What is a librarian extrovertinaire you ask? An extraordinarily extroverted librarian! I am a very social and outgoing person, and that usually surprises people. After all, librarians are introverts, right? Where have you been the last few years? Welcome to the social world of books and more!

My “I feel compelled to say this”-disclaimer: No, you don’t have to read this
If you are interested in my professional life, you may skip this section and go right over to my resume.

For all others: Thanks for not abandoning this poor page!

I was born in Recklinghausen, Germany, and moved to the States in February of 2007. Can’t believe that I have been here for six years now … and I still don’t get the jokes sometime -.-

I went to the Westfaelische Wilhelms-University Muenster, Germany, and graduated in October 2006 with my MA in English Linguistics. When I was done I NEVER wanted to go back to school … and then the library came along, and the rest is history (aka “graduated from the University of South Carolina in May 2011 with my MLIS”, “worked for various libraries” etc pp.)
I am a Knowledge Management Analyst, supporting the USAID Knowledge Services Center, and I can tell you that it never gets boring.
Before that, I had a lot of fun as a Reference Librarian at the National Transportation Library/US DOT.

Most people raise an eyebrow (or two) when I tell them that I worked as correctional librarian at the In Peumansend Creek Regional Jail in Bowling Green, VA. But believe it or not, I loved the job! If you are interested you can read my article about Librarians behind Bars

With the help of a number of wonderful librarians and other information professionals (Michele Brown, Dr. Sam Hastings and Dr. Kendra Albright at the University of South Carolina as well as Dr. Edna Reid, just to name a few), I have come to love my profession even more over the years. I am particularly interested in intelligence/data/knowledge analysis, disaster preparedness & response for information centers, and social media.

Busily plotting my professional future, I live with my pit bull mix Dutch, cat Filly and two water turtles (Blinky & Bubbles) in Montgomery County, MD.

And what if I had not discovered library science? I would either be a marine biologist studying sharks or a animal behavior specialist. Or go to culinary school. Maybe I’ll do that when I retire …

Cheers,
Aileen