New Hires & Staff Changes
September 25, 2022
Kathy Abromeit
Marla Thompson
Zeb Wimsatt
Emerson Morgan
Grace Elliott
Acting Head of the Oberlin Conservatory Library
Kathleen Abromeit, former Music Reference and Information Literacy Librarian, has been appointed the Acting Head of the Oberlin Conservatory Library with the retirement of Deborah Campana earlier this summer.
Music Reference and Information Literacy Librarian in the Conservatory Library
Grace Elliott is the Music Reference and Information Literacy Librarian in the Conservatory Library. She works to engage with students, faculty, and patrons in inquisitive and educational reference and information literacy experiences. Grace holds a Master’s in Library and Information Science from Kent State University with a focus in digital preservation. She also has a Bachelor of Arts from Case Western Reserve University, where she majored in music and English and fell in love with singing Schubert and Hahn, reading works by Margaret Atwood, and the history of women in rock. Her scholarly interests include digital literacy and preservation, library equity and inclusion, and music information retrieval. When not in the Conservatory Library, she is a teaching musician at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, where she works in the #TheGarage. You can hear her band, This Is Growing Up, around Cleveland and at pop punk festivals in the Midwest.
Circulation Coordinator in the Conservatory Library
Marla Thompson is the Circulation Coordinator in the Conservatory Library staff. She joined the Libraries on August 22, 2022. Marla holds a degree from Cleveland State University. Most recently, she worked as the Assistant to the Vice President and VP of Admissions and Financial Aid. Before that, Marla was the Secretary to the Director of Libraries. Marla shared that she enjoyed her time in the libraries as she observed how the connectivity of individual departments fused to support the inclusive mission of the libraries. Marla played piano in her youth when she studied at Oberlin as a burgeoning Suzuki pianist. Today, she is still passionate about music, stating, "I am grateful that the love of music has been passed down to my daughter, a violist, and my son, a bassist who is currently minoring in music at Kenyon College.” Welcome back to the Libraries, Marla.
Librarian for Special Collections in the Conservatory Library
Emerson Morgan joins the Libraries in November 2022 as the Librarian for Special Collections in the Conservatory Library. He is a teaching librarian and musicologist with experience in a wide range of musics and has served as a cataloger for music and image collections at Tufts University, the U.S. Office of the Répertoire International des Sources Musicales (RISM), Artstor, and Yale University. He holds a PhD in historical musicology from Harvard University and a Master’s degree in archives management from Simmons University. Emerson began music studies as an undergraduate at Oberlin and is thrilled to be back!
Evening Circulation Supervisor in Terrell Main Library
Zeb Wimsatt is Terrell Library’s new Evening Circulation Supervisor. Zeb grew up in New Hampshire and has worked in public libraries in Ohio, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts. Zeb has a BA from Vassar College, an MFA from Brown University, and an MLIS from Simmons University. Zeb recently co-wrote a chapter for the forthcoming Grabbing Tea: Queer Conversation on Identity and Libraries (Vol. 1), edited by Shawn(ta) Smith-Cruz and Sara A. Howard. Zeb practices writing, guitar, five-string banjo, papercut arts, and binding with partner Bess Kaple. Together, Zeb and Bess care for the elderly Chiweenie (Chihuahua and Dachshund cross dog breed) named Pigeon-bird-of-my-heart.