Although I will be stepping away as the Dean of Libraries as of the end of July, the past two and half years have been some of the most rewarding of my career. The students, staff, faculty, and UR community have been the best part of this job. They all welcomed me into the UR community and I never felt like an outsider.
Together, we have accomplished much in my time at River Campus Libraries. We have created a new strategic plan, maneuvered enterprise platform migrations erasing years of technical debt, worked with University HR to modernize our employment structure, refreshed spaces, and created new student experiential programs. When I write it all down it sounds daunting, but the fact of the matter is it was all possible because of our staff and the support of Provost David Figlio, and President Sarah Manglesdorf.
Throughout my decades of work at other institutions, I have never seen two administrators more supportive of libraries.
I will be transitioning to my alma mater Cleveland State University - College of Law as an assistant professor and director of the law library. It is a homecoming for me as I am a two-time alum and worked there previously. The decision to leave Rochester was very tough, but ultimately I could not say no to going home.
Maurini Strub, assistant dean of planning and strategy, will assume the interim dean role as of August 1. Maurini was the co-architect of the library’s strategic plan and no one is better positioned to take the library forward in new and innovative ways.
UR will always have a special place in my heart.
Kevin Garewal
Vice Provost and Andrew H. and Janet Dayton Neilly Dean
University of Rochester Libraries
