The Z. Smith Reynolds Library is pleased to announce the appointment of Sandy Rodriguez as its new Associate Dean. Ms. Rodriguez comes to us from the University of Missouri-Kansas City where she serves as Associate Dean of Special Collections & Archives. Ms. Rodriguez brings extensive library leadership experience to ZSR. She was a 2024 UCLA Library Senior Fellow and also was appointed as the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Provost’s Faculty Fellow for 2021-2022 at UMKC. In 2019 she received the Chancellor’s Award for Embracing Diversity at UMKC, and in 2018 she was recognized by the Missouri Library Association as its Outstanding Professional Librarian.

Ms. Rodriguez has a Master of Science in Library Science and a Bachelor of Music in Music Education from the University of Kentucky. She has held a series of positions at UMKC in cataloging, metadata, and digital collections before being appointed Assistant Dean in 2018 and promoted to Associate Dean in 2020.

Sandy Rodriguez succeeds Associate Dean Mary Beth Lock, who is retiring at the beginning of October. Ms. Rodriguez will manage faculty affairs and employee development for ZSR as well as coordinate communication, planning, and assessment efforts. She will be the senior administrator in the Library after the Dean of Library. Dean Tim Pyatt stated about Ms. Rodriguez: “Sandy is the ideal candidate to be our next Associate Dean. She brings a wealth of administrative experience and the strong desire to build on ZSR’s commitment to being a welcoming and inclusive place for students, faculty, and employees.” Dean Pyatt extends his thanks to the search committee members and to Jack Farrell & Associates, who lead the recruitment. Ms. Rodriguez will start in her position Dec.1, 2024.