Melanie Griffin has been appointed interim associate dean for the University Libraries Special Collections Division, effective July 9.
“Melanie has served as a leader in Special Collections at the University Libraries since her hire in 2018. Her almost four years of service to the U of A and considerable professional experience make her a clear choice to serve as the interim associate dean for Special Collections,” said Jason Battles, dean of libraries. “I am grateful that Melanie is willing to take on these additional responsibilities at this critical moment as we prepare for the renovation of Special Collections and the remainder of levels 1 and 2 of Mullins Library.”
Griffin was hired in 2018 as director of Special Collections services.
“Over the past four years, I’ve been privileged to work with wonderful colleagues in the division as well as students, faculty and community members to provide access to the unique and rare materials we steward,” Griffin said. “I’m delighted to have the opportunity to continue working with the division in this new capacity at this really exciting time as we look forward to our first major renovation.”
One of Griffin’s first challenges will be preparing for the upcoming renovation, which will require all Special Collections materials currently housed on Mullins Level 1 to be temporarily relocated.
“My top priority is helping the division prepare for the renovation and articulating our needs and vision to the wonderful architects the university contracted with for the project,” she said. “Equally important to me is ensuring that Special Collections can continue stewarding and providing access to our collections while we’re in temporary spaces over the course of the renovation.”
The current Special Collections reading room, MULN 130, will close from Aug. 22 through Sept. 5 to facilitate the move. The current faculty reading room, MULN 329, will be repurposed to serve as the temporary Special Collections reading room beginning Sept. 6. Individual faculty carrels will remain available throughout the renovation, as will all of Mullins Levels 3 and 4.
When asked to share about an interesting or unique item in Special Collections, Griffin said, “My answer to this question changes pretty much daily, depending on what I’ve seen most recently. Today, my answer is the Neil Compton Papers (some of which are available online), which detail the Ozark Society’s efforts to preserve the Buffalo River and have it designated a National River.”
When she’s not in the library, Griffin can usually be found on the Fayetteville trails or reading speculative fiction in a coffee shop.