I’ve worked at AU for 22 and a half years. Before that, I was a student at AU studying international development with a minor in economics.

My job is to manage our course reserves and make textbooks and articles available to students. Between digital and physical materials, we receive about 15,000 course reserves requests per year for required readings. I also manage the library’s Makerspace, which includes the poster printer, 3D printer, and our crafting tools in the basement.

A typical day includes finding links, scanning chapters, and uploading documents, especially at the beginning of the semster. I also have desk hours at the circulation service desks, and I go down to the Makerspace to answer questions or fix a sewing machine. My office is on the first floor of Bender Library.

My go-to lunch spot is eating in the SIS atrium. Campus is at its prettiest when the cherry blossoms bloom and all the beautiful flowers come back to campus. My favorite place on campus to steal a quiet moment is by Sudama behind Kay Spiritual Life Center. My go-to order at the Dav is a café latte.

I show my AU spirit by supporting and encouraging my colleagues at the library. Andrea Paredes-Herrera and I help celebrate birthdays and other moments with our larger Discovery, Access, and Assessment Division that includes 16 staff. I found my community at AU through Andrea, who started about a year after me. We have a personal friendship that makes coming to work delightful.

The person who helped show me the ropes is my current manager, Rob Kelshian, director of Discovery, Access, and Assessment. When I started, we were colleagues and we’ve had a lasting work relationship. The most famous face I’ve seen on campus is George Clooney’s father, Nick Clooney, the distinguished journalist in residence for the School of Communication.

My favorite day of the workweek is Friday. It’s chill here on campus. My work-from-home rituals include finding a fun place to work away from home. Sometimes I go to the public library or I sit at a beautiful outdoor atrium connected to a coffee shop in Cleveland Park. It makes work feel less lonely. I do my Zoom meetings from my cubicle in the library.

When I’m not at work, you can find me taking a walk at the National Cathedral or hanging out with friends who live in Frederick, Maryland. My hobbies include crocheting amigurumis, which are little stuffed animals. It has brought me quite a bit of joy to create cute penguins, octopi, and sharks for friends and family.

The last great book I read was The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Cristie. It had a good twist. The last great show I watched was Deadloch, a dark, murder-mystery comedy. The last great meal I ate was pepperoni pizza at Grimaldi’s Pizzeria in Brooklyn, New York, while visiting my sister.

If I wasn’t a course reserves manager, I’d be working in a craft workshop leading classes. But my job at AU is best because I love my colleagues so much and enjoy getting to work with a variety of faculty and students.