. The McGill Library’s Strategic Priorities 2016+ “places the students, faculty and researchers as the primary motivators for all decision making” and indicates that “[a]ll staff should be foremost focused and dedicated to meeting the needs of users who work and study in the Library’s spaces and utilize its services, both on-site and online.”

 

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