Building on a Foundation of Trust
Perpetually curious, Colby’s new director of libraries plans for its next chapter
Lauren Slingluff, the newly appointed Michael and Eugenia Wormser Director of the Colby Libraries, wants to make sure that under her watch, trust and faith in the library remain vibrant, alive, and buttressed by strong policies and thoughtful leadership.
In her role, Slingluff, who goes by “L,” directs a vital academic hub that supports student success, community building, and a sense of belonging among generations of Colby students. She succeeds former Director of Libraries Kevin L. Smith, who retired recently.
“I’m thrilled to come and join the community and to make connections with people,” Slingluff said, adding that she was honored to follow Smith in this role and “continue working with all of the staff to keep growing and building and supporting the community.”
A special role
Slingluff most recently served as the university librarian for the University of New Haven in West Haven, Conn., a private institution with around 9,000 students.
She believes that academic libraries have a special role, and academic librarians have the good fortune to be able to learn constantly. As librarians support students and faculty in their research projects, they also get to learn about those topics and see what patrons are passionate about and interested in.
“Academic libraries are meant to represent a variety of perspectives, to encourage critical inquiry and dialogue across differences, and to be challenged by new ideas and by new concepts,” Slingluff said. “Because that’s what college is all about. It’s about learning, and it’s about growth.”
Slingluff has worked in academic libraries for 15 years, overseeing policies, managing staff and budgets, and working closely with faculty and students. During that time, she has learned to rely on diverse skills, including budget management and strategic planning, to build what she calls a “21st-century library” that is responsive to the changing demands of our times.
Provost and Clara C. Piper Professor of Environmental Studies Denise Bruesewitz is delighted that Slingluff has joined the College.
“Her curiosity and passion for learning, as well as her experiences in library strategic planning, team building, and campus engagement, demonstrate her vision for leadership of the Colby Libraries,” Bruesewitz said. “She will be a wonderful collaborator with faculty, students, and others across our community to continue to foster the library as the heart of campus life. I am struck by Lauren’s sensitivity to balancing the role of the library as a foundation for supporting academic curiosity, while exploring the dynamic roles libraries can play in a changing world.”
Led by curiosity
Slingluff’s pathway toward becoming a librarian was slightly circuitous. As an undergraduate at St. Lawrence University in Canton, N.Y., she originally planned to become a zoologist before her interests led her to veer off that track and onto another.
“As so often happens in a liberal arts experience, I fell in love with my religious studies courses, and did independent research in India, so I changed my major,” Slingluff recalled. “I got a degree in religious studies, and a minor in gender and sexuality studies, and hit my senior year and thought, ‘What do I do with this degree?’”
And as luck would have it, she found the answer in the library. Slingluff, whose grandmother was a librarian and whose mother has worked in libraries, took a one-credit history of information class taught by a university librarian during her senior year. She liked it, then got a job as a student worker in the archives and special collections. It was a revelation.
“Libraries are fascinating, and they do so much. What really appealed to me about becoming a librarian is that I am perpetually curious,” she said, “That I could be the library director at this beautiful institution and a fantastic school dedicated to the liberal arts—I definitely keep pinching myself. It feels like a dream.”
‘She will be a wonderful collaborator with faculty, students, and others across our community to continue to foster the library as the heart of campus life.’
Provost Denise Bruesewitz
