The University of Queensland will soon have a new Librarian with a new title that reflects the increasingly diverse role of the Library's services.
UQ’s Vice-Chancellor, Professor John Hay, AC, has announced the appointment of Keith Webster as University Librarian and Director of Learning Services.
Mr Webster will maintain responsibility for 13 libraries across the University with more than 2 million volumes, 11,289 print journals and 29,551 electronic journals, 864 networked databases, 358,161 electronic books, 29,915 videos and extensive manuscript, microform and pictorial collections.
Mr Webster is currently University Librarian at Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand. He was previously Head of Information Policy at Her Majesty’s Treasury, London.
He succeeds former Librarian Janine Schmidt who took up the position of Trenholme Director of Libraries at McGill University in Montreal, Canada.
Professor Hay said the new title of Librarian and Director of Learning Services reflected the increasing contribution being made by the Library in the provision and support of learning resources and systems in collaboration with the University’s Teaching and Educational Development Institute and Information Technology Services.
“Over the past decade the Library has gone through an enormous period of change due to new electronic technologies that have opened up new ways of learning,” Professor Hay said.
“I am confident that Mr Webster, with his knowledge and experience of library services, will find new ways to enhance the learning experience and provide more efficient and exciting methods of accessing information.”
“We are very pleased that he will be joining the UQ community.”
It is anticipated that Mr Webster will take up the position at the University within the next few months once arrangements for his move to Australia have been completed.
Professor Hay thanked Mary Lyons, who has been Acting University Librarian since early 2005, for her dedication.
“We are all very grateful to Mary for the work she has done since Janine’s departure,” he said.
Mr Webster’s earlier roles in library management include Director of Information Services and Strategy in the University of London’s School of Oriental and African Studies, with leadership of a world-renowned specialist library collection of 1.2 million volumes.
He has a Bachelor of Science with honours in Computer Science and Information Studies from Loughborough University in the UK, a Master of Library Management from the University of Wales and is completing a Doctor of Education degree from the University of London.
Mr Webster is a Chartered and Honorary Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals and a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society. He is currently an Adjunct Professor in the School of Information Management at Victoria University and Honorary Professor of Information Science at City University, London.
Media: for more information or images, contact Chris Saxby at UQ Communications (telephone 07 3365 2479, email c.saxby@uq.edu.au).
