BOARD #145: Forming a Pod: A Naval Architecture, Marine and Ocean Engineering Librarian Community of Practice
- Conference
- Location
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Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- Publication Date
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June 22, 2025
- Start Date
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June 22, 2025
- End Date
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August 15, 2025
- Conference Session
- Tagged Division
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Engineering Libraries Division (ELD)
- Page Count
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10
- Permanent URL
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https://peer.asee.org/55964
Paper Authors
Sarah Barbrow
University of Michigan
orcid.org/0000-0001-8033-3945
Sarah Barbrow is a librarian and the Assistant Director of the Engineering Library at the University of Michigan. She is a liaison to three departments: Computer Science and Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, and Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering.
Sarah graduated with an MSI in Library and Information Services from the University of Michigan School of Information. She also has an MSc in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology also from the University of Michigan.
Kelly Durkin Ruth United States Naval Academy
Kelly Durkin Ruth is the United States Naval Academy’s engineering librarian. She is a recipient of an ATG Media Up and Comers Award and an SLA James M. Matarazzo Rising Star Award. Her work with SLA's Physics-Astronomy-Math division and ASEE's Engineering Libraries Division has led to research projects on the experiences of STEM librarians without STEM degrees and on STEM librarian professional motivations. In 2023 she was named an Institute for Research Design in Librarianship (IRDL) scholar. She received her Master of Information degree from the University of Toronto.
Amber Janssen
California State University Maritime Academy
orcid.org/0000-0001-9013-224X
Amber Janssen is an Associate Librarian at California State University, Maritime Academy (CSUM). Her research background is in the instruction and assessment of information literacy in undergraduate engineering education and the information behaviors of marine engineers.
Christina Mayberry University of California San Diego
Christina Mayberry is an engineering librarian at the University of California San Diego where she serves as a subject liaison to the Shu Chien-Gene Lay Department of Bioengineering, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department, and the Structural Engineering Department at the Jacobs School of Engineering.
Sarah Over
Virginia Tech
orcid.org/0000-0002-2599-0050
Dr. Sarah Over is the Engineering Collections and Research Analyst at Virginia Tech, serving as their Engineering Librarian and representative for their new Patent and Trademark Resource Center. She is also part of a team focused on research impact and intelligence to support the College of Engineering and Office of Research and Innovation at Virginia Tech. Dr. Over’s background is in aerospace and nuclear engineering, with years of experience teaching engineering research methods and introductory coding.
Sarah Parker
University of British Columbia, Vancouver
orcid.org/0000-0002-1710-9825
Sarah Parker (she/her/hers) is a reference librarian on Canada's west coast at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, where she also received her MLIS. As the liaison to several departments in the Faculty of Applied Science including Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering, Sarah provides research support and instruction to undergraduate and graduate students. As an adjunct instructor at UBC's School of Information she brings her knowledge and experience supporting engineering into the classroom encouraging students to consider STEM librarianship.
Abstract
Naval Architecture, Marine, and Ocean Engineering (NAMOE) programs are unique in that they are specialized, interdisciplinary, and uncommon at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. As a result, librarians or subject specialists who liaise with these areas can encounter a lack of resources and knowledge to support the students and faculty in these programs. A group of librarians who have NAMOE programs as part of their institutions recently started a dedicated group, combining elements of communities of practice and peer group mentoring to discuss how best to support these programs and each other as professionals with varying experience in this subject area. Plans include development of a resource similar to chapters in Osif’s Using the Engineering Literature and enhancing discovery of OER in NAMOE. In this article, in addition to sketching out some of the resources we plan to create and share, we will discuss the formation of this group and reflect on how it has impacted our work. By combining our efforts, we will enhance teaching and research for NAMOE programs, deepen our expertise in NAMOE library services, and present a framework for other specialized librarian communities to follow.
Barbrow, S., & Durkin Ruth, K., & Janssen, A., & Mayberry, C., & Over, S., & Parker, S. (2025, June), BOARD #145: Forming a Pod: A Naval Architecture, Marine and Ocean Engineering Librarian Community of Practice Paper presented at 2025 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition , Montreal, Quebec, Canada . https://peer.asee.org/55964
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