Alumni Updates
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Mike Buschman
MLIS, 2000
In 2011, Mike co-founded Plum Analytics, which tracks, harvests, and displays metrics from online sources to measure the influence of researchers, groups, and institutions. In 2014, the company was acquired by EBSCO Information Services.
Lola Estelle
MLIS, 2000
As of 2024, Lola was a Senior Implementation Consultant for FOLIO services at EBSCO.
Gwendolyn Haley
MLIS, 2000
Gwendolyn works as a Library Services Manager for the Spokane County Library District and is in charge of Explore and Discover service priority--a job that encompasses programming for members in elementary school, middle, high school, and beyond. She and her team work closely with community partners to provide programs, classes and events that allow our community to explore and discover their interests, passions, and hobbies, as well as engage with their community.
In 2014, Gwendolyn was elected as Vice-President/President-Elect of the Pacific Northwest Library Association.
Cassandra Kvenild
MLIS, 2000
Cass was appointed Dean of the University Libraries at the University of Wyoming in March 2024.
Darlene Nordyke
MLIS, 2000
After working at the Seattle Public Library as a youth services librarian focusing on outreach to youth experiencing homelessness, Darlene transitioned to SharePoint development and software training with Sound Mental Health. Since 2013, she has been working at Premera Blue Cross as a Process and Procedure Analyst, promoted to Senior Process and Procedure Analyst in 2018. She volunteered with the Oasis LGBTQIA+ Youth Center for four years as Trauma Sensitive Yoga Facilitator until the 2020 pandemic, and is looking forward to volunteering with Oasis in the future.
Katy Shaw
MLIS, 2000
After an 11-year career at Microsoft as a Senior Program Manager, Katy left the company in 2019 to pursue her dream of traveling around the world. She has spent the past 2.5 years circling the globe with her husband to various countries including Thailand, Spain, Turkey and Croatia. The pair were in Italy when the coronavirus outbreak occurred, so they transitioned to driving around America in a motorhome. Once international travel resumed, they headed to Lisbon and kept going. You can follow Katy’s journey on her website A Rambling Unicorn.
Veronica Tabares
MLIS, 2000
Veronica's newest novel, Stone Woman, was published in June 2022.
Anne Turner
MLIS, 2000
Anne is now Operations Director and Senior Project Advisor for a Northwest-based advisory firm that focuses on clinical informatics and provides services to regional and national health-care organizations and hospitals.
Heather (Wilder) Pretty
MLIS, 1999
In October 2014, Heather was appointed as the coordinator for the Program for Cooperative Cataloging's new Atlantic Canada NACO Funnel.
Brian Bannon
MLIS, 1999
In 2012, Brian was appointed as the Commissioner of the Chicago Public Library. In a press releasing announcing his appointment, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel said, “Brian Bannon has the experience and vision to lead the Chicago Public Library and guide its expansion in the digital world,” and “it is more important than ever that our libraries provide children, students and families with resources to learn and grow. With his expertise in digital technology, Brian will expand the online resources of the Chicago Public Library and broaden the horizons of those who rely on it.”
In 2017, he was named a Henry Crown Fellow at the Aspen Institute, an educational and policy studies organization. The fellowship is aimed at mobilizing leaders under age 45 to tackle the world's most intractable problems.
Previously, Brian was the Chief Information Officer for the San Francisco Public Library, responsible for its digital strategy, information technology, web media, and online services. Brian also worked as the chief of branches, managed the staff and operations for San Francisco's neighborhood libraries, and had a central role in implementing San Francisco's $200 million branch library improvement program.